Completion of the deal remains subject to regulatory approval.
KRS is the UK’s leading independent distributor of equity release loans and a top ten distributor of annuities. It also provides estate planning services, whilst its subsidiary More2Life is a significant and fast growing equity release lender.
Phoenix is backing the existing management team of KRS, led by Chief Executive Colin Taylor, to build the ’go to’ brand for financial products and related services for consumers nearing or in retirement. The management team are investing alongside Phoenix in this acquisition.
The team’s focus is on continuing to build a resilient and diversified business, through the further development of KRS’s existing offering, the launch of new products, and the potential acquisition of complementary businesses. The aim is to consolidate KRS’s position as a leading provider of high quality, cost-effective financial products and services addressing the needs of the over-55s.
Commenting on today’s announcement, Colin Taylor, CEO of KRS, said:
"Since launch, KRS has worked tirelessly to improve the level of financial advice available to those approaching or in retirement. We are excited about partnering with Phoenix, a firm with considerable experience of investing successfully in the retirement segment of financial services, to continue to build KRS into the trusted brand for the over 55s."
Sandy Muirhead, a Managing Partner at Phoenix, added:
"We believe KRS represents a highly attractive platform from which to develop a broader retirement services proposition. We have strong knowledge of this sector, by virtue of our highly successful previous investment in Partnership Assurance, which we created in 2005, and we look forward to working with the KRS management team to create another leading business in this sector."
