Speaking to Portfolio Adviser the day after the announcement of its biggest acquisition to date, the purchase of Torquil Clark Holdings from Skipton Building Society, Ronaldson said IFA dynamics are largely behind the growth in M&A activity within the space.
“The wealth management sector is in a very strong space at the moment, and it is a market that will carry on as people will continue to want and need advice,” he said. Yet, despite this favourable outlook, there remains a pool of very willing sellers. The reason for this, he explains is partly demographics.
“The average age of an IFA is 58. There are a lot coming up to retirement and are questioning what they want to do. And, because of RDR some people are sitting back and asking whether or not they want to carry on if it means having to adapt to a changing regulatory environment,” he said.
But, because of the favourable outlook for the sector as a whole, matching this willing group of sellers, is a smaller buy equally motivated group of buyers – of which Bellpenny is one.
Ronaldson said: “At Bellpenny we can adapt, we are willing to be face-to-face advisors and we can be profitable doing so.”
Asked, if there is anything else catching the group’s eye at the moment, Ronaldson didn’t give any definitive answers, but said that the group has done around 7 acquisitions so far this year and would like to get that number up closer to the 15 level it did last year.
