The transaction illustrates how private equity firms have been actively pushing into the wealth management space in recent years, seeing the fragmented market as ripe for consolidation as regulations and client expectations have risen.

Funds managed by the Credit Group of Ares Management have invested into Ascot Lloyd, the UK independent financial advisor firm.

The financing will support Ascot Lloyd’s growth strategy and increase capital available for acquisitions to more than £100 million ($139.4 million).
 
Ascot Lloyd completed 12 acquisitions in 2020, adding more than £6.5 million of earnings, with group revenues over £60 million, it said in a statement. Today, Ascot Lloyd is approaching £10 billion funds under influence, serving more than 21,000 clients through 132 IFAs across 15 locations nationwide.

The transaction illustrates how private equity firms have been actively pushing into the wealth management space in recent years, seeing the fragmented market as ripe for consolidation as regulations and client expectations have risen.

Also last week, global private equity house TA Associates took a stake in Chartered Financial Planning firm Fairstone. TA Associates has backed 25 wealth and asset management firms around the world. In December 2020 AnaCap Financial Partners agreed to buy Novia Financial, the wealth management platform. In February last year, AnaCap, which owns financial firms across Europe, also agreed to buy Wealthtime, a wealthtech platform that was founded in 2006.