Accounting and advisory firm Moore Kingston Smith has acquired employee benefits consultancy Pilot Financial. The acquired firm is particularly well-known for its financial planning work in the education sector.  

Managing Partner of Moore Kingston Smith, Maureen Penfold, comments, “We are thrilled to welcome Ian Thomas and his team to Moore Kingston Smith. Not only do we share a vision for the sustainable growth and success of our people and our clients, but this addition also complements our existing offering for private clients and organisations in the Education sector, a space we have been fully committed to supporting for many years.”

Moore Kingston Smith recently received a major investment from Waterland, a European private equity firm, which will fund an ambitious merger and acquisition programme in the UK. As part of its growth and thought leadership strategy, Moore Kingston Smith is using the opportunity to expand its capabilities to clients by offering additional service lines as well as broader solutions.

To that end, a specialist team from Pilot Financial will join the firm’s existing financial planning team, Moore Kingston Smith Financial Advisers, further enhancing its service offering and providing greater flexibility and choice to its clients. Renowned in the education sector, Pilot Financial is well known for its quality proposition and deep expertise.

The firm was launched by co-founder Ian Thomas in 2011. According to him, the move will allow Pilot Financial to scale significantly in the coming era.

Thomas added, “We are very excited to be joining Moore Kingston Smith at a time when the firm is taking the next steps in its growth journey, boosted by its partnership with Waterland. Moore Kingston Smith has expertise in a multitude of disciplines which will enable us to offer our clients a greatly enhanced range of services, as well as provide greater opportunity and support for our people. The global reach afforded through the firm’s connections and membership of the Moore Global network will be a wonderful extension to our client offering.”

Moore Kingston Smith is a UK firm of accountants and business advisors, which has been helping clients since 1923. With over 70 partners and more than 700 people based in and around London, the company is currently celebrating 100 years in business – and is planning to celebrate its biggest achievements over the last century, throughout 2023.