Evelyn Partners gross inflows hit £7.8bn in FY23

Evelyn Partners has revealed it attracted “record” new business in FY23, with gross inflows of £7.8bn of new assets and also recorded adjusted EBITDA £188m.

The key drivers of financial performance were “strong fee growth” in Professional Services, fee savings from the migration of assets to the firm’s in-house custody platform and higher interest on cash. 

The total value of assets under management (AUM) increased 11.5% to £59.1bn during the year. Operating income rose 9.3% to £656.6m. 

In 2023, the firm focused on operational and digital transformation to improve client experience, increase productivity and ensure the scalability of its business operations. Significant developments were made to its Financial Services platform including cloud migration to enhance resilience, scalability and security, financial crime screening and the automation of suitability reviews. 

In addition, the implementation of a new automated solution for the on-boarding of Professional Services clients has significantly reduced manual processes and the time to onboard clients, while the firm’s practice management system has improved productivity and efficiency, the company said..

In the Professional Services business the firm acquired Leathers, the Ashcroft Partnership, Creaseys Group and Harwood Hutton, as well as a specialist forensics team from KPMG UK. In Financial Services, it acquired Dart Capital, which added £754.7m of AUM, and acquired the assets of three businesses under its Retiring IFA programme. 

Commenting on results, Paul Geddes, group chief executive, said:  “Against the challenging macroeconomic backdrop of high inflation, rising interest rates and conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, Evelyn Partners delivered another strong year in 2023, attracting record new business and generating Adjusted EBITDA of £188m. Alongside robust financial performance, we made strong progress with our digital transformation programme, further enhanced our range of services, and acquired several high-quality businesses. 

“Looking to the future, a key area of focus in Financial Services is to grow our presence as a provider of investment solutions to the IFA market. “In our fast-growing Professional Services business, priorities include enhancing the value and range of services we provide to our largest clients through our Key Account programme, the development of new digital services and growing our international presence. We will also continue to explore further acquisition opportunities that extend our regional footprint.”

Geddes added: “With inflation on a downward trend and possible interest rate cuts on the horizon, we are cautiously optimistic on the outlook for 2024, albeit elections are a source of uncertainty. Helping clients with their evolving and increasingly complex needs is at the heart of everything we do and with the breadth of our expertise we are well placed to support clients in navigating periods of change.”