Howden has announced that it has agreed to acquire Evelyn Partners Financial Services Limited (“EPFS”), the employee benefits consultancy arm of Evelyn Partners.
The firm writes that the acquisition strengthens the scale of its corporate health and employee benefits offering in the United Kingdom and is an additional step forward in its strategy to invest in expertise for the benefit of clients. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2026.
“EPFS supports a high-quality client list with a strong focus on mid-market, scale-up and fast growth firms, and provides a wide range of consultancy services to employers and trustees. It also offers advice on group risk and healthcare benefits, employee engagement and communications services, as well as wellbeing and ancillary benefit packages.”
EPFS’s team of 38 professionals, located in London, Bristol, Glasgow and Guildford, and led by Gareth Sawyer, Head of Employee Benefits, Evelyn Partners, will transfer across to Howden in Q1 2026. Sawyer will report to Cheryl Brennan, Managing Director, Howden Employee Benefits following completion of the acquisition.
This announcement follows Howden’s acquisition of Barnett Waddingham in March 2025, which, the firm writes, created a market leading force in the global employee benefits and pensions advisory sector, with approximately 4,000 experts across 40 countries, delivering total combined revenues exceeding GBP500 million.
Cheryl Brennan, Managing Director, UK Employee Benefits, Howden, says: “EPFS bring a highly experienced team with an excellent reputation and a culture that mirrors our own. This acquisition reinforces Howden’s investment in our market-leading, full-service employee benefits proposition, strengthening our ability to deliver fresh thinking and trusted advice for corporates seeking a global employee benefits broker with a client-first approach. We’re delighted to welcome the EPFS team and to build on our strong relationship with the wider Evelyn Partners group as we continue to grow our scale and impact in the corporate health and benefits market.”
Howden offers a full range of employee benefits and pensions advisory services to a wide range of clients in the public and private sectors encompassing multinational corporations to SMEs, and also offers, health, life and specialist pension products to individuals.
Gareth Sawyer, Head of Employee Benefits, Evelyn Partners, adds: “Howden is an impressive business and will be an excellent long-term home for the team and the clients we serve through access to Howden’s wider proposition offering and global presence. The deal provides clarity on our future and will bring exciting opportunities as we become part of a global organisation that has grown to become one of the UK’s largest employee benefits specialists. Our clients can expect business as usual, with the team remaining focused on delivering high quality advice to help them attract and retain talent in a competitive market, while retaining a close relationship and continued collaboration with Evelyn Partners.”
Paul Geddes, CEO, Evelyn Partners, says: “The sale of our employee benefits consultancy further streamlines Evelyn Partners’ range of activities as part of our strategic decision to focus solely on wealth management. This transaction follows on from the successful sales of our Professional Services and Fund Solutions businesses, both of which completed earlier this year. Howden will be a great long-term owner of this business, providing new opportunities for our employee benefits team and continuity of the services they provide to clients. I would like to thank the team for the contribution they have made to our business over many years and wish them well for the future as part of Howden.”
