Chief financial officer solutions group Opulus has expanded east with the acquisition of Edinburgh-based tax advisers and accountants George + Co.
Under the terms of the deal, the firm will continue to trade under its own name and service clients from its office in Rutland Street.
Matthew Garstang, chief executive at Opulus, said: “As part of our strategic plan to spread our geographic footprint throughout Scotland, we are delighted to secure this deal which marks our entry into the east of Scotland business services market with a location in the heart of our capital city.
“George + Co is a highly-regarded business comprising a team of two directors and five employees with a turnover in excess of £600,000.
“As part of our ambitious expansion plans, this deal gives us a firm foothold in Edinburgh from where we are actively seeking to secure further acquisitions throughout the east of Scotland.”
Linda Leaworthy, director at George + Co, said: “Our offering that will only be enhanced by joining the expanding Opulus group; giving us access to a broader range of business advisory expertise.”
The latest deal follows Opulus joining forces in February with accountancy firm Wylie & Bisset to create a ‘hub and spoke’ model of business advisory services.
Donald McKinnon, managing partner at Wylie & Bisset, added: “As full-service accountants and business advisers, we operate as a ‘hub’ to provide a range of service lines and support to a network of regional ‘spoke’ accountancy practices within the wider Opulus group for the benefit of our clients.”
Opulus previously bought Glasgow-headquartered Nicolson Accountancy, John Kerr & Co in Saltcoats, Alexander Marshall in Motherwell and Craig Cleland in East Kilbride.
A joint venture formed between founder Matthew Garstang and investment and advisory firm N4 Partners to provide a range of business services to help SMEs grow, Opulus will shortly be rolling out legal, HR and IT offerings to complement its existing business service lines.
SME Capital, the institution founded to provide bespoke funding for established SMEs, has provided a £10 million growth capital facility to support further expansion plans of the enlarged group.
Keith Gibson, who sits on the board as a non-executive director for N4 Partners, commented: “We are delighted to complete this acquisition, which is the sixth made by Opulus over the last 15 months.
“The company has a strong pipeline of transactions in place during the remainder of 2023 and we are looking forward to working closely with Matt and his team as part of that program.”
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