Investec has sold its wealth management business in Ireland to British investment management firm Brewin Dolphin for €44m.

The decision to sell comes in light of changes in Investec’s Irish business model brought about by Brexit planning, and as part of consolidation taking place in wealth management in Ireland, the group said.

The wealth management business was acquired by Investec as part of its acquisition of NCB in 2012 and has grown “significantly” since then.

Investec’s other domestic businesses are unaffected by the sale.

To cater for the loss of banking passporting rights post Brexit, Investec has established its other financial activities in Ireland in a MIFID subsidiary, Investec Europe, which is authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland.

The Investec wealth management business in the Republic of Ireland is independent of other wealth management businesses in the Investec group, therefore its sale will not impact the wealth management offering in other jurisdictions.

Investec was advised by Investec Ireland Corporate Finance.

AIB had been among the parties considering buying the business.

As of last June, Investec’s Irish arm had €2.5bn in assets under management.

The wealth management and stockbroking world has been subject to significant consolidation in recent times. Increased regulatory costs have meant scale is becoming more important.

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