SYS Financial, the fast-growing financial broking group founded by former Tipperary hurler Tony Delaney, said it has acquired Galway-based advisory firm Q Financial in a deal that adds €120 million of assets under advisement to the business.
It now means that SYS’s total assets under advisement (AuA) is €1.12 billion, it said in a statement.
Deal-making in the financial advisory business has been gathering pace in recent years against the backdrop of rising regulatory, compliance and technology costs – and as owners of firms, built over decades, navigate issues over succession planning.
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British financial planning firm Fairstone Group has been another big industry consolidator, having recently agreed its 16th acquisition in four years – of Galway-based Wealthwise Financial Planning. This has brought its total assets under advisement to more than €3.5 billion.
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“Successful acquisitions aren’t just about growth, they’re about people. We look for talented teams who put clients first every day and who have earned the trust of their local communities,” said Delaney, confirming that the 10 members of the Q Financial team, comprising financial planners and business support staff, will transfer to SYS.
Other active aggregators in the sector include Irish family-owned companies such as LHK Group and Gallivan Financial.
SYS has been looking since late last year at securing additional capital investment to accelerate its deal-making across the sector.
SYS was founded in 2015 by 54-year-old Delaney, who spent more than 20 years with New Ireland as a financial adviser and regional sales manager. He is the controlling shareholder alongside his wife, Elaine.
The market potential of the sector has ballooned in recent decades. Total net Irish household wealth has grown from €411 billion to €1.38 trillion between 2013 and the end of 2025, Central Bank of Ireland data show.
The wealthiest 10 per cent are behind almost half of the total. But it’s the expanding mass affluent, those with €100,000 to €1 million to invest, who are the prime focus of the most active consolidators.
Financial assets – which strip out money tied up in family homes – stood at more than €600 billion at the end of last year. However, these were mainly composed of currency and deposits, at €220.3 billion, and €281.5 billion of insurance and pension entitlements.
The Government is working on plans to introduce tax-efficient savings and investment accounts next year to encourage people to put money to work in investment products.
