Baldwins secures major investment as it joins new international accountancy group
A fast-growing Walsall-based accountancy group has secured a major investment as it becomes part of a new £300 million financial advice group.
Baldwins is part of the newly-launched CogitalGroup along with the former payroll and accounting arm of Norwegian group Visma and London accountants Blick Rothenberg.
Backed by HgCapital, the new group is headed by John Connolly, former global chairman of Deloitte.
The combined CogitalGroup will have revenue of around £300 million and aims to provide outsourcing, accounting, payroll, taxation, financial and other advisory services to a broad range of businesses including entrepreneurial businesses and high net worth individuals
The terms of the investment in Baldwins are not being disclosed.
Based in Walsall, the firm has expanded to 27 offices across the UK employing around 650 people. It says it will continue with its strategy of acquiring quality firms as it builds out its regional network of practices and existing management team remain in charge.
Director John Baldwin said: "We undertook significant diligence on who to work with in relation to our future investment partners and we are delighted to have the opportunity to join CogitalGroup and work with HgCapital.
"We are also pleased to welcome John Connolly onto our board who, with his undoubted background as former global chairman of Deloitte, will bring a level of expertise and experience necessary to achieve our goals and aspirations."
The Baldwins investment follows HgCapital's acquisition of Visma BPO (business process operations), a provider of outsourced accounting, payroll and HR services to 20,000 businesses in the Nordic region.
In July, HgCapital announced its investment in Blick Rothenberg.
All three businesses will continue to operate with their existing brands. The combined CogitalGroup will have more than 3,200 people based in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and the UK and with a significant nearshore centre in Romania.
John Connolly said: "This is a major landmark for CogitalGroup and is part of our strategy to build a different kind of advisory business, underpinned by exceptional levels of innovation and client-focused service.
"We are extremely excited about our future and strongly believe that there is a place in the market for a firm focused on entrepreneurial businesses and high net worth individuals, delivering a personal service whilst harnessing the value-enhancing role of technology."
He added: "Baldwins is a company I have known and admired for some time and I am delighted that we now have the opportunity to work with John and his team. Along with our colleagues at Blick Rothenberg and Visma BPO, they will help take CogitalGroup to the next level."
Thorsten Toepfer, a director of HgCapital, said: "This latest investment is in line with HgCapital's sector-focused approach and reflects our considerable experience in this area. We are proud to be investing in CogitalGroup, and working together our goal is to build a substantial international business that provides superior service to entrepreneurial companies and business owners and managers."
Private equity firm HgCapital currently manages more than £3 billion for institutional and private investors.
