Alpha Financial Markets Consulting Regulatory News (AFM)

2 May 2023

Alpha Financial Markets Consulting plc

('Alpha', the 'Company' or the 'Group')

Acquisition of Shoreline

Alpha (AIM: AFM), a leading global provider of specialist consultancy services to the asset management, wealth management and insurance industries, is pleased to announce that it has completed the acquisition of 100% of the issued share capital of Shoreline Consulting Pty Ltd and Shoreline Consolidated Pty Ltd (together, 'Shoreline'), a boutique consultancy that provides services to the asset and wealth management (AWM) industry in Asia Pacific (APAC).

Acquisition highlights

· Alpha acquires Shoreline, a specialist APAC AWM consultancy headquartered in Sydney, Australia

· Shoreline's client base, capabilities and company culture are highly complementary to Alpha

· Strong strategic rationale for the acquisition, which strengthens Alpha's existing AWM expertise in APAC and creates the leading specialist AWM consulting firm in the region

· AUD 8.0m (£4.2m) initial cash consideration payable in three instalments on deal completion and the following two completion anniversaries, plus a performance-driven earn-out mechanism of up to AUD 5.0m (£2.6m) in cash designed to maximise growth and fully align management incentivisation. 

Background on Shoreline

Shoreline, which is headquartered in Sydney, Australia, was founded in 2009 with the aim of guiding asset and wealth management firms in APAC through their strategic transformation programmes. Shoreline is a 19-person strong consultancy with a client network that spans the region. The firm's core capabilities include: product and distribution; operations and outsourcing; data and analytics; and digital and technology consulting expertise. The longstanding management team will remain with the business post acquisition.

Acquisition rationale

Following the acquisition of Shoreline, Alpha is the leading specialist AWM consultancy in APAC incorporating Shoreline's complementary client base, employee skill sets and capabilities. This acquisition enables Alpha to build upon a robust platform and ensures that the firm can take advantage of opportunities in one of the fastest growing regions in the AWM sector. The addition of Shoreline is expected to be earnings enhancing in the year ending 31 March 2024.

Transaction terms

The Group has acquired Shoreline, on a cash and debt-free basis, for AUD 8.0m (£4.2m) initial cash consideration plus a performance-driven earn-out of up to AUD 5.0m (£2.6m) also payable in cash. The initial cash consideration is payable in instalments, with AUD 4.9m (£2.6m) paid on completion, and AUD 1.7m (£0.9m) and AUD 1.4m (£0.7m) payable on the first and second anniversaries of completion, respectively. Any earn-out tranches are payable by July 2025, 2026 and 2027 respectively. The maximum potential cash consideration payable by the Group pursuant to the acquisition, assuming full payment of the earnout, would be AUD 13.0m (£6.8m). The consideration will be funded from the Group's existing cash resources.

In the twelve months to 31 December 2022, Shoreline generated unaudited consolidated revenue of AUD 7.5m and adjusted EBITDA of AUD 1.0m. As at 31 December 2022, Shoreline had AUD 1.4m of adjusted net assets.

Commenting on the acquisition, Luc Baqué, CEO at Alpha, said: "We are delighted to announce the acquisition of Shoreline and the expansion of the Alpha business in APAC. The combination of our two businesses makes us an excellent partner for clients in the region and provides the perfect platform for further growth in this exciting market. Acquisitions of this nature, along with organic growth, are very much part of Alpha's growth strategy."

Commenting on the acquisition, Paul Tan, Head of APAC - Asset & Wealth Management Consulting at Alpha, said: "The pace and need for change amongst asset and wealth managers in APAC continues to grow strongly. Our acquisition of Shoreline expands Alpha's specialist offering and presence in the region, particularly in Australia, at the perfect time to navigate the opportunities in this expanding market. Shoreline brings a highly complementary client base, a similar culture and a strong management team. We are excited to be bringing the Shoreline team into the Alpha fold."

Commenting on the acquisition, John DiBiase, managing partner of Shoreline, said: "The Shoreline team is delighted to be joining Alpha. This is great news for our people and our clients, as it gives us all access to a broader range of services, access to greater expertise and means we are now part of a truly global network. We have very similar clients, there are strong parallels with our services proposition and we are very well culturally aligned. We look forward to becoming part of the wider Alpha Group."

Enquiries

About Alpha:

Headquartered in the UK and quoted on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange, Alpha is a leading global provider of specialist consultancy services to the asset management, wealth management and insurance industries.

Alpha has worked with all of the world's top 20 and 80% of the world's top 50 asset managers by AUM, along with a wide range of other buy-side firms. It has the largest dedicated team in the industry, with over 900 consultants globally, operating from 16 client-facing offices spanning the UK, North America, Europe and APAC.

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