Platform Parmenion has bought UK-based discretionary fund manager (DFM) EBI Portfolios for an undisclosed sum.
The acquisition is the first one under its new ownership. In March 2021, Parmenion was acquired by a private equity house, with Standard Life Aberdeen, now known as abrdn, announcing its £102m sale to Preservation Capital Partners.
EBI manages ESG portfolios and currently has £1.9bn on 19 platforms for more than 150 advisory firms and nearly 7,000 underlying customers. The firm said it focused on reducing cost and risk to adviser firms by doing the "heavy lifting" in investment.
Post-acquisition, the DFM will continue to operate from its office in Aldridge under the same branding with no changes to its investment offer or its service.
Parmenion chief commercial officer Mike Morrow will join the board. He said: "We have long admired EBI's approach to investment solutions, harnessing leading-edge technology that aims to support advisers in achieving excellent outcomes for clients. EBI is a strong and profitable business, with AUM growing at 37% a year for the last five years. I am thrilled to be part of the development of this exciting business, and I look forward to a bright future for EBI alongside Parmenion."
Founder Craig Burgess added the firm first looked to align EBI with Parmenion ten years ago. " I'm delighted to be announcing this acquisition today. It's a great opportunity for us to accelerate our growth and develop our business with the support of a well-capitalised parent.
"Parmenion understands the way advice, investment and technology fit together in practice and will support the continuous improvement of our online adviser tools, Turnkey and The Vault."
Parmenion CEO Martin Jennings said: "Since securing independence from SLA, we've been forging ahead with our ambition to become the adviser firm's CIP provider of choice with new developments including data and MI reporting, Affinity for new investment partnerships, more high-quality DFMs available on the platform and the announcement of our advisory model portfolio proposition, Adviser Models PRO."
Parmenion said the deal was a key part of its growth strategy, which in the last year had seen it broaden its investment offering with the addition of a number of wealth managers.
In 2021, Parmenion's revenue climbed 20% following strong sales growth, AUM rose 17% to £9.6bn, and the group moved into strong profit against a challenging economic backdrop. More than 1,500 adviser firms have selected the firm as their partner to deliver their chosen investment proposition to 90,000 underlying clients.
In July, AssetCo, chaired by former Standard Life Aberdeen joint chief executive Martin Gilbert, acquired a 30% equity interest in Parmenion Capital for £27.8m.
