An asset management business based in Bath and London with nearly £3bn of assets under management has been acquired by a specialist wealth and asset management company.
Alpha Beta Partners, which was established in 2017 by a team of experienced industry professionals, described the takeover by Tavistock Investments as leading to a new phase of growth and development.
Berkshire-headquartered Tavistock is making an initial payment of £6m at completion of the acquisition, with a maximum potential consideration capped at £18m.
The firm said the move would strengthen its asset management scale in the UK retail investment market.
It would also be a key step in the group’s refocusing into “a much more significant asset manager”, it added, by providing investment solutions to third-party advice firms and networks, as well as to retail clients directly.
Alpha Beta Partners founders Geoff Brooks and Andrew Thompson launched the business to provide a range of outsourced investment propositions to directly regulated advice businesses and appointed representative networks.
Based on management accounts for the first nine months of its current financial year, on an annualised basis, it had earnings before interest and tax of around £500,000 on turnover of over £4m and had net assets of just over £1.2m on 30 September.
Tavistock, which is based on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM market, said Alpha Beta Partners was particularly known in the industry for its Dynamic Asset Allocation process and modular proposition, which provides retail and wholesale investors with institutional techniques rarely found in this market segment.
The success of its outcome-oriented investment solutions has been recognised by rating experts Defaqto, having achieved 5 Star and 5 Diamond Ratings for the past five years.
Tavistock chief executive Brian Raven said: “Alpha Beta Partners is joining us at the ideal time.
“Their strategic plans and partnerships gel perfectly with ours, particularly in terms of how to improve investor services and value. We look forward to an exciting future together.”
Alpha Beta Partners managing director Geoff Brooks added: “We are delighted to be joining Tavistock to embark on the next phase of our growth and development, allowing us to continue to both support our existing clients and create new opportunities.
“Our team has been very impressed with everyone we have met at Tavistock and our strategic vision and ambitions are aligned.”
Alpha Beta Partners’ Bath office is on Upper Borough Walls.
