IFA support business swoops in acquisition, with further planned
Corbel Partners, the Warrington-based support network supporting financial advisers, has extended its offer through the acquisition of Cannock-based Wealth Design Holdings, for an undisclosed sum.
Shawbrook supported Corbel in its acquisition.
Initially starting as a traditional IFA practice, Corbel Partners was founded in 2004 by co-founders and directors David O’Hara and Paul Heath.
Since its inception, the business has significantly expanded its capabilities – initially growing its advisory practice, before diversifying to offer a range of support services.
Under its advisory arm, appointed representatives of Corbel currently service more than 15,000 clients with assets under management (AuM) in excess of £2bn.
Its support services assist advisers with anything from compliance support and paraplanning, to full business support and technical training. With many smaller advisory practices wanting to retain a boutique appeal, but often concerned about effectively handling compliance, Corbel provides a service to IFAs by enabling them to provide fully independent advice .
Shawbrook has provided Corbel with an initial debt facility to support its initial acquisition of Wealth Design Holdings. The debt facility will also see Corbel invest in new technology to modernise its onboarding and advisory processes for clients. Beyond the initial facility, Shawbrook will provide an additional committed accordion facility to continue to support future acquisitions with another two completing in May.
As an appointed representative of Corbel Partners, Wealth Design has worked closely with Corbel for several years.
The acquisition is seen as a natural progression of its business relationship, as Wealth Design’s management team seeks to build an effective succession plan for the business with no client disruption. With many ageing advisory practices in similar positions across the country, Corbel is supporting their transition and maintaining client access to independent advice, while helping to future-proof the industry.
David O’Hara said: “At Corbel, we have ambitious plans for our future growth and business expansion which the (Shawbrook) team supported us with extensively.”
Daniel Martin, senior director at Shawbrook, said: “Having now supported several financial advice businesses in our time, we were immediately impressed with the potential of Corbel that David and Paul presented to us. There is a significant transition of wealth taking place across the IFA industry, which advisors need significant support to effectively manage. Corbel are uniquely placed to provide this support, and we look forward to further seeing their growth in the years to come.”
Shawbrook thanked Nicola Meritt and Cortus Advisory who provided financial due diligence and supported the client with the building of its model. Gunnercooke and Rowlinsons are also recognised for providing legal counsel to Shawbrook and Corbel, respectively.
