On Monday Kingswood announced it had acquired Yorkshire-based Financial Planning firm Money Matters North East (MMNE) for up to £3.4m in cash.

Kingswood will acquire Smyth and Walter in a deal worth up to £840,000 payable on a deferred basis over two years, subject to performance targets being achieved.

The acquisitions will boost Kingswood's UK client team to  71 and increases UK funds under advice/management to £4.7 billion from about 9,300 active clients. Kingswood Group has a total of £6.4bn in assets under advice from global retail and institutional clients.

The acquisition drive is likely to continue for Kingswood which said in September that it was planning 12 more acquisitions.

The deals are mainly funder by private equity firm Pollen Street Capital Limited which has partnered with Kingswood. It has so far provided £44.8m in equity to support existing and future acquisitions.

David Lawrence, UK CEO at Kingswood,  said: “Smythe and Walter are a growing firm and this acquisition enhances our existing footprint in the South East. I am delighted to welcome Lee Smythe and his team to Kingswood. This is our third acquisition of 2021 and we continue to have a strong pipeline of high-quality UK opportunities under negotiation, five of which are in the exclusive due diligence stage.

Lee Smythe leads a team of three who look after about 100 households with around £40m in assets under management advising on all aspects of personal Financial Planning. For the year ended 31 March 2021 Smythe and Walter reported revenues of £293,000 and pre-tax profit of £100k.

Lee Smythe, CEO of Smythe and Walter , said: ''With an ever increasing regulatory burden, joining Kingswood enables us to gain access to the resources and support, which we need to both provide a wider range of services to our current clients and to grow our future business in a cost effective manner. In addition to this, given the events of the last 18 months or so, becoming part of a larger firm ensures a greater sense of security for both staff and clients alike.

“With the additional support functions in place, I am looking forward to being able to spend more time on the most important and enjoyable part of our business, looking after our clients.''