Campbell Dallas plans to float IFA advisory business: The Herald
29 Apr 08
The mid-tier Scottish chartered accounting firm plans to spin out its fast-growing independent financial advisory business and float it on the Alternative Investment Market within two to three years
Jim Campbell, senior partner at the Glasgow-based firm, said the idea behind the prospective flotation was to expand the business and to "provide an exit" for its "older shareholders", including Campbell himself and fellow senior partner Bob Dallas.
Campbell, who was speaking to The Herald from the company's offices in Paisley, said: "Since 1999, we've been quietly expanding our IFA business and now we're already at the point – after four acquisitions – where we're among the top five IFAs in Scotland.
"We're quietly confident that our IFA business will double its turnover next year to £3m and have a pre-tax profit of around £400,000.
"In the year after that, I expect we'll be big enough to float on the stock market. We want to raise money for more acquisitions, but we also want to provide an exit for some of our older shareholders."
Campbell, who said the firm aims to become the largest IFA by the time of the flotation, added that other acquisitions were planned in the sector during the current year and that it had around £500,000 in its war chest for purchases.
"The money has been raised through outside shareholders," he said. "Campbell Dallas is no longer wholly owned by Campbell Dallas. We've recently brought in some independent shareholders, including the entrepreneur Ian Johnston."
The firm was formed in 1999 from the amalgamation of Campbell & Co in Bearsden and Paisley-based Dallas Nicol & Co.
In 2003, it began to expand into central and northern Scotland through a merger with the Perth office of Reeves & Neylan Chartered Accountants. Since then, it has grown into one of the largest independent accounting firms in Scotland by acquiring IFAs throughout Scotland, and the prospective spin-out and flotation plan will involve the amalgamation of five disparate firms.
Asked if the "older shareholders" included himself, Campbell said: "Yes, that means me. I'm 64, and I'd like to pass the reins over to the next generation of management."
He also said his eponymous partner Dallas was also among those who would likely be seeking an exit within a few years.