Financial advisory firm Frenkel Topping has raised £13m to fund its merger and personal injury and clinical negligence firm acquisition strategy.

The adviser this morning shared its annual results for the year ending 31 December with profit (adjusted for EBITDA) for the firm rising 25% to £2.5m.

Revenue rose 19% to £10.2m (2019: £8.6m) with recurring revenue making up £7.3m of the total figure.

Assets under management at the end of the year were £898m, although these have since risen 13% to exceed £1bn following a strong first quarter.

Assets on a discretionary mandate were £399m, although these also rose 32% to £527m in the first quarter.

Total assets for the firm rose considerably by 108% to £28.5m (2019: £13.7m) following the completion of the acquisition of forensic accountancy firm Forth Associates.

Frenkel’s client retention rate for 2020 was 99%.

Richard Fraser, CEO of Frenkel Topping, said 2021 has also begun strongly. He said: “We were extremely pleased with the outcome of our capital raise of £13m (gross) to fund our M&A strategy to help build the future profitability of the Group and consolidate the PI and Clinical Negligence marketplace.

"The year has begun robustly giving cause for optimism for the remainder of the year. Within our IFA and investment management pillars, we have won significant AUM mandates. Our conservative approach to investments and customer centric ethos has demonstrated our resilience in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Our professional services pillar, incorporating our recent acquisitions, has also had a bright start to the year. This is particularly pleasing as this is a key pipeline for future AUM growth.”

The firm acquired two specialist clinical injury law firms in February, A&M Bacon and Partners in Costs, for a total of £9m only a few months after revealing it was shifting its strategy away from acquiring adviser firms.

Frenkel, which specialises in financial advice to personal injury and clinical negligence litigation clients, said the deals are in line with the company's strategy to pursue opportunities in the professional services marketplace. 

Frenkel will offer services to claimants of the two companies including advice on welfare benefits assessments, trust advice and expert witness services. The firm will also offer to manage the damages within the group’s discretionary asset management business.