Syndicate Asset Management has acquired LAinvest, the Bournemouth-based fund management and financial services company, for £1.4m. LAinvest has £70m under management. Syndicate (SAM) has attracted keen interest since it was created last year with the intention of consolidating a number of existing fund management companies. Citywire has disclosed that Icelandic money is backing the enterprise. Syndicate raised £33m by way of a private cash subscription when it joined AIM and soon after raised a further £9.5m. It now has funds under management of £2.5bn. It has made a series of acquisitions of fund management companies including Ashcourt, Chartwell House, Investment Management Holdings, and Savoy Asset Management, the company headed by former Tory Chancellor Kenneth Clarke. Syndicate says that it may explore acquisition opportunities in the EU and in other offshore destinations.