Excellence and value: our leading FS experienced professionals recognise the importance of delivering value and cost certainty to deal budgets, and so leverage our team of partners, associates, paralegals (and if required AG Integrate contract lawyers) to support your deal with the right blend (and cost) of expertise and resource.

Complex financial institutions: we are experienced in working with complex financial institutions to deliver successful transactions, and working closely with group and divisional/functional legal teams, strategy/ corporate development teams, project management teams, compliance/risk/regulatory, data, tax, HR and Comms, all to deliver effective support on transactions.

Project Management: we have de-constructed our transaction approach to ensure we have the right strategic focus throughout a deal and have created strong, efficient, repeatable, processes. Our online M&A tool kit maps transaction stages and hosts our process templates, precedents, know-how and market intelligence, improving efficiency of our deal teams, reducing risk and driving us to be thoughtful through your deal journey and ensure outputs are tied to your transaction objectives.

Buy side deals: we undertake scoped and sector relevant diligence alongside your business functions. Supported by technology, our efficient diligence reporting identifies risk, analyses impact and suggests mitigation alternatives. Our knowledge of financial products, regulatory frameworks, market infrastructure, and operation of FS businesses means our advice is business focused. We work with a clear understanding of your deal objectives and risk appetite, and we tailor our advice and documentation accordingly. We also incorporate integration planning into a successful acquisition strategy.

Sell side deals: we have deep experience of advising on strategic and non-core divestment programmes. We have developed efficient processes to gather data room information and allocate responsibility for collation and risk sign off. We work with external financial advisers and strategy/corporate development teams to run auction processes and bilateral sale processes. We know how to navigate the complexity of separation issues, how to deliver an absolute exit, or ongoing partnering/relationship arrangements.

• Banks and "Challenger" Banks
• Consumer Lenders
• Card Providers
• Debt Portfolios
• Payments
• FinTech
• Wealth & Asset Management
• Building Societies and Mutuals
• Insurance
• FS focussed Private Equity
• Leasing and Asset Finance
• Trust and Fiduciary
• Stock Exchanges
• Funds (including Real Estate)

Some of our recent FS M&A deal highlights:

• Manchester Building Society: Advising Manchester Building Society on its merger with Newcastle Building Society
• Rathbones: Advising our long standing client, Rathbones, on its acquisition of the UK wealth arm of Investec. This deal was valued at £839m.
• NatWest: Advising on its partnership with Vodeno Group in respect of the creation of a banking-as-a-service business
• Access to Cash: Advising ten of the UK’s largest banking providers on the establishment of Cash Access UK Limited, a ground breaking joint venture company designed to protect cash access across the UK
• Mortgage Brain Holdings Limited: Advising on the acquisition of the entire issued share capital of Mortgage Engine Limited (Santander)
• Oxbury Bank: Advising the cornerstone investors in Oxbury Bank in respect of follow-on equity funding rounds
• BNP Paribas: Advising on the sale of its Rental Solutions business
• Tumelo: Advising on the Series A Investment led by New York based VC, Treasury Fund I LP
• HSBC: Advising HSBC on its investment in Monese
• Solarisbank: Advising on its acquisition of Contis
• Nottingham Building Society: Advising Nottingham Building Society in relation to its forward flow partnership with fintech mortgage lender Generation Home
• BNP Paribas: Advising on its €120m acquisition of the fintech, Kantox
• Lloyds Banking Group: Advising Lloyds Banking Group on its investment in “all-in-one” motoring app Caura
• Raymond James Financial International: Advising Raymond James Financial International on its recommended offer for Charles Stanley for £278m
• Ja Ja Finance: Advising management of Ja Ja Finance in connection with the investment by TDR and KKR
• Curtis Banks Group: Recommended takeover offer for Curtis Banks Group plc by Nucleus Financial Platforms Limited
• My Money Expert Limited: Advising the Shareholders of My Money Expert Limited in relation to its buyout by various Palatine Private Equity funds
• MMPI: Advising the sellers of a 70 per cent. stake in MMPI, formerly known as Moloney Mortgages Pensions and Investments, to Kingswood Holdings backed by Pollen Street Capital
• International Financial Group Limited: Advising management of International Financial Group Limited, the life insurance provider of long-term savings products, on its sale from Vitruvian to Cinven
• Sanne Group plc: Recommended takeover offer of Sanne Group plc by Apex Group Limited
• Sovereign Group: Advising Sovereign Group on its acquisition of Pro Partner Group, one of the leading corporate services providers in the GCC
• Listed Admin Services Business: Advising on a proposed acquisition in five jurisdictions in Asia
• GLAS Holdings: Advising the shareholders of GLAS Holdings on the investment into it by a new company backed by Levine Leichtmann Capital Partners
• An international bank: Advising on the disposal of a £120m SME loan portfolio to Cerberus
• Manypets: Advising ManyPets on the sale of its specialist pet insurance intermediary, Brooks Braithwaite
• Various co-operatives: Advising various co-operatives in respect of their response to the regulation of the funeral plan sector in the UK including various strategic tie-ups, restructurings and disposals