February 6, 2024 — Chorley, UK and Boston, MA It gives us pleasure to announce the appointment of Charlesbank Capital Partners (‘Charlesbank’) as the new lead private equity investor for Perspective Financial Group Ltd (‘Perspective’ or the ‘Group’), replacing CBPE Capital LLP (‘CBPE’). Originally managing private equity assets under the Harvard University endowment, Charlesbank is a US-based company with headquarters in Boston. The company became independent in 1998. Charlesbank and the management team will continue to be major owners.
With £8.0 billion in assets under advice, Perspective, a renowned independent financial adviser (or “IFA”) business, was founded in 2008. Through its subsidiary in Cambridge, the Group offers services related to investment management and complete financial planning. With decades of combined wealth management experience, the Group’s management board is led by CEO Ian Wilkinson, CFO David Hesketh, and CRO Julie Hepworth. Of the approximately 500 employees, 140 work as financial advisers out of the Group’s 40 offices located throughout the United Kingdom.
after its founding in 2008, Perspective has executed over 80 acquisitions, of which over 45 have been done after CBPE invested in 2019. All of these acquisitions have been completely integrated into the Group. This degree of integration allows all acquisitions to profit from the large expenditures made in central support operations and technology, while also guaranteeing continuously high levels of advising and compliance.
“This new investment from Charlesbank reflects and indeed enhances our position as the UK’s premier client-centric financial planning firm,” stated Perspective’s CEO, Ian Wilkinson. This is terrific news since our new partners will enable us to operate on a larger scale, giving our employees and clients even more options and more value for their money.
Our success is largely attributed to our remarkable, deeply ingrained client-centric culture and whole-of-market strategy. From the beginning, CBPE recognised this, and it is evident that Charlesbank also shares our objective.
Being a unique company in the industry, we chose our partners for the next stage of our growth and thought about a lot of different investors before deciding.
“Charlesbank’s proven ability to collaborate with like-minded companies and to provide both financial and strategic resources will allow us to further accelerate the growth journey’s pace and scope. In line with our strategy, we will grow to employ at least 1,500 people across more than 100 locations, positioning us as one of the UK’s leading full-service IFAs. We really think that our larger size and resources will result in both an overall reduction in the TERs paid by our customers and an improved client experience. As a result of this transaction, there will be no changes to the way our clients are handled or charged.
“We have been thoroughly impressed by Perspective’s client-first ethos, which has established Perspective as a leading provider of impartial, high-quality financial advice in the UK,” stated David Katz, Managing Director of Charlesbank. As demonstrated by the several acquisitions they have successfully accomplished to date, Perspective is a great place for advisors and the IFA acquirer of choice, complementing the Group’s ethical, client-centric culture with their unique centralised services and technology.
“Working together with Ian and the outstanding Perspective management team makes us feel really fortunate. Together, we hope to expand the Group and solidify Perspective’s position as the top independent supplier of financial planning and investment management services in the UK.
“We have had the pleasure of working in a highly collaborative partnership with a fantastic management team at Perspective,” stated Richard Thompson, a partner at CBPE. We have watched the company expand and change dramatically while continuing to focus on regulatory best practices and always acting in the best interests of its clients.
“We are incredibly proud of our accomplishments as a team and the calibre of Perspective as a foundation for future expansion in the UK wealth management industry.”
The transaction’s terms are kept private. The approval of the Change in Control by the Financial Conduct Authority is pending for the investment.
Also Read: The AI Boom: Are You Missing Out on Profitable Investments?
