The boss of a successful boutique financial advisors has decided to sell the business to a competitor to give him more time to dedicate to his clients.
Pole Arnold managing director Mike Pole said one of the reasons he has decided to sell to Mattioli Woods was because he was spending half his time dealing with regulatory red tape.
Mr Pole said Mattioli Woods was the perfect fit for the business as he reassured clients it would be business as usual under the new structure.
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Both businesses are based in Leicester and Mr Pole and Mattioli chief executive Ian Mattioli have known each other for 25 years. Both are well known on the city’s business scene.
Mr Pole said he and his three directors started thinking about either buying out another firm to share the regulatory burden, or selling to a bigger competitor a year ago.
Talks with Mattioli Woods, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM market, started around six months ago.
Pole Arnold was sold for an initial £4 million in shares, plus a further £3 million cash if performance targets are maintained over the next two years.
Mr Pole said: “Since we set up again in 2012 the regulatory burden has continued to increase. Half of my time is spent dealing with regulatory and compliance and the risk side of things – and we just wanted to be able to spend more time advising our clients.
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“There are a lot of private equity funded companies around at the moment buying financial advisors, but their main aim is to grow a business to flog it off three years down the line – and we didn’t want to be part of that.
“The most important thing was to maintain the long-term service to our clients and staff. That’s why we chose Mattioli Woods as our preferred option.
“For me one of the biggest wins will be being able to use Mattioli Woods’ great risk and compliance resources, to share the regulatory burden so I’m free and the senior members of the team are free to spend more time with our clients.
“I’ve known Ian for 25 years and know a lot of the senior management team and they share our values and are just as focussed on their clients and staff.
“We are delighted to become a wholly owned subsidiary and will keep the Pole Arnold name – I’m really keen to stress this is not a retirement deal but about securing the long-term viability of our business.”
Mr Pole said the team would also be getting a “thank you” for all their hard work.
The Pole Arnold name dates back to the 1950s when it was launched as a Leicester accountancy firm by Mr Pole’s father Les Pole, and Jerry Arnold.
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In 1995, Mike Pole added an independent financial advisory arm called Pole Arnold Ltd, and the wider business eventually ended up being owned by RSM Tenon.
Mike left RSM Tenon in 2012 to relaunch Pole Arnold as an IFA with a team of four. Today it has 16 staff and is based in offices on the outskirts of the city.
The business has 360 private and corporate clients with around £245 million of assets under management and advice.
It had revenues of £2.11 million in the year ended March 31, 2020, and made pre-tax profits of £810,000.
Mattioli Woods has plans to double its 650 staff over the next five years and treble the amount of clients’ assets it looks after to £30 billion.
The value of assets the Leicester business looks after for its clients has just passed £10 billion for the first time and Ian Mattioli, who co-founded the business 30 years ago above a garage with Bob Woods, recently told BusinessLive organic expansion and further acquisitions would see that figure head upwards.
Announcing the acquisition he said: “We are delighted to welcome Mike and his experienced team as part of Mattioli Woods.
“I have known Mike for many years and admired how he and his team have grown a great business, built on a strong client-focussed culture and a commitment to going the extra mile.
“The transaction expands the group’s presence in both Leicester and London, underlining our commitment to continuing growing both organically and by acquisition.”