The chief executive of Schroders’ wealth division, Oliver Gregson, is considering acquisitions to grow the business and has defended its commitment to the UK market despite offloading businesses with more than £50bn of client assets. The board agreed to a material investment in the wealth business over the next five years to help transform and grow. Gregson, who joined Schroders at the end of last year to lead its wealth management arm, said he wants to refocus on very affluent clients and that acquisitions could help serve that part of the market.

His comments come months after Schroders’ shareholders approved its £9.9bn sale to Nuveen, creating a global asset manager with about $2.5tn of assets under management. The combined group retains Cazenove Capital, which sits within the division Gregson oversees. Gregson said it would be remiss not to consider inorganic opportunities for growth, supported by the board of Nuveen.

Any acquisition would aim to bolster the group’s domestic and international presence in the high-net-worth market as the business retrenches from the mass-affluent sector. In the months preceding the sale to Nuveen, Schroders’ chief executive Richard Oldfield had overseen the end of the group’s joint venture with Lloyds Banking Group, Schroders Personal Wealth, which administered about £17bn of assets. An agreement was struck as part of the sale that the licence of the Cazenove brand will continue in perpetuity.

JPMorgan Chase has the right to revoke the brand on a change of control. Gregson said Schroders and Nuveen were clear in recent public announcements that the enlarged group is retaining Cazenove Capital with a plan to grow it. He added that they will continue to invest in Cazenove Capital in the UK and Schroders Wealth International.

Gregson joined Schroders from JPMorgan, where he was regional head of the private bank for the UK, Channel Islands and Ireland. Analysts at Deutsche Numis estimated that Cazenove Capital could be worth up to £2.4bn and might appeal to UK banks seeking wealth businesses as well as wealth managers such as St James’s Place and Rathbones. Recent deals include Nat West’s acquisition of Evelyn Partners for £2.7bn.