Mattioli Woods’ revenue was up 69 per cent in the six-month period ending November 2021 after a spate of acquisitions which added £19.4mn in earnings to its books.
This took the wealth management firm’s overall revenue for the period to £49.9mn, compared to £29.5mn in the previous half year.
The firm’s largest acquisitions to close since June 2021 have included private equity and alternative asset manager Maven and financial planning business Ludlow.
Total assets under management, administration and advice reached a record £15.1bn in November, compared to £10.6bn at the end of May.
The bulk of Mattioli Woods’ asset increase was down to its acquisitions. The acquisition of Ludlow alone added £1.6bn in assets under advice, Maven added £800mn assets under management while financial planning firm Richings - one of Mattioli Woods’ smaller deals - added around £70mn of assets.
Overall, the acquisitions of Maven, Ludlow and Richings increased the firm’s personal wealth and other assets under management and advice by £2.6bn, accounting for 88 per cent of the total increase in the period.
These three deals also added 3,585 clients to Mattioli Woods’ books. This meant in November the firm had 10,708 personal clients in total, compared to 6,585 the previous half-year.
Profit before tax was down 23 per cent to £3.3mn, compared to £4.2mn in the previous period. The company said this figure was driven by increased acquisition costs of £2.6m.
Ian Mattioli, the company's chief executive, said: "Clients continue to need long-term advice and strategies more than ever before.
“We will continue to provide quality solutions, maintaining our focus on client service and continuing to adapt our business model to the changing market, integrating asset management and financial planning to build upon our established reputation for delivering sound advice and consistent investment performance.”
Adviser charges based on gross assets under advice of £3.7bn climbed to £9.5mn over the period, compared to £4.3mn the previous period.
The company also said that with sustained growth in the UK employee benefits market, there was an opportunity for it to “realise synergies” between its employee benefits and wealth management businesses.
Mattioli Woods said it reported “significant increases” in Financial Services Compensation Scheme levies to £1.3mn. It expects this figure to jump to £1.5mn in the current financial year.
Commenting on its exit from the defined benefit pension transfer advice space in 2018, the company said the impact of this decision and the Financial Conduct Authority’s industry-wide review into this activity was "not expected to be material".
ruby.hinchliffe@ft.com
