Mobeus scores 3.3x on Ludlow trade sale

The exit will deliver a 3.3x money multiple and 36% IRR for the GP.

Mattioli Woods is an AIM-listed provider of advice on wealth management and employee benefits; it is acquiring Ludlow as part of its growth plans within the wealth management sector.

Mobeus backed CEO Ian Hemingway in a £12m buyout of the business from founder Sid Ludlow in June 2017. Mobeus invested £8m in the deal, securing a majority stake and providing a full funding package including debt, Unquote reported at the time.

Back in 2017, the business had £865m in assets under advice (AUA), the GP said. Mobeus introduced a new chairman, finance director and COO after the deal. The business then underwent a £6.5m refinancing with Santander in December 2018 and proceeded to make four bolt-on acquisitions, which together added £325m to it AUA. Mobeus said that Ludlow also experienced double-digit organic growth, almost doubled its AUA to £1.6bn and doubled EBITDA under the ownership period.

The Ludlow sale is the second exit from Mobeus Fund IV, following the realisation of Advantedge in November 2020 (which netted Mobeus a 30% IRR). The vehicle is the GP's first institutional fund; it closed on £166m in 2017.

Mobeus is now on the road to raise the fund's successor, it said in a statement, with a first close expected in Q3.

Company
Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Southport, Merseyside, Ludlow is a financial advisory and asset management business. With 22 advisers, Ludlow provides personal financial advice to 3,300 clients.

Ludlow generated £1.6m in EBITDA at the time of the 2017 deal, Unquote reported at the time. According to Mobeus, that figure has since doubled.

People
Mobeus Equity Partners – Chris Price, Justin Maltz (partners).

Advisers
Vendors – DC Advisory (corporate finance); Osborne Clarke (legal).

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