FCA approves takeover of Liverpool customer acquisition specialist

The Financial Conduct Authority has approved the takeover of Online Legal by Manchester-based Blume, for an undisclosed sum.

Blume, formerly mmadigital, is a customer acquisition specialist in the legal services sector, focusing on acquiring cases on behalf of its law firm client base, which are generated via its in-house consumer brands The Compensation Experts and The Medical Negligence Experts.

Online Legal is a Liverpool-based technology-led customer acquisition specialist for the legal sector.

The deal will strengthen and broaden Blume’s proposition to law firms by enhancing its cross-channel marketing expertise and offering more service choice and flexibility.

Under the arrangement, both companies will continue to operate as individual entities, connecting active customers with law firms looking to grow through their high-performing consumer brands.

The shared technology-driven approach, combined with industry knowledge, will enable the businesses to capitalise on new opportunities as well as growing their existing client bases.

The move marks another stage in Blume’s ambitious expansion plans and comes nine months after it secured private equity funding from Rockpool Investments. The business has doubled in size over the past year and is on track to achieve a £30m turnover by the end of 2023.

Dez Derry, Blume’s CEO and founder, said: “The deal with Online Legal will give us additional capabilities to further enhance our service offering as we continue to evolve and capitalise on our long term growth plans and improve market strength.

“The combined entity will add scale and diversification to the business which will enable us to reach a wider audience as well as providing more comprehensive solutions that better satisfy our clients’ needs.”

Nathan O’Connor, founder and director of Online Legal, and a former legal counsel for Liverpool online retailer Shop Direct, said: “This is such an exciting time for Online Legal as we join Blume to embark on a new chapter.

“Both companies have a similar vision, ethos and focus, which makes us a perfect strategic fit. While we will continue to maintain our separate brands given their individual strengths, the bringing together of the businesses will further enhance our customer proposition with a more forward thinking vision and approach.”