Seven Bridges acquisition brings £110 million in assets under management

North East wealth management firm, Seven Bridges, has acquired the pension and investment firm, Pension Matters, in a deal that brings with it a new team of employees, 600 new clients and £110 million in assets under management.

Based in the Team Valley, Seven Bridges will now diversify its service offering, expand its team and execute growth plans over the next 12 months.

The company expects turnover to increase to £1.8 million by the end of 2021, with the addition of the new clients.

Seven Bridges’ managing director Ryan Parker said: “Having known the director of Pension Matters for many years, we were aware that the company’s outlook on client service was in line with ours, and this was paramount.

“The acquisition not only brings a large number of new clients to Seven Bridges, with whom we are excited to work alongside, but it also brings new employees with fresh ideas and in-depth knowledge of the industry.

“Their pension and investment offerings provide us with an increased level of diversity and new investment opportunities. We’re sure that this will benefit existing clients and those from the acquisition, as widening our scope of investment strategies will help to protect and grow client assets.

“Looking ahead, we are confident this acquisition will increase our turnover and profitability, allowing for additional hiring and investment back into Seven Bridges.”

Seven Bridges is a family-run company founded and ran by Ryan Parker in 2014.

The independent financial advice firm offers consultancy on pensions, investments, savings, tax planning and life cover for corporate clients and individuals.

The company was severely impact by the stock market crash in March this year due to COVID-19 but has since adapted to moving client meeting online and using cloud technology to process legal documents.

Ryan added: “The stock market falls experienced in March were the fastest in history and had a direct effect on client investments and company share prices globally.

“However, markets have recovered with vigour and some clients, companies and advisers now find themselves back at valuations and income levels experienced before the March correction/crash.

“The changes we made to our business processes has made it possible to conduct valuable meetings with new clients from the acquisition and allowed for all of our regulated and required documentation to be completed for their financial plans.

“However, our industry is very much led by client contact, so when it is deemed safe to do so, face to face meetings will remain at the forefront of our services.”