Deals Of The Day: The Latest In Wealth Management M&A – IQ-EQ, Laven Compliance, Mourant

Editorial Staff

12 December 2022

IQ-EQ
IQ-EQ, the global investor services group, has bought Laven Compliance, – formerly a part of Laven Group.

The acquired business is a UK and US-based provider of regulatory compliance, regulatory application support and operational due diligence servicing financial services clients.

The deal will boost IQ-EQ’s regulatory compliance business offering, the firm said. In the UK, this side of the business is led by UK managing director Rachel Aldridge. The acquisition does not involve any other part of the Laven Group, IQ-EQ said in a statement late last week.

“This deal is the perfect combination for our business. It’s packed full of upside; for the incoming team, our existing team of regulatory compliance experts and for our UK and US-based clients who can now avail of an expanded range of products and services delivered by an industry recognised team of experts,” John Legrand, IQ-EQ regional CEO, UK, Ireland and the Crown Dependencies said.

IQ-EQ has made a number of acquisitions; in April this year it rebranded its US-based firms after a raft of acquisitions in recent months. The firms that now take the IQ-EQ name are Blue River Partners, Constellation Advisers, Concord Trust Company, and Greyline Partners.

Mourant
Professional services firm, Mourant has announced that it intends to acquire a Luxembourg law firm, LexField, and its affiliated governance services business, FideField.

The acquisition will enable Mourant to provide clients with legal, corporate and entity management services from Luxembourg, Mourant said in a statement late last week.

LexField is a boutique corporate and tax practice, specialising in private equity, investment funds, M&A and private wealth, led by partners Pierre-Yves Magerotte and Aldric Grosjean.

FideField provides entity management services to corporate and financial services clients. The leadership team comprises Melina Howard , Nicolas Poncelet and Yeliz Bozkir .

The acquisition follows that of a specialist accounting business in January this year and the launch of Mourant Consulting Services in 2021, the firm said.

"We've spent several years getting to know the leadership team at LexField and FideField. There's a close strategic and cultural alignment between our businesses and we're delighted to be joining forces in Luxembourg,” Mourant global managing partner, Jonathan Rigby, said.

The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, is scheduled to complete in the first quarter of next year.

Mourant advises on the laws of the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey and Jersey.