Suffolk Life acquisition drives annual growth at SIPP provider Curtis Banks

The Suffolk Life offices in Princes Street, Ipswich (Image: Archant)

Curtis Banks, which agreed a £45m deal in January last year to acquire Suffolk Life from Legal & General, said operating revenue for the 12 months to December 31 rose to £29.7m, from £17m the previous year, with profit before tax, amortisation and non-recurring items increasing to £7.1m, from £6m in 2015.

The number of self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs) held by the group increased by 86% during the year to 72,983, including around 26,500 held by Suffolk Life at the time of the acquisition, which was completed in May.

In July last year, a further 5,000 SIPPs were added to the Suffolk Life business following the acquisition by Curtis Banks of the SIPP business of European Pensions Management (EPM) which had gone into administration the previous month.

However, the overall increase in SIPP numbers last year also included organic growth of around 16%, Curtis Banks said.

Rupert Curtis, chief executive of the Curtis Banks Group, right,, with Will Self, chief executive of Suffolk Life, who is also now an executive member of the Curtis Banks board (Image: Archant)

Chief executive Rupert Curtis said: “2016 has been a transformational year for Curtis Banks with the acquisition of Suffolk Life. Seven years after founding the business we now administer over 72,000 SIPPs with approaching £20bn of assets.

“SIPP numbers grew by 86% in 2016 and revenue by 75%. Adjusted net profit increased to £7.1m and we will see the benefit of full year contributions in 2017 from our acquisitions and enhanced business levels.

“We see great opportunity to consolidate the business of Curtis Banks and Suffolk Life and enhance our performance as a unified business, building on what we have achieved so far.

“With the support of our great team of 600 people, we’re tremendously excited about 2017 and the future ahead of us.”