BKR Haines Watts turns consolidator.

Consolidation fever tightened its grip on mid-tier accountancy firms this week as it emerged top-twenty player BKR Haines Watts is leading a top-secret move towards creating a new accountancy consolidator.

The Oxfordshire-based mid-tier firm, number 17 on the Accountancy Age Top 50 league table, has been discreetly approaching like-minded firms over recent months with a view to bringing them on board.

News of BKR’s move comes just a week after Accountancy Age exclusively revealed Levy Gee was the leading presence behind Numerica – a consolidator designed to build an integrated business services group.

Both BKR and Numerica are aiming to float later this year, probably on AIM. If BKR does float, it will also join accountancy-based services group Tenon which went to market last year.

BKR managing partner Geoffrey Fairclough said: ‘In light of what is happening in the profession we are looking at all options.’ Numerica chief operating officer, Julian Synett, said: ‘There has been a lot of talk in recent months BKR are looking to do something.’

Twenty Twenty Group consultant, Gordon Gilchrist, added: ‘We expect three or four new consolidators to emerge over the next year.’

The aim of accountancy consolidators is to bring a series of firms together in one umbrella company to offer a wider range of services at local level and introduce economies of scale.

Levy Gee to lead consolidator www.accountancyage.com/News/1123272.