Active asset manager Liontrust has agreed to acquire Hawksmoor Investment Management for an initial cash consideration of £6m, plus two contingent payments of up to £2m each.
The contingent payments will be made in cash, 12 months and 24 months after completion, dependent on the achievement of anticipated revenues.
Hawksmoor is the fund management and model portfolio business owned by Financial Planning firm Shackleton.
Paul Feeney, CEO of Shackleton, said the Financial Planning firm had been looking for a buyer for the investment management business.
He said: “Hawksmoor's Funds Management and Investment Solutions businesses have great potential to grow, with talented people and an attractive proposition for financial advisers. Shackleton wanted to find a home that could offer the support and environment to help the business flourish, and we know Liontrust provides this.”
The acquisition will add £1.9bn of assets under management to Liontrust, through a combination of multi-asset funds, fund mandates and managed portfolio services.
Under the terms of the deal, the Hawksmoor investment team led by head of fund management Ben Conway will transfer to Liontrust’s multi-asset team.
John Ions, CEO of Liontrust, said the acquisition would expand the asset manager’s financial adviser client base.
He said: “The proposed acquisition enhances Liontrust's position among financial advisers, including through an expanded product offering, as an increasing proportion seek to partner with specialist asset managers for the outsourcing of investment management.
“Combining Hawksmoor with Liontrust's existing multi-asset proposition and strong client service, sales and marketing gives us great confidence we will be able to grow key client partnerships going forward."
Hawksmoor manages a range of three multi-asset funds together with four segregated fund mandates for advisory clients and a bespoke MPS range. The firm’s investment services arm manages two MPS ranges distributed to financial advisers, alongside bespoke MPS co-manufactured ranges with adviser firms.
Liontrust estimates that the acquisition will also incur transaction and re-organisation costs of approximately £1.9m.
The disposal of Hawksmoor is a change of pace for Shackleton, which has recently been on the buying end of several acquisitions.
Following the deal, Shackleton is also re-organising its Scottish operations with the creation of two regions: Scotland East, with a principal office in Aberdeen, and Scotland West, with a principal office in Glasgow.