Saltus to acquire Altrincham-based wealth manager Mercater

Discretionary fund manager Saltus Fund Management is set to acquire Altrincham-based wealth manager Mercater Capital Management, boosting its managed funds by £65 million.

Mercater will take on the Saltus brand and become its North West branch.

Saltus would not confirm how much it paid for Mercater.

Mercater chief executive Alaric Gordon will become chief operating officer of the combined group.

The move follows Saltus’ acquisition of Montague Capital, a Midlands-based discretionary fund manager, in August.

Saltus managing partner Simon Armstrong (pictured) said that wealth managers were likely to struggle next year with increased regulation and competition.

‘Tighter regulation, as a result of the retail distribution review and increased competition has put pressure on smaller wealth managers,’ he said. ‘We have the infrastructure in place so that, by working with us, these smaller organisations can both thrive and flourish in this new environment and provide great investment solutions to their clients.’