WestBridge was advised on the transaction by Cavendish (corporate finance), Pinsent Masons (legal), BDO (financial, tax, and structuring), Teneo (commercial due diligence), Kroll (regulatory), Equator (technology), and Aon (insurance).

Exiting investor Foresight was advised by Hamish Batchelor and Gregg Cant of Clearwater (corporate finance), Freeths (legal), Deloitte (financial and tax), CIL (commercial due diligence), and Thistle (regulatory).

WestBridge previously interacted with Scottish markets when it backed the management buyout of digital agency Tryzens, enabling Glasgow-based Scottish Equity Partners (SEP) to exit in 2023. 

Foresight, which originally backed Beckett in 2021, through its Foresight East of England Fund, will retain a significant minority stake and partially exit the business. It will mark the fifth deal for WestBridge III.  Foresight stated the transaction will deliver a return of more than five times its original investment and an internal rate of return of more than 40%.

During Foresight’s investment, Beckett expanded its assets under management from £800m to £2.1bn, grew its client base to more than 5,000 and completed eight add-on acquisitions.

Beckett’s chief executive Gavin Wood will continue to lead the business while executive chair Ian White will become a non-executive chair following completion of the deal. WestBridge partners Luke Gilbert and Peter Barkley will join Beckett’s board.

Senior investment manager Luke Gilbert said: “Beckett epitomises the type of business WestBridge looks to back. Its growth to this point has been characterised by culture-led and organic-first initiatives, which will continue to be the fundamental pillars of its expansion plan.

“There is significant organic momentum in the business, strong data capabilities, a leading culture and proven M&A track record, all of which are exceptional foundations for our partnership.”

Beckett chief executive Gavin Wood said: “We want to build upon our success and continue to attract the best local talent to help us deliver the best possible service to our clients.”