Acquisition of LIFT to accelerate growth in Financial Planning

Brooks Macdonald Group announces today that it will acquire 100% of the issued share capital of each of LIFT – ‘LIFT-Financial Group Ltd and LIFT-Invest’ (together, “LIFT”) for an initial consideration of £30 million payable in cash on completion and a total consideration of up to £45m, subject to financial targets (the “Acquisition”). The Acquisition aligns with the Group’s strategy by expanding its client reach and accelerating growth in Financial Planning. The Acquisition is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to complete by the end of March 2025. 

Andrea Montague, CEO & CFO of Brooks Macdonald, commented:

“I am pleased to announce today the acquisition of LIFT, a high-quality and well-established financial services business with a track record of profitable growth. This is an exciting step in the execution of our strategy and reinforces our commitment to delivering trusted financial planning services backed by best-in-class multi-asset investment solutions. I look forward to welcoming the talented and experienced LIFT team to Brooks Macdonald.”
 

Michael Holden & Joel Adams, Founders of LIFT, commented:

“We are delighted that we have partnered with Brooks Macdonald, a business with an excellent reputation who share our commitment to achieving the best possible outcomes for clients. We are tremendously proud of the business we have built over the last 17 years, and as part of Brooks Macdonald we will be able to bring a new level of sophistication to our investment proposition, as well as much better opportunities for our people as part of a larger business. We look forward to joining the Group and are excited about the future of our business as we leverage the opportunities this transaction will create for everyone involved.”

LIFT is headquartered in Greater Manchester, with offices in London and Edinburgh. As at 31 December 2023, assets under advice (AuA) are c. £1.6 billion of which c. £600 million are also Funds Under Management (FuM). LIFT’s high-quality base of c. 1,400 clients is made up of private individuals – predominantly in financial services and professional sports – families and corporate clients. In addition to wealth management, LIFT offers mortgage and insurance services. 

LIFT delivered revenues of £11.3 million, EBITDA of £2.5 million and reported PBT of £0.5 million for the year ended 31 December 2023. As of 31 December, 2023, it had net assets of £0.8 million. The Acquisition is expected to be accretive to underlying earnings per share in the first full year of ownership.

The Acquisition will further enhance the Group’s existing financial planning capabilities and those that have been recently acquired through the purchase of Lucas Fettes Financial Planning. These acquisitions combined will add over £16.5m of annual revenues and grow our AuA by c 70% to create a UK financial planning capability with AuA of c. £6.2 billion (post BMI disposal).  LIFT forms a good strategic fit with the Group’s best-in-class investment management capabilities and provides strong opportunities for growth in the future. 

Further details

Total consideration for the Acquisition is up to £45 million, which will be funded from the Group’s existing cash resources:
· £30 million paid in cash upon completion.
· Up to £10 million paid in cash at the end of the first 12 months following completion depending on achieving certain client retention (weighted by AuA) targets; and 
· Up to £5 million paid in a 50:50 mix of cash and Brooks Macdonald shares at the end of the first 12 months following completion dependent on EBITDA financial targets being met.

About Brooks Macdonald

Brooks Macdonald Group plc, which was founded in 1991 and began trading on AIM in 2005, had discretionary FUM of £18.0 billion as of 30 June 2024.

Brooks Macdonald offers leading multi asset investment services to intermediaries and high-quality financial planning advice to private clients, benefitting from a strong local presence across the UK.