What mbf. does

MB Fitzgerald Ltd (trading as "mbf." and "MBF") is a UK-based specialist recruitment agency founded in 2012, headquartered in London with offices at 60 Cannon Street and 80 Coleman Street, and a registered office in Dartford, Kent. The firm operates exclusively in the financial services sector, delivering permanent, temporary, and retained executive search services across five verticals: financial planning, asset & investment management, pensions, employee benefits, and technology & change. Its client base spans boutique advisory practices, national IFA firms, private banks, investment managers, accountancy firms, and larger financial institutions. The firm's website currently advertises approximately 156 live Financial Planning roles and 91 Asset & Investment Management roles, indicating active placement throughput in its core segments.

The company's operating model is built on professional services placement fees — permanent placement fees, temporary staffing mark-ups, and retained search fees — with pricing not publicly disclosed. It combines traditional headhunting methodology with AI-assisted sourcing and candidate-matching tools adopted in 2023, and uses Bullhorn as its underlying candidate database and recruitment operations platform. The team is small, with approximately ten named consultants and founders visible across its public footprint, indicating a boutique consultancy structure. No external funding rounds, acquisitions, or M&A activity are disclosed, and the firm has operated as an independent private entity since founding.

MBF has progressively broadened its vertical coverage since launch, expanding from its original financial planning focus into pensions, employee benefits, technology & change, and general insurance (2018). Its competitive position rests on specialist sector knowledge, accumulated candidate relationships in UK financial services, and proximity to the City client cluster. Revenue is not publicly disclosed, and there are no independent benchmarks of placement volume or fee economics beyond the firm's own job-listing footprint.

Name

mbf.

Legal name

MB Fitzgerald Ltd

Website

https://mbfitzgerald.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Dartford

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Recruitment Placement Fees: Placement fees for permanent hires, temporary staffing rates, and retained search fees for executive-level positions in financial services sector

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

mbf. is a specialist UK recruitment agency that places financial services professionals into permanent, temporary, and retained executive roles. The firm connects candidates with employers across Financial Planning, Asset & Investment Management, Pensions, Employee Benefits, Technology & Change, and General Insurance verticals, using sector-specialised consultants supported by AI-augmented sourcing and matching tools.

Product overview

MBF operates as a specialist recruitment agency focused exclusively on the financial services sector. The company offers three core recruitment service lines: Permanent Recruitment (for long-term employment placements), Temporary Recruitment (for flexible staffing needs), and Retained Search (for executive and specialized roles). These services are delivered through a network of sector-specialized consultants supported by AI-enhanced technology that combines traditional recruitment methods with artificial intelligence integration. The company specializes in connecting talent across multiple financial services verticals including Financial Planning, Asset & Investment Management, Pensions, Employee Benefits, and Technology & Change. Established in 2012, MBF positions itself as a technology-forward recruitment partner that leverages both human expertise and AI capabilities to serve clients ranging from boutique practices to large financial services institutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Permanent Recruitment Services Long-term permanent placement service connecting top financial services talent with leading employers across the UK, delivered through executive search and contingency models. Targets financial planners, paraplanners, IFAs, portfolio managers, compliance officers, and other financial services professionals.
• Temporary Recruitment Services Flexible staffing solutions that meet short-term hiring needs with skilled financial services professionals, supporting contract, interim, and temporary assignments across the UK financial services sector.
• Retained Search Services Dedicated, tailored executive search service providing a thorough and targeted approach to identifying exceptional candidates for senior and specialist positions within UK financial services firms.

Quantifiable outcome

• Deep industry roots with 15+ years of experience in financial services recruitment
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Bullhorn International LtdcoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party candidate database provider used by MB Fitzgerald to store candidate CVs and personal information. CVs are accessible to all consultants within the MB Fitzgerald database.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Morgan McKinley: Global financial services professional services and recruitment firm with strong UK presence. Comparable to mbf. in dedicated FS recruitment across banking, insurance, and asset management mandates.
• Carnegie Consulting: UK-based financial services executive search and recruiting firm. Directly comparable to mbf.'s retained and senior permanent placement work, particularly across investment management, asset management, and wealth management clients.
• IDEX Consulting: UK specialist recruiter across insurance, financial services, and legal verticals. Comparable to mbf. in the General Insurance and FS overlap, with similar retained/contingency offering to mid-market and enterprise clients.
• Better Placed: UK specialist recruiter focused on financial services, digital, and marketing sectors. Directly comparable to mbf. in sector specialisation and engagement models across permanent and interim FS mandates.
• Oakleaf Partnership: UK recruitment firm specialising in HR, risk, compliance, and audit roles within financial services. Overlaps with mbf.'s compliance, administrative, and advisory placement work for FS institutions.
• Marks Sattin: UK-headquartered specialist recruiter for financial services, accountancy, insurance, and related sectors. Closest direct peer to mbf. in vertical focus, client base (banks, asset managers, insurers), and UK permanent/contingency model.

Emerging players

• storm4: Emerging UK-based recruiter focused specifically on FinTech, InsurTech, and RegTech talent. Overlaps with mbf.'s Tech & Change vertical serving FS clients and is a growing competitor in the same niche.

Broad incumbents

• Reed Global: One of the UK's largest generalist recruitment firms, with a long-established financial services practice. Directly competes with mbf. on FS mandates but operates at vastly greater scale and breadth across non-FS sectors.
• Robert Half: Global publicly listed staffing and recruiting firm with a dedicated Financial Services practice (including FS, accounting, and insurance). Overlaps with mbf. on temporary and permanent FS placements but serves a much broader client base.
• Hays plc: London-listed global recruitment firm with a significant UK financial services practice (including Banking, Insurance, and Investment Management). Competes with mbf. on enterprise FS mandates but operates as a broad generalist across industries and geographies.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mbfitzgerald

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about mbf.