PE firm Apax acquires Evelyn Partners’ accounting arm

Wealth management and professional services group Evelyn Partners Group has reached a binding agreement to sell its professional services business to private equity firm Apax in a deal understood to be worth £700m.

Apax was in a bidding war with Bridgepoint to snap up the professional services unit, which includes the business formerly known as Smith & Williamson that Evelyn Partners bought back in 2020.

The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2025.

Upon completion, the professional services business will be rebranded S&W, building on the heritage of Smith & Williamson which was founded in 1881.

The sale means Evelyn Partners will now become a pure-play wealth manager. Evelyn Partners, which is majority owned by private equity firm Permira, is one of the UK’s largest wealth managers with £63bn in assets under management.

S&W will rank as a top ten UK accountancy business with around 1,600 employees and more than 121 partners operating from 15 offices across the UK, the Republic of Ireland and the Channel Islands.

Evelyn Partners’ professional services business has grown significantly in recent years, adding 32 new partners, and delivering organic revenue growth of 14% pa since the 2020 merger of Tilney and Smith & Williamson. More recently, it has complemented this growth with an active M&A programme, completing seven transactions since the start of 2023.

As part of the separation from Evelyn Partners, Andrew Wilkes, chief professional services director of Evelyn Partners, will become chief executive of S&W and Andrew Baddeley, group chief financial officer of Evelyn Partners, will take up the role of CFO of S&W.

Paul Geddes, chief executive officer of Evelyn Partners, said: “Evelyn Partners has demonstrated the strength and resilience of its business model since the merger in 2020. The growth of both our Financial Services and Professional Services businesses means that this is the right moment to sharpen our focus further by creating two strong standalone businesses, each concentrated on the growth opportunities in its sector. The exciting transaction we have announced today is very positive for both businesses.

“Importantly, we are committed to a strong, ongoing relationship so our mutual clients will see complete continuity in the teams that support them. Plans for an orderly separation are well advanced and I am grateful to the many colleagues across both businesses who have been involved in this. As well as being positive for our clients, the transaction will also create value for our investors, including the many colleagues who are shareholders.

“Following completion of the transaction, we will focus on extending the position of Evelyn Partners as one of the UK’s largest wealth managers, responsible for £62.7 billion of client assets[5], and with a track record of delivering positive net inflows of new assets every quarter since the 2020 merger. The strength of our dual expertise in both financial planning and investment management places us in an excellent position to support and attract clients in an environment when the demand for expert advice is exceptionally high.”

Andrew Wilkes, CEO designate of S&W, said: “Our Professional Services business has experienced a period of very strong growth in recent years, attracting top talent at all levels and expanding the range of services which we provide. More recently, we have launched our M&A programme, completing seven deals. We are seeing significant growth opportunities in the market and the whole team are very excited about our partnership with Apax Partners. The new funding and expertise that Apax brings will help accelerate our growth strategy. As we look ahead to a standalone future, the relationship with Evelyn Partners will be an enduring one as we continue to provide a joined-up service for shared clients, as well as identify new opportunities to work together.”

Frank Ehmer, partner at Apax, commented: “We have been tracking the accountancy and advisory space for a number of years and prioritised S&W as the ideal UK platform to invest behind. Throughout our engagement, it became immediately clear to us that S&W is a true market-leading player in the mid-market segment, and holds an unrivalled heritage and reputation from which the business can look to scale new heights. We are excited to partner with Andrew and the entire S&W team in this exciting new chapter as an independent business.”

Evelyn Partners has grown to be one of the largest UK wealth managers over the last decade, with the Permira Funds originally acquiring Bestinvest and combining it with Tilney in 2014. The group has since completed multiple add-on acquisitions, including the transformative acquisitions of Towry Group in 2016 and the merger with Smith & Williamson in 2020, which was supported by funds advised by Warburg Pincus.

These landmark transactions have broadened the group’s services, office network and scale and it has invested significantly in technology and its operational platform. The group rebranded to Evelyn Partners in 2022 following the successful integration of Tilney and Smith & Williamson.

During the Permira Funds’ ownership, the group’s AUM has increased from £5 billion (at the end of 2013) to £62.7 billion (as at 30 September 2024).

Evelyn Partners is being advised on the transaction by Evercore as financial adviser and Macfarlanes as legal adviser. Apax is being advised on the transaction by Jefferies and Nomura.

Evelyn Partners has offices in Bournemouth, Bristol and Exeter.