Royal London to sell Ascentric platform to M&G
£100m re-platforming
M&G's share price was up more than 5.6% in early trading today (17 May), following the announcement that life company Royal London will sell its platform business Ascentric to the firm.
The move follows the completion of Ascentric's replatforming project in 2019, and is subject to regulatory approval.
Around 1,500 advisers use the Ascentric platform, which holds assets under administration of £14bn across 90,000 customers. It has been part of Royal London since 2017.
Royal London chief executive Barry O'Dwyer said: "As part of our strategic review of the business, we explored a number of options for Ascentric. The business has been performing well following its re-platforming and we sought an outcome that would take it to its next phase of growth.
"We believe that a sale to M&G delivers this for Ascentric and I am pleased to have found a buyer who has a strong commitment to Ascentric's client and customer base and who is looking to further grow the business.
"I would like to thank the Ascentric team for their contribution to building a valuable business over the past years.
"At Royal London we still remain firmly committed to the adviser market as we drive through a major digital transformation programme and develop new capabilities to help advisers better meet the needs of their customers."
Ascentric's re-platforming process was both expensive and tough for the life company. In March 2019, Ascentric revealed it had spent more than £100m on its long-term re-platforming project over the course of the previous three years.
Then, in May, the new platform offered up some hurdles for advisers as some users complained about the client reporting functions and others reported extended waiting times with the call centre.
It also had to delay some of its re-platforming migrations.
This article first appeared on our sister title Professional Adviser
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