News
Noble secures strategic investor
01/04/2008
Noble Group Ltd (Noble), the independent UK investment banking group, today announced that the ARCH Group (ARCH) has taken a minority stake in the business. This concludes a series of developments which form the basis of Noble’s future plans - the new management team was installed nine months ago and in January of this year the management and employees substantially bought out the original shareholders.
Noble’s strategy is to focus on providing investment banking and investment management services to facilitate growth and capital for small and mid-cap companies, and to deliver robust growth strategies for entrepreneurs and investors.
These developments allow the new management team, assembled over the course of a year and led by Angus Macpherson, to focus on the future growth of the business. The reduced concentration of shareholdings resulting from the buy out will increase the incentivisation of management in achieving that growth.
Further to the completion of the management and employee buyout, ARCH a privately-owned financial services group, has acquired a 19% stake in Noble. ARCH, which provides investment structuring solutions to institutions and wealth managers, is already an investor in ‘Noble Venture Finance II’, the asset finance fund, and the directors of Noble envisage further opportunities to be exploited as the two organisations work closely together.
This transaction values the fully diluted equity of Noble Group Holdings Ltd at £30.5million.
The new shareholding structure, together with the introduction of additional capital and strategic investment gives the management team a significantly strengthened capital base with which to implement its future plans. It will provide for further investment where necessary, support recruitment opportunities and allow the Group to pursue aggressively revenue growth and control costs. Angus Macpherson, chief executive of Noble, said: “Noble as an institution is moving to the next stage of its development. The recent buy out and the partnership with ARCH provide a solid basis for growth. We have assembled a market-leading team at all levels of the business, and we will now be in a position to invest where needed and reward everyone who plays a part in driving the business forward.
“While many companies in our sector view the market with pessimism, we are confident that we have the right team and the strength of capital base to grow the business further. We have an exciting strategy of focusing on small and mid-capitalisation companies and believe that this is a dynamic sector to be working on.”
Robin Farrell, CEO of ARCH Group, commented “Noble Group shares a commitment to excellence and innovation. They are well positioned for strong growth going forwards and we see a strategic fit with their activities. This investment furthers our strategy of adding value and innovative financial businesses to our portfolio”.
For more information contact:
Ben Thompson, Group Head of Marketing, Noble Group
+44 20 7763 2200
Sarah Gestetner, Citigate Dewe Rogerson
+44 20 7282 2920
About Noble
Noble is an independent UK investment bank. It has four operating companies providing a range of services including investment management of specialist asset classes, corporate finance and broking services and corporate administration. All four companies are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.