Martin Gilbert’s asset and wealth management company AssetCo has agreed to acquire Revera Asset Management for £2.8 million.
The money will be raised by AssetCo issuing 54,639 new ordinary shares of 10p each in the company and £1.9 million in cash, in each case to be paid on completion.
The deal is conditional on approval by the FCA to the change in ownership and the admission of the new shares to trading on AIM, which is expected to occur by the end of May 2022.
Revera is an independent fund management business based in Edinburgh that was founded in 2003.
The firm has two funds, operating on the Smith & Williamson Fund Administration Limited platform, called S&W Revera UK Dynamic Fund ( which has approximately £108 million of AUM) and the Skye Trust (approximately £10 million of AuM).
Revera has four full time and one part time employees. Revera generated turnover of £782,161 and a profit after taxation of £63,452 for the financial year ended 31 December 2020 and had net assets of £548,872 and a net cash balance of £539,135 as at 31 December 2020.
Following completion of the acquisition, Revera will work alongside Saracen Fund Managers, another Edinburgh based asset manager, acquired by the AssetCo in July 2021.
Peter McKellar and Gary Collins, deputy chairman and head of distribution respectively of AssetCo, will join the board of Revera on completion.
The board of the company believes that there exist significant opportunities to enhance the distribution and appeal of Revera's principal fund and to widen the funds offered by Revera and Saracen to include adjacencies.
Campbell Fleming, CEO of AssetCo, said in a statement: "Revera is home to a couple of highly regarded and experienced fund managers in Glen Nimmo and Stephen Grant. The deal demonstrates the appeal of AssetCo's mission and business model. The acquisition of Revera is the next step in our plan to establish an active equity platform as part of our overall strategy to build an asset and wealth management business that delivers for investors in the 21st century. Our active equity platform will offer a range of products and investment styles to cater for clients' evolving needs.
"The acquisition also demonstrates our commitment to a presence in Scotland, where there is a genuine breadth and depth of talent. We expect Edinburgh to be home to a sizeable and growing proportion of AssetCo's investment capabilities, adding new teams and businesses as opportunities arise. I look forward to working with Glen, Stephen and the Revera team, welcoming them to the AssetCo stable and developing our active equity platform."
Glen Nimmo, chief executive of Revera, added: "The entire Revera team is excited to be joining the AssetCo stable. We have been impressed by its dynamism since the launch of its strategy, and believe that the next phase of our development will be accelerated by leveraging its distribution capabilities and working alongside like-minded teams in the Edinburgh operation. We are particularly keen to start working alongside our friends of many years, Saracen.
"Most importantly, however, we believe that our clients will benefit as we retain our commitment and focus to our investment offering, within an organisation with greater operational capabilities."
