A founder-led recruitment group built by a Finance Director
FD Capital Group brings together five specialist brands with one aim: to give UK businesses access to senior finance, leadership and regulatory talent through people who understand the roles they recruit for.
From one brand in 2018 to five
The group started with FD Capital. Adrian Lawrence FCA founded it in 2018 after a career in finance, including time as a listed-company Finance Director. He had seen senior finance hiring from both sides of the table. As a Finance Director placed into a private equity-backed management buy-out, he knew how much a business relies on getting that appointment right. As a hiring director, he knew how hard it was to find recruiters who could tell a strong finance leader from a polished CV.
FD Capital was built to close that gap. It focused on fractional, interim and permanent CFOs and Finance Directors, and it quickly found a market among growth businesses that needed senior finance leadership but were not ready for a full-time board-level salary. The fractional model, where an experienced CFO works one or two days a week, let those businesses access the experience they needed at a cost that matched their stage.
Clients then started asking for help beyond the finance function. A business that had just appointed a CFO often needed a new managing director, a non-executive chair or a stronger finance team underneath. Rather than stretch FD Capital beyond its specialism, the group added new brands, each with a clear focus:
- Exec Capital for chief executives, managing directors and the wider C-suite
- NED Capital for non-executive directors, chairs and governance roles
- Accountancy Capital for Financial Controllers and qualified finance professionals below director level
- SMF Capital for FCA-regulated firms appointing Senior Managers, compliance officers and MLROs
Today all five sit within FD Capital Group, named after the brand where it all started. Each brand has its own website, job board and podcast, and all five share a single senior network and candidate community.
Adrian Lawrence FCA
Founder and Managing Director
Adrian is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and holds a practising certificate. He is a former listed-company Finance Director and was placed as Finance Director into a PE-backed management buy-out of a specialist engineering business. He holds a BSc from Queen Mary College, University of London.
His specialist knowledge of FCA regulatory frameworks, the Senior Managers and Certification Regime and the Senior Manager Functions it defines sits behind the group’s work with regulated firms, and led directly to the launch of SMF Capital.
Adrian remains closely involved in the group’s searches. Clients can speak to him directly about any brief, and he reviews candidates for senior finance and regulated roles personally.
The principles behind every search
Specialism beats generalism
Senior roles are judged on depth. A Finance Director needs to be assessed by someone who understands statutory reporting, cash management and lender relationships. A non-executive needs to be assessed on how they challenge a board. Separate brands keep each team focused on the roles it knows best.
Experienced people on every brief
Every consultant in the group has worked in senior-level recruitment for at least ten years and brings a personal network with them. Clients deal with people who know the market, not a junior researcher working from a database.
Speed matters
For fractional and interim roles especially, the first good shortlist usually wins the business. The group’s shared network and candidate base are built to get credible candidates in front of clients quickly, without cutting corners on assessment.
Flexible models, honest advice
Not every business needs a full-time hire. We will tell a client when a fractional CFO or interim leader is the better answer, and when it is time to move to a permanent appointment.
Clear lines between the brands
Each brand owns a defined part of the market, so clients always know who to call.
FD Capital
Chief Financial Officers, Finance Directors and Heads of Finance on a fractional, interim or permanent basis. FD Capital handles finance leadership for growth businesses, owner-managed companies and PE-backed groups, and is usually the first brand a business meets.
Exec Capital
The rest of the leadership team: CEOs, managing directors, operations, technology, marketing and commercial leaders. Exec Capital runs interim, fractional and permanent searches, and publishes market guidance such as its SMF salary guide.
NED Capital
Non-executive directors, chairs and committee chairs. NED Capital works with boards to add independent challenge and sector experience, including the governance roles that FCA-regulated firms must fill. Its approach reflects the expectations set out by the Financial Reporting Council and the Institute of Directors.
Accountancy Capital
The finance team below director level: Financial Controllers, Finance Managers, Management Accountants and FP&A professionals. Accountancy Capital focuses on qualified roles and supports interim and part-time Financial Controller engagements as well as permanent hires.
SMF Capital
Senior Manager Functions and the compliance, MLRO and advice roles around them. SMF Capital works with payments firms, brokers, wealth managers, lenders and other firms regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, including those applying for authorisation for the first time. It also runs the SMF Unlocked podcast and online events for the regulated community.
Shared across all five brands
The group’s greatest asset is its network. Each brand has its own candidate community, built through its website, job board and podcast, and all of them feed one shared database of around 10,000 finance, leadership and regulatory professionals.
The C-level networks behind each brand are pooled too. Many of the CFOs and executives we work with also hold non-executive roles, and many non-executives have run finance functions or regulated firms themselves. That overlap is what makes the group model work: the right candidate for a NED Capital board role may first have come to us as an FD Capital interim, and a compliance leader met through SMF Capital may be the person an Exec Capital client needs.
Candidates benefit as well. Registering with one brand makes a candidate visible to searches across the whole group, and our regular newsletters share new roles across every brand.
How we run the group
Good Business Charter
Brands across the group hold Good Business Charter accreditation, a public commitment to fair pay, fair tax, prompt payment and ethical practice.
Professional standards
The group is led by an ICAEW Fellow and is bound by the professional and ethical standards that come with chartered membership.
Confidentiality
Senior searches are often sensitive. We keep client details confidential in adverts and outreach, and we only share candidate details with clients once the candidate has agreed.
Insight for hiring managers and candidates
Recruiting at senior level is easier when both sides understand the market. Each brand publishes guidance for the people it serves, so the group’s knowledge is available whether or not a search is under way.
Knowledge Centres and guides
FD Capital, Exec Capital, NED Capital and Accountancy Capital each run a Knowledge Centre covering how to hire for the roles they specialise in, what those roles involve, and how fractional and interim models work in practice. The brands also publish salary and day-rate guides that are updated as the market moves, rather than reissued each year.
Podcasts
Every brand has its own podcast, with conversations about leadership, finance and governance from people doing those jobs. SMF Capital’s podcast, SMF Unlocked, focuses on the Senior Managers and Certification Regime and life as an approved person at an FCA-regulated firm.
Events
SMF Capital runs online events for compliance and regulated-firm leaders, covering topics such as authorisation, Consumer Duty and the responsibilities that come with each Senior Manager Function.
If there is a topic you would like us to cover, let us know.
About the group: common questions
Who owns the Capital brands?
All five brands sit within FD Capital Group, which was founded and is led by Adrian Lawrence FCA.
When was the group founded?
The first brand, FD Capital, was founded in 2018. Exec Capital, NED Capital, Accountancy Capital and SMF Capital were added as client demand grew.
Do the brands work together on searches?
Yes. Each brand leads the searches in its own area, but the brands share a candidate network and will work jointly when a client needs more than one type of hire.
Can I register as a candidate with more than one brand?
You only need to register once. All five brands share one candidate database, so a single registration makes you visible to searches across the whole group.
Where are you based?
The group is based in London and works with businesses across the UK. Fractional and interim roles can be remote, hybrid or on site, depending on the client.
Talk to the group
Whether you are hiring a CFO, a chair or a compliance officer, we will connect you with the right brand and give you a straight view of the market.