London-based financial services firm Octopus Group has agreed a deal to acquire Seccl Technology Limited as it sets out to “disrupt the platform technology market that underpins retail financial services”.

The £10m acquisition came at a time when Octopus says many adviser and wealth management firms are struggling with rising costs and limitations of legacy systems and where there is
“a growing pressure to provide customers with a smoother and more intuitive user experience”.  

Founded in 2017 and based in Bath, Seccl aims to help financial advisers, wealth managers, discretionary fund managers and fintechs deliver faster, cheaper and more flexible platform solutions to help manage and administer clients’ money.

Seccl uses an open API custody solution, allowing businesses to build bespoke new investment platforms.

API technology allows different pieces of software to communicate and share information in real time.

The underlying technology of Seccl is built using modern, modular software architecture that, the firm says, makes it scalable, customisable and easy to change or update.

In addition to the £10m acquisition, Octopus will provide continued investment as it grows the business.

Once the deal completes Octopus intends to expand the Seccl team with new engineering, product and design staff, some of which will move over from Octopus Wealth.

Simon Rogerson, CEO and co-founder of Octopus Group, said: “We are delighted to welcome the Seccl team into Octopus Group.

“Millions of us use platform technology everyday whether for online banking or managing investments.

“It determines our user experience and investment costs.

“But it’s a market crying out for change. Seccl’s innovative technology has the potential to completely transform the customer and client experience across retail financial services.

“The market opportunity is enormous and we are all excited by its potential.”
 
David Harvey, co-founder of Seccl, said: “It has always been abundantly clear that Octopus shares in our vision and I wholeheartedly believe that together we can create something incredibly powerful.

“The platform technology space hasn’t changed in 10 years and, with a handful of firms now dominating the market, the time couldn’t be better for some new competition.
 
“Having created Seccl from scratch, rather than building on legacy systems, we operate with a fraction of the code base, which means we are cheaper, can move faster, and are ultimately open to smaller firms that can’t get a shoe in with the big providers today.”
 
Hugo Thorman, co-founder of Seccl, added: “The industry is on the cusp of a fundamental shift in the way it uses technology and I have always believed that our API-first technology would radically disrupt the market.

“With Octopus’ backing and expertise we are now well positioned to make this happen and drive change even faster.”
 
The current 13-person team at Seccl, led by its founders CEO David Harvey and Chairman Hugo Thorman, will retain their base in Bath while also working from London.

Subject to regulatory approval, David Harvey will remain as co-head of Seccl, working alongside new co-head Sam Handfield-Jones, currently the director of growth and innovation at Octopus.

Mr Thorman will remain as a director working on strategy and customer relationships.