NatWest’s £2.7 billion move for Evelyn Partners – and a fresh £750 million buyback
NatWest Group is buying Evelyn Partners for £2.7 billion (enterprise value) and kicking off another £750 million share buyback. The bank says the deal will create the UK’s leading Private Banking and Wealth Management business, adding serious scale to its investment and advice offering for 20 million customers.
Two big headlines for investors: fee income is expected to rise by around 20% before any revenue synergies, and NatWest’s PBWM (Private Banking & Wealth Management) arm should become roughly 20% of group customer assets and liabilities. The transaction is funded from existing resources and, if approved, is expected to close in summer 2026.
What Evelyn Partners brings: scale, heritage, and an integrated model
Evelyn Partners is a leading UK wealth manager with more than 180 years of heritage and £69 billion of Assets Under Management and Administration (AUMA) – with additional detail in the RNS noting £68.6 billion at year-end 2025. It’s an integrated proposition: financial planning, discretionary investment management, and a direct-to-consumer platform (BestInvest).
The franchise is built around deep client relationships, with approximately 270 financial planners and 325 investment managers. Management highlights a compound annual growth rate in AUMA in excess of 7% across 2023-25 and £1.6 billion of net new money in 2025. Full-year 2025 EBITDA came in at £179 million.
Why NatWest is doing this: fee growth and a capital-light engine
Wealth management is a high-growth, capital-light segment for banks: it leans more on fee income than on lending spreads, and it uses less capital to grow. NatWest expects the combination to increase fee income by about 20% before any revenue synergies, with the potential to cross-sell Evelyn’s planning and investment capabilities across NatWest’s customer base.
On day one, combining Evelyn’s £69 billion of AUMA with NatWest’s £59 billion gives £127 billion in AUMA and £188 billion in total customer assets and liabilities. That’s genuine scale, which matters in wealth where brand, breadth of service, and operating leverage drive returns. The PBWM business will be led by Emma Crystal as Chief Executive PBWM.
Deal economics and valuation: 9.7x EV/EBITDA and £100 million cost synergies
NatWest is paying an enterprise value of £2.7 billion. Using Evelyn’s 2025 EBITDA of £179 million, the RNS cites a 9.7x EV/EBITDA multiple including target run-rate cost synergies. Translation: the headline multiple assumes some of the planned cost savings are delivered. The bank is targeting around £100 million of annual run-rate cost synergies (about 10% of the combined PBWM cost base), with approximately £150 million of costs to achieve.
Management expects the deal to be accretive to growth and Return on Tangible Equity (RoTE) in the first year of ownership and to deliver returns greater than a share buyback. Revenue synergies – mainly cross-selling planning and investment to more customers – are described as “significant” but not quantified.
Capital impact and shareholder returns: CET1, buybacks, and dividends
The transaction will be funded from existing resources and is expected to reduce NatWest’s CET1 ratio by around 130 basis points. Even so, the group says it will remain well-capitalised and that the transaction will strengthen capital generation over time.
On capital returns, there’s a new £750 million share buyback announced today. After that, the next buyback announcement is expected at the H1 2027 results. The ordinary dividend payout ratio of around 50% of attributable profits remains unchanged.
Key numbers at a glance
| Enterprise value (EV) | £2.7 billion |
| Evelyn Partners 2025 Operating Income | £509 million |
| Evelyn Partners 2025 Costs | £330 million |
| Evelyn Partners 2025 EBITDA | £179 million |
| Evelyn AUMA | £69 billion (additional detail: £68.6 billion at FY 2025) |
| Evelyn 2025 Net New Money | £1.6 billion |
| Combined AUMA | £127 billion |
| Total Customer Assets & Liabilities (combined) | £188 billion |
| Fee income uplift (pre-revenue synergies) | c.20% |
| Annual run-rate cost synergies | c.£100 million |
| Costs to achieve synergies | c.£150 million |
| EV/EBITDA multiple | 9.7x (including target run-rate cost synergies) |
| CET1 ratio impact | c.-130 basis points |
| Share buyback | £750 million |
| Dividend payout ratio | c.50% of attributable profits |
| Expected completion | Summer 2026 (subject to approvals) |
What’s positive for shareholders
- Scale and leadership: £127 billion AUMA and a unified PBWM platform should support better operating leverage and brand reach.
- More fee income, less cyclicality: c.20% uplift in fee income pre-revenue synergies pushes the mix towards capital-light earnings.
- Cost take-out is tangible: c.£100 million annual run-rate synergies, with a clear cost-to-achieve figure.
- Accretive from year one: management expects RoTE accretion and returns better than a buyback.
- Capital returns continue: £750 million buyback now and dividend policy unchanged at around 50% payout.
Key risks and what to watch
- Regulatory approvals and timing: completion is targeted for summer 2026, but approvals can shift timelines.
- Integration execution: combining platforms, teams, and processes is where deals succeed or stumble. The £150 million cost-to-achieve needs tight control.
- Capital drag near term: CET1 down c.130 bps is manageable but not immaterial. The payoff depends on synergy delivery and revenue growth.
- Valuation sensitivity: the quoted 9.7x EV/EBITDA includes target run-rate cost synergies; the implied pre-synergy multiple is not disclosed.
- Buyback cadence: after this £750 million, the next buyback announcement is expected at H1 2027, which may feel like a pause for those focused on near-term capital returns.
Timeline and next steps
Completion is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected in summer 2026. NatWest’s CEO and CFO are hosting an investor call at 8am (GMT) on Monday 9 February via Zoom (Meeting ID: 980 9474 7189). The announcement was flagged as containing inside information, which is now public via the RNS.
Josh’s take: strategically smart, priced for delivery
This is a credible swing at leadership in UK wealth. The industrial logic stacks up: more fee income, capital-light growth, and real synergies in a business where scale matters. The cross-sell runway into NatWest’s 20 million customers is the blue-sky upside.
The flip side is familiar: integration execution, cultural fit, and the fact the headline multiple leans on delivery of synergies. With CET1 down c.130 bps and a slower buyback cadence after today’s £750 million, investors will want quick proof of progress.
Net-net, it looks strategically and financially compelling if NatWest hits the £100 million cost synergy target and unlocks even a portion of the revenue opportunity. Early milestones to watch: retention of Evelyn’s planners and investment managers, client net new money trends, and clear integration timelines under PBWM chief Emma Crystal.
