Howden is continuing with its active acquisition policy with the purchase of advice firm Benefits Advisory Services (BAS) for an undisclosed sum.
Howden confirms that BAS will continue to operate as a separate entity with no redundancies planned.
This acquisition will add further scale to Howden’s employee benefit business, which will now employ over 4,000 people in 39 countries. This move comes just weeks after Howden confirmed it was buying Barnett Waddingham.
Howden says there was relatively little overlap between the two organisations. As with other recent acquisitions it says this purchase is a ‘growth play’ rather than a cost-cutting exercise.
BAS’s senior management team is being retained. with the team joining the wider Howden group although its managing director David Middleton is stepping down from the role.
Benefits Advisory Services, founder and director Lewis Mosley says: “BAS and Howden are highly complementary businesses, and this combination gives us access to Howden’s international scale and wider capabilities, bolstering our international expertise.”
Howden Employee Benefits and Wellbeing managing director Cheryl Brennan adds: “The acquisition of BAS is a significant development in the growth of our business, and with our combined capabilities, Howden will be positioned to better serve multinational clients.”
Glenn Thomas, CEO, UK health & employee benefits and global practice leader, Howden adds: “The BAS team is very well known to us, and we have enjoyed watching BAS’s growth over the years.
“This combination brings together two businesses with a strong cultural fit, and reflects Howden’s ongoing strategy to invest in its employee benefits advisory capabilities.”
