Fund data and tech company FE fundinfo has acquired Financial Planning cashflow modeller CashCalc. 

CashCalc was set up by Chartered Financial Planner Ray Adams, chairman of Niche IFA, in South Wales, in 2014.

Following the acquisition, for an undisclosed sum, CashCalc will continue to be offered as stand-alone product.

FE fundinfo says it will invest significantly in integration between CashCalc and its existing set of tools, including FE Analytics and platform and back-office integrations. 

FE says it sees cashflow planning as a “natural extension of the fund selection process” and CashCalc will work alongside FE Analytics. 

CashCalc is one of a growing number of cashflow modelling tools being used by Financial Planners and IFAs in the UK. Rivals to CashCalc include Truth Software from Prestwood and Voyant, which was recently acquired by US-based AssetMark Financial Holdings for £104m.

FE fundinfo was formed by the merger of FE, fundinfo and F2C in 2017. The company provides investment research and model portfolio services to UK advisers.   

Advising on the deal were Lexington Corporate Finance and law firm HCR for CashCalc and Burness Paull and Deloitte for FE fundinfo. 

Ray Adams, founder of CashCalc, said: “Cashflow planning is a key component of an adviser’s process and, perhaps even more so during the course of the pandemic, it became an essential service for many advice businesses, as they sought to help their clients throughout the market volatility by providing digital services and sound Financial Planning advice. 

“Within the market, our cashflow planning services are widely recognised as being engaging and uncomplicated and have become the central hub of the Financial Planning process for thousands of advisers. By aligning our services with FE fundinfo’s own market-leading investment tools, such as FE Analytics, we will be able to support our clients by offering a more complete journey and a seamless process.” 

Hamish Purdey, chief executive at FE fundinfo, said: “Over recent years cashflow planning has grown in prominence across the industry and now forms a vital component of the investment process. It is our mission at FE fundinfo to connect the investment industry and make it as simple as possible for our clients to be better informed on investments. Helping financial advisers run their investment propositions and provide first class financial advice through cash flow planning that is intrinsically linked to the investment solution is an essential part of that. 

“We have been extremely impressed with CashCalc’s client-centric approach that matches our own, and its value to the industry at large. Integrating CashCalc’s market-leading services with our own award-winning tools marks a natural product extension and will lead to better advice outcomes for advisers and their clients.”