Canaccord Genuity in early talks over possible sale of British wealth arm, sources say

By Amy-Jo Crowley and Charlie Conchie

LONDON (Reuters) -Canadian financial services group Canaccord Genuity has been sounding out potential bidders, including CVC and Advent, for its British wealth arm, two people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

The CEO of the unit, known as Canaccord Wealth, has held meetings with private equity firms recently about a potential sale, said the people, who declined to be named as the information is not public.  

Fenchurch Advisory, a London-based boutique investment bank, is advising Canaccord Genuity on a potential sale and could begin a formal process later this quarter, the people added. 

The business, which generated EBITDA of 78.6 million pounds in the 12-month period ending in March according to its latest annual results, could fetch a valuation of more than 1 billion pounds ($1.34 billion) in a sale, the people said. As of the end of June, it had assets under management of 38.3 billion pounds ($51.46 billion), according to its latest quarterly results.  

Canaccord Genuity's spokesperson did not respond to multiple requests for comment via email and telephone. A representative for Canaccord Wealth did not respond to emails and calls. David Esfandi, CEO of Canaccord Wealth, did not respond to requests for comment. 

Fenchurch, CVC and Advent declined to comment.

Canaccord Genuity said in November it had no plans to sell the business after the Financial Times reported it was conducting a strategic review which included the potential sale of its UK wealth management business.  It added that it regularly explores opportunities to strengthen its business and routinely engages with external advisers to assess opportunities across its global business.  

While the UK business is majority-owned by Canaccord Genuity, BlackRock-owned private credit firm HPS has owned a minority stake since 2021 and is likely to offload its shares as part of a sale, the people said. A spokesperson for HPS declined to comment.

The potential sale comes amid a wave of dealmaking in the wealth management and financial advice market in recent years as firms look for greater scale and attempt to capitalise on rising demand for wealth services. 

Canaccord Genuity itself has expanded through a series of deals in Britain, including the 2024 purchase of Cantab Asset Management and acquisition of Brooks Macdonald Asset Management International in 2025.  

Despite a subdued global dealmaking environment in the first half of the year, European wealth and asset management deals rose from 90 in the first half of 2024 to 113 in the same period in 2025, while deal value rose from $1.9 billion to $2.7 billion over the same period, according to data from EY. 

($1 = 0.7450 pound)

(Reporting by Amy-Jo Crowley and Charlie Conchie in London; Editing by Anousha Sakoui, Elaine Hardcastle and Matthew Lewis)