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Key people at Close Brothers Asset Management.
Close Brothers Asset Management is a vertically integrated wealth manager providing comprehensive investment management and financial planning services to affluent private clients across the United Kingdom. Operating as a subsidiary of a broader financial enterprise that maintains 64 offices and employs approximately 3,000 people, the firm utilizes a national network of roughly 150 financial advisors to generate its revenue through portfolio management fees. The organization expanded its advisory capabilities over the past two decades through strategic acquisitions of independent brokerages, including firms such as Fortune and Allenbridge. Led by Chief Executive Martin Andrew alongside executives with prior experience at Schroders and Barings, the division became the subject of a formal sale agreement in September 2024. The overarching parent entity, Close Brothers Group, was originally founded in 1878 by William Brooks Close, Fred Close, and James Close.
Close Brothers Asset Management (CBAM) was a division of the UK FTSE 250-listed Close Brothers Group plc, specializing in multi-asset investment management for private clients, financial advisers, trustees, family offices, and charities, with over 40 years of experience in preserving and enhancing personal wealth.[1] Its core mission centered on client-focused service and integrity, delivering institutional-quality, globally diversified portfolios across multiple risk levels through active management and in-house research, including discretionary services with minimum investments starting at £100,000.[1] CBAM did not focus on startups or tech sectors but emphasized traditional wealth stewardship via multi-asset class solutions; it was sold by Close Brothers Group to funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management on February 28, 2025, and now operates independently as TrinityBridge.[3]
CBAM originated as part of Close Brothers Group, founded in 1878 as a UK merchant banking entity rooted in traditional values of service and integrity.[1][2] The group underwent a management buy-out in 1978 and listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1984, expanding in the 1980s–1990s through acquisitions like Winterflood Securities (1993), Hill Samuel's Corporate Finance (1996), and Rea Brothers (1999).[2] CBAM itself built on over 40 years of wealth management expertise within this structure, evolving to provide tailored multi-asset solutions amid the group's shifts, including spinning off private equity in 2008–2009 and recent deals like acquiring Bluestone Motor Finance (2023) and selling Winterflood (July 2025).[1][2][3] The 2025 sale to Oaktree marked a pivotal divestiture, rebranding CBAM as TrinityBridge to continue under new ownership.[3]
As a traditional wealth management division, CBAM played a minimal direct role in the tech landscape, focusing instead on multi-asset preservation for private and institutional clients rather than startup funding or tech-specific investments.[1] It rode broader UK financial services trends like post-financial crisis demand for diversified, risk-managed portfolios amid volatile markets, benefiting from Close Brothers Group's merchant banking scale in lending and securities.[2] Market forces such as rising wealth transfer to family offices and charities favored its bespoke services, though its divestiture to Oaktree in 2025 reflects a group pivot away from asset management toward core banking amid regulatory pressures on UK finance.[3] Indirectly, through the group's securities trading via Winterflood (sold 2025), it supported liquidity in UK equities, including tech listings on LSE and AIM, but lacked startup ecosystem impact.[2]
TrinityBridge, post-2025 sale, is positioned to expand its multi-asset expertise under Oaktree's private equity backing, potentially scaling bespoke services amid global wealth growth and interest rate normalization.[3] Trends like AI-driven research integration and sustainable investing could shape its evolution, enhancing portfolio alpha while navigating UK regulatory scrutiny on wealth managers.[1] Its influence may grow in serving high-net-worth segments, evolving from Close Brothers stewardship to a standalone player with amplified resources, reinforcing reliable wealth preservation in uncertain markets.
Key people at Close Brothers Asset Management.
