British advisory firms Bellpenny and Ascot Lloyd, both owned by Oaktree Capital Management, are combining under the Ascot Lloyd brand to create one unified independent financial advisory company (IFA).
The latest move follows the £6bn merger of the two companies in July 2017. Bellpenny and Ascot Lloyd were offering restricted and independent advice, respectively.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Now, both companies will operate wholly as an IFA under the Ascot Lloyd name.
Ascot Lloyd said that the change will enable the business to offer a wide range of product to its clients.
The combined business has become one of the largest independent wealth managers in the UK. It has over 80 advisers, serving more than 40,000 fee-paying clients.
Ascot Lloyd CEO Nigel Stockton said: “Ascot Lloyd is a well-known, trusted and highly regarded name and we are excited to go to market under this brand with a fully independent offering. The merger of Ascot Lloyd and Bellpenny in 2017 has already proven highly successful, generating strong growth momentum in only a few months. We are a highly profitable and fast growing business, underpinned by a great team of advisers.
“At the heart of our success is a client driven business, and our move to become fully independent is in direct response to what our clients and advisers want, while also allowing us to offer a more comprehensive service.
“We have now established an outstanding platform, with significant scale and a trusted brand. Going forward we have considerable opportunities to expand our client base, deepen existing relationships and welcome new, high quality advisers. We look ahead to 2018 with great confidence.”
