AFH’s tenth deal of this financial year will strengthen its position in the South East and adds £80m to the group’s funds under management.

Nigel Poole and David Clark set up Harvey Curtis (their middle names) in 2000, after each notching up around 15 years in financial services.

Harvey Curtis grew, in part through the team’s developing expertise in absorbing insolvent IFA practices, and now has more than 1,300 clients across the South East and London.

Nigel explained: “With the departure of the banks, it’s become increasingly difficult to find young advisers and with the ever-increasing regulation we felt we needed new blood to be able to continue to offer the best service to our clients.

“We met Alan and saw we had the same ethos of putting clients front and centre, so it made sense to join forces. Now our clients get the benefit of the incredible support the AFH back-office teams provide, and we can devote ourselves 100% to working with our clients to deliver what they want and need.”

AFH chief executive Alan Hudson said: “It’s great to welcome Nigel and David to the AFH family, sharing as they do our determination always to put customers first. Their joining adds to our capacity in the south east of England, where we see a lot of potential for growth.

“This deal shows AFH remains an attractive place for IFA companies of all sizes, whether they want to grow their business, serve their customers better or find a good home while they exit the industry.”

Harvey Curtis is the eighth expansion of 2018 for AFH, which also owns a £100m property portfolio that includes two retail parks, supermarkets, pubs and hotels, cementing the group’s position as one of the largest independent financial services firms in the country.