Acquisition of Smythe House
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Organic and acquisitive growth delivers transformational results and platform for the future
Oberon Investments Group plc (‘Oberon’), the boutique wealth management and corporate brokin
group, announces a trading update for the year ended 31 March 2021 and the completion of the
acquisition of Smythe House Limited (‘Smythe House’).
Highlights
- Organic and acquisitive growth:
- c.240% revenue growth year on year to over £3.75m
- Over 300% growth in Assets under Administration (‘AUA’) year on year to over £550m (31/03/2021) from £126m (31/03/2020)
- Strong growth since launch in June 2020 of Oberon Capital, driven by new retained clients (such as finnCap) and fundraisings. Revenues from June 2020 to 30 April 2021 exceed £1m
- Q1 2021 revenues of over £1.6m, with momentum continuing into Q2
- Acquisition of Smythe House:
- Extends the Company’s alternative service offerings to our growing client base
- Increases AUA by £40m
- Is part of a broader, selective acquisition strategy attracting new teams to Oberon’s
- bespoke portfolio management platform
Trading Update
Following the admission to trading on the Aquis Stock Exchange in February 2021 via a reverse takeover, Oberon expects to announce revenues for the financial year ended 31 March 2021 in its
underlying operations of in excess of £3.75m (2020: £1.1m), an increase of circa 240% on the
comparative period.
The current financial year has started positively with growth rates and prospects for all divisions in line
with management’s expectations.
Oberon Investment Management
The Company’s wealth management division has continued to grow at pace, organically and
acquisitively. AUA, a key performance indicator for the Company, has grown exponentially, rising by
over 60% from £375m announced in February 2021 to over £600m in May 2021. Importantly, the
focus on personalised management, with fund managers actively advising on bespoke portfolios, has
underpinned this growth of AUA.
By creating a welcoming environment, a professional approach, backed by a strong focus on customer
service, Oberon is attracting new clients and new teams, and, as a result, is experiencing strong organic
growth. This is demonstrated by the success of the Hanson Investment Management acquisition:
having joined in June 2020 with declining AUA of c. £95m, the team has, in a short period of time,
grown its business by over 50% to c. £150m AUA, as of April 2021. Oberon expects to continue to
attract other new teams of quality fund managers, along with clients, through word of mouth and
client recommendations.
Oberon Capital.
Oberon Capital, the newly launched Corporate Broking & Advisory division of the Company, has made
a strong start since its inception in May 2020. It has completed numerous fundraises and placings
raising a total of over £40m since inception, and won various brokerages, including that of finnCap
Group plc and MyHealthChecked Plc. A number of new fundraises and pitches for further brokerages
are being actively pursued. Given the growth achieved to date, this division is on target to provide a
strong financial contribution to the Company.
Acquisition of Smythe House
As previously announced, the Company agreed to acquire the entire issued share capital of Smythe
House. Established in 2009, Smythe House provides bespoke relationship-driven services and financial
planning to high net-worth clients in the wealth management, capital markets and real estate sectors.
Smythe House and Oberon’s client-focused businesses are entirely complementary, further
broadening Oberon’s reach into the bespoke wealth management sector. Smythe House will be
integrated into Oberon’s Wealth Management Division and is expected to add c. £40m in AUA while
also expanding its client base. Oberon intends to offer Smythe House’s services to its existing client
base in the future.
The initial consideration for Smythe House is to be satisfied by the payment of £217,000 in cash and
the issue to the vendors of 2,454,710 new Ordinary shares (which at the current share price of 3.4p
has a value of £83,460).. In addition, and dependent on the performance of the acquired business over
the next two years, deferred consideration could be payable to the vendors. This could consist, as a
maximum, of up to 4,909,420 shares (which at the current share price has a value of £199,920) plus
£33,000 in cash. The exact mix of cash and shares used to satisfy the payment of any deferred
consideration will be agreed between the two parties when it becomes due.
Outlook
The Board remains firmly committed to growing the Company by adding complementary businesses
and teams that are attracted by its entrepreneurial culture. Additionally, the Company is focused on
launching new funds and wealth management solutions to further enhance organic growth rates and
by adding services whereby the Company can take advantage of experienced practitioners.
Issue of Equity
As described above, the Company has issued a total of 2,454,710 new Ordinary shares and application
will be made for them to be admitted to trading on AQSE, which is expected to be on or around 4 June
2021.
Total Voting Rights
The new ordinary shares will rank pari passu with the existing ordinary shares of the Company.
Following the issue of the new ordinary shares, the Company’s issued share capital will comprise
412,244,485 Ordinary shares of 0.5p.
The above figure of 412,244,485 should be used by shareholders in the Company as the denominator
for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a
change to their interest in, the share capital of the Company under the Financial Conduct Authority’s
Disclosure and Transparency Rules.
Notice of Results
Oberon expects to announce its results for the 12 months to 31 March 2021 by the end of July 2021.
Simon McGivern, CEO of Oberon Investments Group, commented: “Our strong revenue growth,
driven by the organic and acquisitive growth of our AUA and the very strong start to trading of Oberon
Capital, illustrates the potential of the Oberon platform.
Smythe House, with whom we share the same ethos of client service, illustrates the strategic approach
to acquisitions we are taking. Their portfolio of services will be rolled out over time to Oberon’s existing
client base. We continue to evaluate further acquisition opportunities as Oberon’s AUA and platform
continue to rapidly develop and grow.
Our growing team of investment professionals and new product offerings are benefiting our clients
and portfolio performance. We are delighted with the returns we have provided for our clients this
year, which is matched by our absolute focus on service..
We have only just started the Oberon journey, and I look forward to keeping shareholders advised of
future developments as soon as I can.”
This announcement contains information which, prior to its disclosure, was inside information as
stipulated under Regulation 11 of the Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019/310
(as amended).
The directors of Oberon accept responsibility for this announcement.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
| Oberon Investments Group plc | |
| Simon McGivern / John Beaumont | via Walbrook PR |
| AQSE Corporate Adviser and Broker | |
| Novum Securities Limited | |
| Richard Potts / Daphne Zhang / Lucy Bowden | 020 7399 9400 |
| Walbrook PR Ltd | |
| Tom Cooper / Nick Rome | Tel: 020 7933 8780 or Oberon@walbrookpr.com |
Notes to Editors
Oberon Investments Ltd was established in April 2017. In November 2017, it made its first acquisition,
a small stockbroking firm with AUA of c. £100m. This initial acquisition gave Oberon a suite of FCA
permissions and a platform for future growth.
Oberon group’s AUA have grown from c. £100 million in 2018 to in excess of £600 million in May 2021.
This has been achieved organically by adding new clients and new fund managers, attracted by the
emerging brand and by a number of small, selective and accretive acquisitions.
In May 2020, Oberon set up its corporate broking division, Oberon Capital, and announced its first
client in July 2020. Oberon Capital takes advantage of the skill sets employed in its business in giving
advice and providing access to capital. The business provides advice and raises capital for companies
from seed and early-stage funding through to IPO and beyond.
The Enlarged Group will operate in the UK wealth and fund management sector and in the corporate
broking and financial advisory sectors. The UK fund management industry is estimated to have c.£8.9
trillion in assets under management (‘AUM’) in 2020-21. The industry includes assets of independently
managed funds, as well as those owned by banks, insurance companies and pension funds. Conservative estimates of AUM for the UK financial advisory and wealth management sectors stand at approximately £272 billion and £942 billion respectively. The corporate broking and fundraising sector is very fragmented, ranging from the large integrated investment banks to niche corporate
advisory firms.