National Financial Planner Wren Sterling has completed its first acquisition of 2024 with a deal to buy £265m AUM Newcastle-under-Lyme firm TW Financial Planning.

Staffordshire based TW FP serves 750 households and its office will become part of Wren Sterling's network.

Seven members of TW staff will join Wren Sterling.

Wren Sterling, which has £7bn in assets under advice, says the deal will boost its presence in the West Midlands.

Wren Sterling has 13 offices in 11 locations across the UK with further plans to expand. It has grown rapidly in recent years and made many acquisitions.

Last summer it added £400m in AUM after taking over Guildford-based IFA Messer & Matthews in July and also acquired a majority stake in Cornwall-based The Stockdale Group. The two deals added around 1,000 clients to the firm.

In May last year Nottingham-based Wren expanded into Northern Ireland with the acquisition of Ralston Bennett Financial Planning and Aspects Financial. The firm has also expanded its presence in the North West with the acquisition of St Helens-based Callisto Wealth, which will become part of Wren Sterling’s North West hub in Wilmslow.

Other acquisitions in recent times included Active Wealth Management and HB&O Financial Services in March, adding 860 clients and £330m in assets.

Wren Sterling Group is backed by Lightyear Capital, a New York-based private equity business that specialises in financial services investments, following a secondary management buyout that took place in December 2021.

James Twining, Wren Sterling’s CEO, said: “This deal ticks a lot of boxes for Wren Sterling. TW Financial Planning is a self-sustaining business borne out of close working relationships with professional introducers and has grown through client referrals and a strong local reputation.

“Our investment in technology and our central resources, including our Investment Committee, will do some of the heavy lifting that comes with running an advice business and allow the team to focus on client work, which is what they do best. The quality of the TW Financial Planning team, with some achieving Chartered status, will further grow our overall standard of advice and I am looking forward to bringing their expertise to the rest of Wren Sterling.”

Chris Devey, a director at TW Financial Planning, said: “Wren Sterling’s service proposition is very similar to ours, while their onboarding process has been designed to minimise disruption to our clients and colleagues, which has always been our priority when looking for a firm to take our business to the next stage.

“Retaining our staff and our links to Thompson Wright Chartered Accountants, plus the opportunity to benefit from Wren Sterling’s scale, expertise, tools, technology and resources is a compelling offer and we believe this will only benefit us, and our clients.”