MBO of Aesculapian Holdings (Cavendish Medical and Medical Family Finances)

Meta Corporate Finance (“Meta”) originally were engaged some time ago to assist the shareholders of Cavendish Medical, the leading wealth manager focused on health professionals, to consider their options at a time when the business was being approached by a number of suitors. After a full evaluation of the options open to them Meta structured a transaction, similar to an MBO, which afforded the founders a route to ultimate exit and enfranchised the younger participants in a way that a new Senior Management Team would be formed to take the business forward.

The founders later explored the development of financial advisory services to the wider and more junior medical fraternity in a separate company called Medical Family Finances (“MFF”) whilst continuing to participate at a reduced level in Cavendish Medical. As MFF grew it became apparent that it would be best to align all services within one group on a formal basis. The holding company of Cavendish Medical was renamed as Aesculapian Holdings and the best way to look to merge the businesses over time was investigated.

A new holding company, Aesculapian Group Limited, became the vehicle to bring the MFF business into the group over time allowing for its further maturation under existing management until that could be transitioned to within the group as a whole.

Meta had maintained contact with the business throughout and as part of this transaction developed a structure that also accommodated the founders ultimate exit aspirations. This was very timely as it meant that the founders captured the reliefs available to exiting entrepreneurs before these became more restricted.

Other advisers included Nick Foss-Pedersen at Haynes and Boone (legals) and Alison Conley at MacIntyre Hudson (tax).