We are pleased to announce that on the 12th of September 2016 STM entered into a conditional agreement with the majority shareholders of London & Colonial Holdings Limited to acquire the entire issued share capital of LCH and its subsidiaries. The Board of STM believes that the Acquisition is highly complementary to STM’s existing business and strategy and will contribute to the growth of STM.

London & Colonial is a service led independent financial services group that has established a reputation as an innovative product provider in an increasingly sophisticated market, being the creator of the original “Open Annuity” and an early provider of a pure SIPP product into an evolving pensions market. It will establish STM in the UK SIPP market, the successful realisation of an important strategic objective of the Company. Completion of the Acquisition is estimated to take place around December 2016.

Commenting on the Acquisition Alan Kentish, Chief Executive Officer of STM, said: “We are delighted to announce the acquisition of London & Colonial Holdings and its subsidiaries which will result in a considerably strengthened and enlarged Group. The transaction is a win-win outcome for STM and L&C. London & Colonial is a very well respected name within the industry where there are a number of current opportunities that can be accelerated with STM’s resources and critical mass in the QROPs market. Not only does the Acquisition get STM a foothold into the UK SIPP market, it also brings with it a number of bolt-on consolidations in the QROPs and Life Assurance business. These will bring STM further economies of scale and will potentially free up regulatory capital in the medium term to fuel further growth.”

Robin Ellison, Chairman of London & Colonial Holdings, added: “We have over the years grown LCH in a forward thinking and innovative manner, and are delighted that STM share our vision of the future. We recognise that STM’s enviable distribution network will allow LCH’s businesses to flourish more quickly than could be achieved by LCH’s existing management and network.”

We look forward to providing a further update when the acquisition is finalised.