The latest M&A deals in wealth and asset management.

Succession Wealth
UK wealth management and financial planning group, Succession Wealth, has announced the acquisition – subject to FCA change of control approval – of Spence & Spence, an Edinburgh-based independent financial advisor which manages £170 million ($214.4 million) in assets.

This is Succession Wealth’s second acquisition under Aviva ownership and follows the purchases of Pannells Financial Planning, G+E Wealth Management, JCF Financial Services, Bankhouse Financial Management and Oxford Advisory Partnership in 2022, which collectively brought in more than £2.2 billion in assets. It marks Succession Wealth’s 62nd acquisition since 2014, the firm said in a statement.

James Stevenson, chief executive officer at Succession, said: “We are excited to welcome Spence & Spence to Succession and look forward to working with Charlie and his team. We see a lot of companies, but it became obvious to us very quickly that this was a high-quality business, filled with a talented financial planning team who share our values. Their long-standing high-quality reputation in the marketplace and focus and commitment on building long-term client relationships is something that especially resonated with us.”

Stevenson added that the firm is in exclusivity and advanced acquisition talks with several high-quality independent planning firms.

Charlie Spence, director at Spence & Spence, said: “After almost three decades growing the business, this is a big step, but one we are very excited to take with Succession.”

“From our first meeting, the synergies between our two businesses were clear and, with the benefit of the backing and support from a large organisation like Aviva, we can focus more on our clients and our relationships with them.”

“Our priority has always been our staff and clients, and we have no doubt that they will all benefit from Succession’s breadth and depth of expertise and capabilities.”

Founded in 1994, Spence & Spence provides holistic, independent financial advice. Its expertise spans pensions and retirement planning, investments, mortgage, protection. Moreover, it represents an important expansion for Succession in and around Edinburgh.