UK wealth management and consolidation giant Fairstone has acquired Devon-based Sabre Financial for an undisclosed sum.
The deal expands the firm’s nationwide footprint and adds £200m in funds under management (FuM), bringing total group FuM to more than £13bn ($16bn, €15bn).
Sabre joined Fairstone’s downstream buy out (DBO) programme in 2020, in which the wealth manager seeks to purchase and integrate IFA firms over a two-year period before the acquisition is finalised.
The advice firm was set up in 1997 and specialises in pensions and investments and has more then 800 clients served by nine advisers and staff.
Stuart Read, principal at Sabre Financial, said: “After discussing our objectives with a number of organisations, we felt that Fairstone was the only firm who genuinely understood the reasons behind our success as a financial planning business, and crucially, would support our growth.
“The proposition really appealed as our clients do not have higher costs forced upon them nor are they obligated to move into different investment solutions.
“This allows us to strive for excellence in the advice market whilst remaining independent.”
Fairstone chief executive Lee Hartley added: “Bringing Sabre into the group extends our nationwide footprint and the pace of their growth to date demonstrates their alignment with our model. We want to partner with ambitious firms and support their continued development, delivering long-term organic growth.
“In this climate in particular, it is essential for IFA businesses that are looking to sell to focus on protecting the value of their business to offset the impact of headwinds and uncertainties in the market.
“Our DBO model offers a proven platform to do this, as we act as an investment partner for businesses, providing the centralised resource, technology and capital to support sustainable growth ahead of a sale, making a real impact on profits and valuation even in unfavourable market conditions.”
