Skerritts Group has officially rebranded today (2 December) as Shackleton, with headquarters in London, while also announcing four further adviser acquisitions.
The new name of Shackleton “is built on and inspired by universally admired and respected British values, values espoused by its namesake, Britain’s greatest explorer, Sir Ernest Shackleton”, it said in a statement, adding that the “overarching objective is very simple; Shackleton will seek to improve its clients’ financial security, and, by doing so, enable them to live their lives, safe in the knowledge that their financial affairs are in good order”.
Shackleton CEO Paul Feeney said: “In Shackleton I believe we are creating something truly unique, to serve the financial needs of one of the most remarkable, courageous, and yet tolerant societies on earth.
“We believe that, for too long, trust in the financial advice profession has been eroded by the actions of certain established providers, whose business models were designed not for the benefit of their clients, but for themselves. We know that trust is earned; it can be given, and it can be taken away. This thought is imprinted on our minds, acting as the guiding light in our goal of seeking always to be the most trusted provider of financial advice in the country.”
The purchase of four more financial advice businesses announced today brings the number of deals completed to fifteen since Sovereign Capital Partners’ investment in March 2021, seven of which have taken place in 2024 alone, bringing assets under advice and management to circa £5.5bn.
- Save & Invest Group Limited(S&I)
Managing £550m of AUM, S&I was launched in 1985 and has offices in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Perth. - Fleming Financial Limited (FFL)
Managing £250m of AUM, FFL was part of Bishop Fleming LLP and has offices in Bristol and Plymouth. - Robson Lister Limited (RLL)
Managing £350m of AUM, RLL was established in 2001 and is based in Sutton Coldfield. - Shorts Financial Services LLP (SFS)
Managing £350m of AUM, SFS was part of Shorts Accountants. It is based in Chesterfield.
Ellis Bates, FFL, RLL, S&I and SFS will be fully rebranded as Shackleton early in 2025.
Commenting on the four purchases, Feeney said: “I am delighted to welcome the teams and clients from Save & Invest, Fleming Financial, Robson Lister and Shorts Financial Services who all join as Co-Founders of our new national business. Their addition greatly complements our existing Co-Founder firms.”
“We’ve launched Shackleton – Britain’s financial adviser with the vision of bringing together into one business what we firmly believe to the best, most professional financial advice firms from across the country. The addition of these four exceptional firms demonstrates our commitment to delivering against this goal. We are just beginning.
“There are other regional and indeed multi-regional champion firms, right across the country, who are joining us in our great undertaking. We will shortly announce them too, subject to regulatory approval.”
