Team plc to Acquire WH Ireland in £12.7m All-Share Deal Following Rejected Oberon Sale
- Simon Bourke
- Nov 27, 2025
- 3 min read
Updated: 7 days ago
27th November 2025
Summary
Jersey-headquartered asset and wealth manager Team plc has agreed an all-share acquisition of WH Ireland in a deal valuing the London-listed group at around £12.7m. WH Ireland shareholders will receive 0.195 new Team shar es for each WH Ireland share, giving them roughly 43.5% of the enlarged group, with Team shareholders holding the balance. The combined business will oversee around £2.1bn of assets under management and advice (AUMA), with completion targeted for early 2026, subject to court and regulatory approvals.
The deal
Under the recommended terms, Team will acquire the entire issued share capital of WH Ireland via a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement. Based on Team’s share price at announcement, the offer values WH Ireland at about 5.4p per share, a substantial premium to where the stock was trading before talks were confirmed and far above the previously proposed £1m sale of its wealth management arm to Oberon Investments that shareholders rejected in October.
The transaction will create a small but more scalable listed wealth and asset management group with a market capitalisation just over £30m, combining Team’s existing Jersey-based wealth and asset management activities with WH Ireland’s UK wealth management and capital markets operations.
Who are WH Ireland
WH Ireland is a long-standing UK financial services group providing wealth management and capital markets services. Its wealth division looks after around £830m of client assets, while its capital markets arm offers corporate broking and advisory services to smaller listed and growth companies.
In recent years the group has faced rising costs, tougher markets and a challenged share price, prompting strategic reviews, cost-cutting and the aborted sale of its wealth management arm to Oberon. The rejection of that £1m deal by shareholders left the board under pressure to find a more attractive long-term solution.
Who are Team plc
Team plc is a Jersey-headquartered wealth and asset management group listed in London. It provides discretionary investment management, financial planning and advisory services to private clients, intermediaries and institutions, alongside a range of investment and fund solutions. Before this deal, Team already managed or administered more than £1bn of assets.
The group has positioned itself as a “stable, independent alternative” to larger consolidators in the UK and international wealth management space, focusing on building scale across advice, investment management and administration.
Why are Team plc acquiring WH Ireland
There are clear motivations on both sides:
For WH Ireland
The business has been under financial and strategic pressure, with rising regulatory and operating costs, a small market cap and a previously rejected disposals strategy.
An all-share deal at a materially higher valuation than the Oberon proposal gives shareholders liquidity, ongoing exposure to any future upside and a clearer long-term home for both wealth management and capital markets.
For Team
The acquisition immediately adds £830m of wealth assets, a UK wealth management footprint and a capital markets franchise, roughly doubling the scale of the group.
Greater scale should support investment in technology, operations and product, and improve the economics of running a regulated wealth and asset management platform.
In short, WH Ireland gains a stronger platform and improved valuation; Team accelerates its growth and steps up in the UK wealth market.
How this fits into the wider financial planning & wealth M&A market
This deal underlines a couple of current themes in UK wealth management M&A.
We’re seeing more “sub-scale” listed firms combine to stay viable – the WH Ireland/Team tie-up sits alongside moves like PhillipCapital/Walker Crips deal, where smaller or mid-tier players are using mergers to gain scale, stabilise balance sheets, and fund regulatory and technology investment.
A second theme is shareholder pushback becoming a real force shaping outcomes: WH Ireland investors blocking the proposed £1m sale of its wealth management arm to Oberon and a planned AIM delisting effectively forced the board towards a more holistic solution.
At Chapters Capital, we specialise in financial planning and wealth management M&A and understand the importance of strategic acquisitions for growth. Whether you are considering a sale, merger, or expansion or want to learn more about buyers in the space, please contact one of our professional associates today for a confidential, no-obligation consultation.
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