Mortgage Advice Bureau is to acquire approximately 75% of Project Finland Topco (Fluent Money Group).
The purchase will cost around £73 million in cash based upon an enterprise value of £95 million. MAB has also entered into a shareholders’ agreement with founders/management who will be retaining c.25% of the issued share capital of Fluent at completion. This also provides for a put and call option for MAB to acquire the remaining stake after six years.
Fluent is a telephone advice mortgage broking platform that has developed an end-to-end digital customer journey, with approximately 420 employees. This includes around 125 advisers across first and second charge mortgages, later life lending and bridging finance.
The acquisition will be funded from debt facilities, existing cash resources and a proposed placing of new ordinary shares to raise £40 million.
Peter Brodnicki (pictured), CEO of MAB, said: “We are very excited to partner with a like-minded management team and high growth intermediary that is a leader in centralised telephone mortgage advice. This acquisition is a perfect example of our strategy to invest in complementary businesses and platforms to help accelerate growth by broadening our proposition.
“MAB has targeted the fast-growing sector of national lead generation by using technology to link together its key Appointed Representatives and invested firms seamlessly. Combined, we expect that Fluent and MAB will be able to grow this new market share opportunity quickly and effectively, complementing the local/regional strategy delivered by the rest of MAB’s growing distribution.”