British private equity firm Apax has bought Evelyn Partners accounting arm for £700m, according to reports.
Apax was in a bidding war with private equity peer Bridgepoint to snap up the professional services unit, which includes the business formerly known as Smith & Williamson that Evelyn Partners bought back in 2020.
But Apax emerged the winner after Bridgepoint made a lower offer for the division, The Sunday Times reported.
The sale means Evelyn Partners will now become a pure-play wealth manager. Evelyn Partners, which is majority owned by private equity firm Permira, is one of the UK’s largest wealth managers with £63bn in assets under management.
Apax said it wasn’t immediately able to comment, while Evelyn Partners and Bridgepoint were contacted for comment.
The deal comes amid heightened private equity interest in the sector, with Grant Thornton voting to sell a majority stake in the UK’s sixth largest audit firm to Cinven last week.