Anderson Anderson & Brown (AAB) has announced a significant investment from London-based August Equity to speed up its growth plans and help realise its strategic vision of becoming a key UK regional player in the accountancy and business services market.

AAB said it will work closely with August as it actively seeks M&A opportunities.

AAB is currently a leading Scottish player, with offices in Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow, and plans to build its market share across the Central Belt alongside growing the number of regional hubs it operates from major cities across the UK.

AAB also has a London office focussed on payroll, global mobility and virtual finance which supports some of the group’s largest UK and international clients.

AAB’s team of over 350 provides a portfolio of business services including audit, accounting, tax, payroll, HR, consulting, wealth and corporate finance.

AAB supports a wide range of SME and enterprise clients, with a strong exposure to the energy, technology, business services, public and not for profit, food and drink and property and construction sectors.

“August’s investment in AAB shall facilitate considerable investment in people, both existing and those who recognise the exciting opportunities being created across the group,” said AAB.

“In addition, it will allow AAB to invest further in tech following the doubling of spend in this area during 2021.

“It shall also provide significant firepower for AAB to pursue merger & acquisition opportunities (M&A) across the UK.

“The partnership with August will enable AAB to continue to build on the momentum already created this year following the merger with Glasgow-based accountancy firm Hardie Caldwell, and acquisition of Edinburgh-based Purpose HR.”

AAB CEO Graeme Allan said: “We are enjoying a fantastic period of growth but see so many opportunities to invest more heavily to fast-track this.

“August Equity’s investment will be instrumental in helping us build a high-quality regional business services group across the UK.

“They are also a great cultural fit and are as excited about our partnership and the future as we are.

“As we grow, we will remain committed to investing and developing our people and of course clients will benefit as we expand our portfolio of tech-enabled services for the SME and enterprise markets.

“We shall work closely with August as we actively seek M&A opportunities with a particular focus on partnering with firms who adopt a similar ethos to us driven by a passion for helping people, staff and clients alike, achieve their goals.

“This model will establish a wide equity ownership whilst maintaining the opportunity for real partner progression for the future leadership of the group.”

David Lonsdale, Partner at August Equity, said: “We are delighted to be investing in AAB and we are excited to be working with Graeme and the team.

“We look forward to working together to accelerate the growth of AAB and build a leading tech-enabled, business critical services group which is highly differentiated in the market.”