A business advisory firm with offices across the South of England has completed a merger with an AIM-listed 海角视频 professional services company for nearly £27m.
Quantuma and K3 Capital Group will become an independent global advisory practice, specialising in restructuring, corporate finance, tax advisory, forensic accounting and witness services.
The deal includes a cash-free, debt-free initial consideration of £26.95m, as well as combined earn-outs - a common feature of merger and acquisition transactions - of £15m and an additional 645,513 growth shares, according to Quantuma.
Carl Jackson, founder and chief executive of Quantuma, will join the K3 board as an executive director.
Graham Randall, Quantuma's managing director, said the company was now looking to expand its 海角视频 team and was in "advanced talks" with a number of "potential hires".
“This is very much business as usual for Quantuma," he said. “This is a significant milestone for both K3 and Quantuma. The combination of high-quality businesses will provide an independent and compelling proposition in the mid-market.
“Demand for Quantuma’s services is already high and we anticipate this gathering pace as the government withdraws its Covid-related financial support.
“Becoming part of a listed plc will enable us to take on more significant mandates and provide greater access to larger corporates, both at home and overseas."
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Mr Jackson set up Quantuma in Southampton in 2013 and it now has 17 海角视频 offices, including in Bristol, Weymouth and London, and three international offices, in Cyprus and Mauritius. The firm has a turnover of £23m and employs 250 staff.
Bolton-based K3 was established in 1998 and provides advisory services to SMEs. It quoted on AIM in 2017 and has seen its market capitalisation more than double in the last three years.
John Rigby, chief executive at K3 Capital Group plc, said: “Our strategic vision is to develop a group of high-performing businesses offering a range of complementary advisory services to SMEs and their stakeholders.
“Quantuma has developed a strong brand and has an impressive growth story. We’re delighted to be working alongside the firm’s like-minded and entrepreneurial senior leadership team.
“Together, our intention is to continue to invest in the group to enable us to drive organic growth by leveraging our client acquisition strategies, whilst also developing further revenue streams via a series of strategic acquisitions and lateral hires.”
K3 also recently acquired Derby-based R&D tax credit specialists Randd 海角视频 in an £11.6m deal.