Charles Russell Speechlys has advised the shareholders of advisory firm, Ascot Lloyd, on its merger with Bellpenny, a national wealth management company.

Ascot Lloyd is a leading national independent advisory firm providing personal and professional financial advisory services to individual and corporate clients. The combined firm will have over 100 advisers, more than 40,000 clients and some £6 billion assets under management. Ascot Lloyd and Bellpenny will continue to operate under their existing brands, drawing on a combined wealth of experience and prominent market standing.

Nigel Stockton and Matthew Moore of Bellpenny will lead the management team of the merged firm, as chief executive and chief financial officer respectively. Richard Dunbabin and Pat O’Hara of Ascot Lloyd will remain involved in the business as advisers to the management team.

Founding shareholder Richard Dunbabin said: “Pat and I were very impressed by the service provided by the Charles Russell Speechlys team. They were responsive, always available and had a firm grip on the commercial issues and legal detail. They successfully guided us through what was a complex process and we would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone considering selling their business.”

Mark Howard, Corporate Partner at Charles Russell Speechlys said: “We are delighted to have advised the shareholders on this transformational transaction and we wish Richard, Pat and the team at Ascot Lloyd every success as the business moves to the next stage of its development.”

The Charles Russell Speechlys team was led by Mark Howard, assisted by Tom Smitham, Emily Davies and Nathan Lightman of the Corporate team, with support from a number of specialists including Martin Griffiths (Tax) and Emily Chalkley (Employment).