Liontrust has agreed to acquire Hawksmoor’s fund management and model portfolio services (MPS) business for an initial £6m, with up to £4m in contingent payments over the following two years.
The deal covers the multi-asset funds, fund mandates and MPS currently run by Hawksmoor Fund Management and Hawksmoor Investment Services.
The acquisition will add around £1.9bn of assets under management and advice to Liontrust.
It will also add Hawksmoor’s investment management team – led by Ben Conway – to the Liontrust multi-asset division as they continue to run the acquired strategies.
John Husselbee, head of multi-asset at Liontrust, said: “Hawksmoor is a really strong addition to the multi-asset capability that we have developed over the past few years. They enable Liontrust to offer an even wider range of investment solutions to cater for the demand across the adviser market, including the expansion of our coverage of investment trusts and alternatives.”
Several Hawksmoor funds have also delivered strong relative performance: the Vanbrugh and Distribution funds sit in the first quartile of their respective Investment Association sectors over one, three and five years, while the Global Opportunities fund is in the first or second quartiles over the same periods.
The deal will also broaden Liontrust’s reach among financial advisers, including those using Hawksmoor’s MPS managed by Richard Philbin.
Completion of the deal is expected by 31 December 2026.