The offer comes at a 34% premium to share price, and has been recommended to shareholders by the Mattioli Woods board.

If the deal receives shareholder approval, it will see the wealth manager transitioning to private ownership.

Bidco intends to implement the transition through a scheme of arrangement, which it expects to become effective in either the second or third quarter of 2024.

Ian Mattioli, Mattioli Woods CEO, said: “Since our admission to Aim in 2005, we have seen significant expansion in both the size and nature of our business, integrating asset management, financial planning and employee benefit services to serve personal and corporate clients throughout the UK.

“We have a strong track record of combining like-minded businesses that share the same culture and ethos of putting clients first. The team at Pollen Street share our passion for delivering exceptional client outcomes and have demonstrated their ability to partner with entrepreneurial financial services business.

“I believe that with Pollen Street’s support and access to capital we can accelerate the delivery of our strategy and provide our clients with the proactive advice and bespoke investment solutions they require.”

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Both vehicles are managed by Roland Arnold, who seeks to invest in high quality, growing businesses.

Square Mile analysts said they consider Arnold to be a “pragmatic” investor who has proven to be adept in adjusting the risk profile of the strategy underlying both the fund and the trust at appropriate times during the market cycle.

The £633.1m BlackRock Smaller Companies Trust currently trades at an 11.7% discount to net asset value (NAV), according to the AIC.

Analysts at Square Mile conducted 66 interviews with investment professionals from 37 asset management groups during February.

Elsewhere, the Janus Henderson Global Equity Income fund has lost its A rating after a period of “challenged” performance.

According to FE Fundinfo, the strategy has returned 43.5% over the last five years compared to the IA Global Equity Income average 52.3%.

The analysts noted that the fund has always taken an approach that is highly defensive, non-cyclical and with a focus on income.

“However, its total return profile has not met [analyst] expectations and [Square Mile] no longer have sufficient conviction in the strategy to justify its continued inclusion in the Academy of Funds,” they said.

Matthews Asia Pacific Tiger fund has also been stripped of its A rating, having previously had its rating suspended in December following the departure of manager Sharat Shroff.

Shroff was replaced by Inbok Song as lead manager, who works alongside the firm’s CIO Sean Taylor.

The Square Mile analysts said: “Ms Song and Mr Taylor are in the process of re-invigorating the strategy, which includes adjusting the portfolio construction process. Although Square Mile’s analysts believe this to be a sensible course of action, as yet it is unproven.”

Schroder US Equity Income Maximiser and Schroder Income Maximiser funds have both retained their A ratings, despite the recent departure of manager Mike Hodgson.

Co-manager Scott Thomson was appointed as head of the team. Square Mile said its analysts have a high regard for Thomson and confirmed the two funds’ ratings would remain unchanged.

Similarly, UBAM Positive Impact Equity fund has retained its ‘Responsible A’ rating despite senior portfolio manager Rupert Welchman’s decision to exit the firm in April.

Despite his departure, the Square Mile analysts believe the team is well resourced and they have a high regard for the strong team-based process underpinning the strategy.

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If the deal receives regulatory approval, US private equity firm Lovell Minnick Partners (LMP) will take a majority shareholding in the combined business.

The firm is currently London & Capital’s largest shareholder.

London & Capital chief executive Guy McGlashan will become CEO of the combined business.

“The merger of Waverton with London & Capital is a hugely exciting stage in Waverton’s evolution for our clients, our staff, and our shareholders,” said Nick Tucker, CEO of Waverton.

“Our two businesses share a similar culture of providing outstanding client service combined with a laser like focus on investment performance and we look forward to strengthening our investment capability while enhancing our offerings in the wealth management and advisory services space.

“This partnership coupled with the support of LMP will accelerate the growth of our combined business for the benefit of all shareholders and I am looking forward to working with Guy to achieve our vision for the merged business.”

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Launched in 2011, the fund is managed by Kevin Murphy and Andrew Evans and invests in a diversified portfolio of UK companies.

Joseph Hill, HL senior investment analyst, said that the fund could diversify an income-focused portfolio or offer value exposure to a more general portfolio.

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“We think Murphy and Evans have the experience and support to deliver good long-term returns to patient investors, although there are no guarantees,” he said. “We also have a positive view of the collegiate approach, capability and experience of the 12-strong value team the managers form a part of.”

Murphy has been at Schroders since 2000, joining as an equity analyst before managing money since 2006. He has run the Schroder Income fund since launch.

Meanwhile, Evans joined the firm in 2015 as a member of the global value team. He became a named manager on the strategy in November 2022.

According to FE Fundinfo, the strategy has returned 33.5% over three years against the IA UK Equity Income sector average of 20.2%.

This article was written for our sister title Portfolio Adviser

The asset class pulled in a net €29.7bn in the month, while Money Market USD  was the best-selling Lipper Classification after receiving €11.2bn inflows.

Providers of mutual funds pulled in €22.5bn, while passives saw net inflows of €21bn.

Detlef Glow, head of Lipper EMEA research at LSEG, said: “Within the current market environment, it is not surprising that European investors bought further into money market products since the Eurozone and other major economies have an inverted yield curve. This means that money market products offer a higher yield than medium- or long-term bonds.

“More generally, long-term funds and money market products enjoyed inflows for the month. These flow numbers might indicate that European investors are further readjusting their portfolios to the current market environment.”

See also: Evelyn Partners adds to US equities and UK gilts in Core MPS rebalancing

Equity funds attracted €2.5bn net inflows in January, while multi-asset funds suffered outflows of €11.7bn. Investors also pulled €3.6bn from alternatives and €1.8bn from real estate funds.

By fund group, BlackRock’s €7.3bn net inflow was the best-selling among fund promoters in Europe, ahead of HSBC’s €6.7bn.

JP Morgan (€6.5bn), Axa Investment Managers (€4.3bn), and BNP Paribas (€4.0bn) all also saw strong net inflows.

The inflows occurred against the backdrop of an unstable market environment due to the geopolitical tensions in Middle East, especially the Red Sea, which increased in January due to concerns over prolonged delivery times caused by shipping companies having to avoid the Suez channel.

Glow added: “This month was somewhat business as usual. However, it is still surprising that European investors prefer bond funds over money market products, given the inverted yield curves in the major economies around the globe.

“In addition, it is noteworthy that one of the major trends from 2023 (actively managed US equity funds faced outflows, while ETFs enjoyed inflows) continued in January 2024.”

This article was written for our sister title Portfolio Adviser