West Midlands-based private equity specialist HGL Private Capital has invested in fast-growing, tech-led Manchester pensions and savings advisor Pension Pulse to accelerate its mission of making regulated financial advice accessible to everyday consumers.
Pension Pulse has secured “an undisclosed investment” from HGL Private Capital to tackle the UK’s widening “advice gap”, which has left millions of people without access to affordable regulated pension advice despite needing it most.
Founded by CEO Aidan Carter (left) and CIO James Igoe (right), Pension Pulse is an independent financial advisor authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and working to deliver on its mission “to make financial advice accessible to everyone.”
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While traditional providers have historically focused on wealthier clients, Pension Pulse has developed a scalable and regulated model designed to support consumers regardless of the size of their pension, to help more people access trusted long-term financial support.
Based in Barbirolli Square, Manchester, Pension Pulse uses a combination of digital platforms and human advice and lays claim to being one of the fastest-growing IFAs in the UK on a revenue per adviser basis, driven by its operational model combining technology, compliance and human support to deliver at scale.
CEO Carter said: “We believe the future of financial advice must look completely different to the traditional industry model. Millions of people across the UK need trusted regulated advice but have historically been excluded because they do not meet traditional wealth thresholds. Our mission is to create a completely new category which combines technology, operational scale and human interaction to make high-quality advice genuinely accessible.
“HGL Private Capital immediately understood both the scale of the problem and the size of the opportunity. They share our long-term vision and we are excited to build the next phase of Pension Pulse together.”
HGL Private Capital founding directors Chris Hurley and Ged Gould have both joined the Pension Pulse board as non-executive directors. The investor relaunched in March last year after rebranding to replace Dealspan, offering a new strategic focus on investing in fast growing businesses with UK and international growth ambitions.
HGL concentrates on equity investments up to £10m, with specialisms including management buy-outs, cash out deals and finance for growth plans, both organic and “buy and build” strategies.
Gould said: “The investment in Pension Pulse reflects our growing confidence in scalable, technology-enabled advice businesses capable of addressing one of the UK financial sector’s biggest structural challenges.”
Chris Hurley added: “The investment will support Pension Pulse’s continued expansion, technology development and national growth strategies. We look forward to partnering with Aidan and James.”
