The two companies will now operate wholly as an independent financial advisory firm.

Ascot Lloyd Financial Services and Bellpenny have become a single, fully independent financial advisory company (IFA) under the unified brand Ascot Lloyd. This comes after the merger of the two companies in July 2017.

The two companies will now operate wholly as an IFA under the Ascot Lloyd name, following demand from both advisors and clients, the firm said in a statement.

This change will enable the business to provide a broader product set and is part of the group’s growth strategy.

Following the merger in July 2017, the business saw strong growth in the second half of the year. The combined Ascot Lloyd now has a turnover in excess of £40 million ($54.2 million), over £6 billion in funds under management, 80 personal advisors and 40,000 clients.

“The merger of Ascot Lloyd and Bellpenny in 2017 has already proven highly successful, generating strong growth momentum in only a few months,” said Nigel Stockton, chief executive of Ascot Lloyd. “We are a highly profitable and fast growing business, underpinned by a great team of advisors. At the heart of our success is a client driven business, and our move to become fully independent is in direct response to what our clients and advisers want, while also allowing us to offer a more comprehensive service.

Stockton added: “We have now established an outstanding platform, with significant scale and a trusted brand. Going forward we have considerable opportunities to expand our client base, deepen existing relationships and welcome new, high quality advisors. We look ahead to 2018 with great confidence.” 

The firm has its headquarters in Reading, and has offices in Birmingham, Cambridge, Christchurch, Essex, Glasgow, Harrogate, Ipswich, London, Rickmansworth, Tunbridge Wells and Wolverhampton.