Kimbells launches corporate division

The new division, S2 Corporate Finance, which is regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), is a niche corporate advisory practice providing advice to small and medium-sized enterprises.
Founding Kimbells partner Stephen Kimbell has moved from the firm's corporate department to run the division, along with two chartered accountants, ex-PricewaterhouseCoopers corporate finance partner Simon Cuthbertson and Oliver Wright, who was previously at Andersens Corporate Finance.
"We felt that it was a good commercial opportunity for us that played to our strength of structuring and managing commercial deals," said Kimbell. "We'd been bumping up against the FSA regulations for a while, and it just seemed better to do things properly."
The division will source debt and equity funding for clients, as well as finding purchasers for companies wishing to sell and finding target companies for potential purchasers.
In May the firm also became a limited-liability partnership (LLP). Kimbell admits the financial security was a reason for the move, but said the firm also wanted to take a more corporate approach to management.
In January, midsize City firm Withers became the first firm to become a UK LLP as it undertook its transatlantic merger with Bergman Horowitz & Reynolds.