Pensions and SIPP consultancy Barnett Waddingham has boosted its Scottish presence by opening a new office in Edinburgh.

It said its team of risk, pensions, investment, and insurance experts will occupy the fourth floor at Spaces, Lochrin Square.

The Edinburgh office adds to BW's new Glasgow presence and marks the firm’s 11th UK base. The move follows the firm’s recent acquisition by Howden, the global insurance and employee benefits intermediary group.

Andrew Vaughan, senior partner, Barnett Waddingham, said: "Edinburgh is one of the UK's leading financial centres, with a thriving community of insurers, asset managers, and FinTech firms alongside some of the country's best actuarial and financial services talent, so we were keen to amplify our presence here as part of our ambitious growth plans.

“As part of Howden, establishing a base in the city builds on our shared ambitions in the Scottish market.”

Michelle Robertson, head of central operations at Barnett Waddingham, said the new office “will be instrumental in attracting talented professionals from across Edinburgh."

Barnett Waddingham has been revamping its SIPP leadership team in recent months, including appointing new SIPP CEO Nick Cooper in August. He replaced Simon Foster ahead of his retirement later this year.

In September the firm appointed Emily Crotty as head of SIPP risk and Rebecca Smith as head of SIPP finance.

Last month it appointed Embark Group’s Andrew Phipps as head of SIPP proposition and supplier management.

Barnett Waddingham is a UK consultancy involved in risk, pensions, investment, and insurance. It has 1,790 staff, 99 of whom are partners, based across 11 offices nationwide: Amersham, Birmingham, Bristol, Cheltenham, Glasgow, Guildford, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, and now Edinburgh.

Barnett Waddingham was acquired by insurance intermediary and benefits firm Howden for an undisclosed sum in March.

Howden was founded in 1994 and provides insurance broking, reinsurance broking and underwriting to clients ranging from individuals to the largest multinational companies. The group operates in 55 countries across Europe, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, the USA, Australia and New Zealand, employing 20,000 people and handling $44.7bn of premium on behalf of clients.