Begbies Traynor acquires Midlands finance broker MAF

Begbies Traynor Group announced the acquisition of Midlands-based finance broker MAF Property on Monday, which trades as MAF Finance Group.

The AIM-traded firm said initial consideration consisted of £3.0m, with £2.0m in cash from its existing facilities, and the issue of 847,458 new ordinary shares making up the remainder.

A potential earn-out of up to £8.75m would depend on the delivery of “material growth” in profits over the four years after completion.

Begbies Traynor said MAF’s finance broking complemented its existing services, and would “deepen” its relationships with banks and other lenders.

The board said the acquisition was in line with its strategy to increase the scale, quality and range of the group's services, both organically and through value-accretive acquisitions, adding that the acquisition was expected to be immediately earnings-enhancing.

“The acquisition of MAF is in line with our growth strategy and complements our existing, and expands the range of, our service lines,” said executive chairman Ric Traynor.

“MAF specialises in providing growth capital for investment and has developed excellent relationships with both clients and financial institutions over many years.

“As companies seek to bounce back from the pandemic, access to finance will be critical and going forward the MAF team will prove invaluable in increasing the support and advice we can provide to UK businesses.”

At 0925 BST, shares in Begbies Traynor Group were down 0.22% at 118.74p.