It has taken a significant minority stake in Clever after working in partnership with it since August 2022 when the two businesses launched the Clever Marlborough Managed Portfolio Service (MPS).

Clever provides quantitative, analysis-driven fund selection and asset allocation services for Financial Planners.

The investment will allow Clever to accelerate its growth plans and enhance its service by developing new capabilities to meet the needs of Financial Planners.

Colum Wilde, founder and chief executive of Clever, said: “We’re extremely excited about this new phase in our relationship with Marlborough and in Clever’s journey as a provider of services and systems to UK Financial Planners. Marlborough’s investment is a ringing endorsement of what we do and who we are.”

Richard Goodall, chief executive of Marlborough, said: “We’ve been working closely with Clever over the past two years and we’ve been impressed by the quality of their team, their technology and the culture of the business. Like us, they have a strong growth mindset, they have a can-do philosophy and they’re a great team to work with.

“So, we’re not seeking to change anything at Clever. We’ve invested to share in the success of a high-calibre business with what we believe is a very bright future and we’re looking forward to continuing to work in partnership with them for the long term.”

The deal is the latest in a series of investments by Marlborough. The group invested in national IFA business Truly Independent last year to support the firm’s growth strategy. This year Marlborough has also invested in South Africa-headquartered IFA business Carrick Wealth and Hong Kong-based Financial Planning and wealth management firm BMP Wealth.

The Clever Marlborough MPS combines Marlborough’s investment expertise with Clever’s proprietary fund selection and monitoring system, the Clever Engine. It analyses millions of pieces of fund performance data to score and rank more than 4,000 UK-domiciled funds every month and make switching recommendations.

Clever’s adviser clients have been able to use the Clever Marlborough MPS since August 2022 and it was made available to all UK financial advisers in September 2023. It has reached more than £700m of assets under management in less than two years.

Marlborough is an independently-owned investment management specialist and a provider of fund governance services to allow financial advisers and investment managers to launch their own funds or unitise existing portfolios. The group also includes an investment platform business, the Marlborough Select Platform. The group manages assets of more than £19bn.