Financial Planning firm Perspective has appointed Sam Ward as head of mergers and acquisitions.

Mr Ward will also join the firm’s board.

In his new role, Mr Ward will head the Financial Planner’s acquisitions programme which has for far completed 80 acquisitions.

Mr Ward has 15 years of financial services experience, including 10 years as an M&A adviser.

He joins Perspective from M&A specialist investment bank Houlihan Lokey where he advised Perspective’s shareholders on their recent transaction with new private equity owner Charlesbank Capital Partners.

He said: “I’ve had the privilege of working closely with Ian, David, Julie and the rest of the Perspective team as part of the Charlesbank investment process, and I was therefore really pleased to be given the opportunity to join them at such an exciting time in the group’s journey.

“Their unity as a board, their unassuming approach, and their ability and drive to get things done, all give me great confidence that Perspective’s best years still lie ahead.”

Perspective has also appointed Martyn Davey as regional operations director.

He joined from Hurst Point Group where he held roles including head of advice where he held responsibility for over 100 Financial Planners. He was formerly managing director of Argentis Financial Management which was acquire by Hurst Point Group in 2020.

Mr Davey said he was attracted to Perspective’s “client-centric approach”.

Perspective, based in Chorley, Lancashire, made 22 acquisitions in 2023 bringing the total to 80 since it was founded and trebling its size in the last five years.

The firm completed two more acquisitions shortly before Christmas, adding £190m AUM to the firm. It acquired £135m AUM Colchester-based Park Lane Independent Financial Advisers Ltd which has 300 households as clients. It also added the £55m AUM client banks of former Fairstone Financial Management colleagues Simon McGechie and Paul Adams, bringing in 265 clients.