30 October 2025 Opera announces acquisition of Meritus Trust Company Limited
Opera Group Limited, a privately held group of private client, corporate and fund administration businesses, is pleased to announce the proposed acquisition of Meritus Trust Company Limited based in Bermuda. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval.
Strategic growth across the Americas
Meritus was founded in 2010 and provides fiduciary services to select ultra-high-net-worth international families and multinational corporations. Its diverse team brings together many of Bermuda’s top trust, legal and accounting professionals, united by a culture of empathy, passion, courage and humility. With a focus on families, legacy and responsible growth, Meritus has earned its place as one of the most respected names in Bermuda’s private wealth sector.
This marks Opera’s fifth acquisition and strengthens its presence in the West Atlantic region, supporting its strategic focus on families with transatlantic and global wealth footprints. It also concludes Opera’s first phase of acquisitions – a coordinated sequence that has been over a year in the making.
A unique model built for the long-term
Opera brings together culturally aligned, client-focused businesses under a distinctive private ownership structure.
It is majority backed by Pula, the family office of Stephen Lansdown CBE, alongside like-minded shareholders such as Sealyham (Tom Scott’s family office). This patient capital model enables sustainable growth, combining strategic perspective with long-term investment in people, systems and relationships.
The acquisition of Meritus forms part of Project Overture – Opera’s five-year transformation plan focused on operational excellence, sustainable growth and expansion into key global markets.
This follows the acquisitions of Accuro (pending regulatory approval), Amber Trust Ltd (now “Oak Bahamas”), HFL Limited and Oak Group. This first phase was intentionally designed to bring together firms that complement each other in capability, culture and geography, creating a cohesive platform of experienced teams with deep sector expertise to support Opera’s next phase of growth.
Opera now enters a new chapter of integration, collaboration and organic growth, powered by long-term vision and a continued commitment to innovation, talent and client-first excellence.
Kim Sgarlata, Group CEO and Executive Director, comments:
“Opera was created to do something rare in financial services – to build a values-led group with long-term capital, where people come first and alignment matters. Our partnership with Meritus reflects that vision – their team and ethos align strongly with ours, and we’re proud to be building this next chapter together. This completes an intentionally sequenced and focused phase of growth, bringing together businesses that share our values and complement each other across services and jurisdictions. By addressing core questions around offering, infrastructure, governance, brand and culture in one coordinated step, rather than revisiting them with each transaction, we’ve created a strong foundation for the future. Opera now moves into a new chapter focused on thoughtful integration, collaboration and long-term growth. For us, this isn’t just growth. It’s growth with meaning and built to last.”
Michelle Wolfe, Chair and Founding Partner of Meritus, adds:
“At Meritus, we have always believed in building long-term, meaningful relationships with the families we serve. Our goal has always been to honor the past while building momentum for tomorrow, and in Opera, we’ve found a partner who understands both the responsibility and opportunity of that vision. As expectations rise and the industry evolves, we are proud to help lead the next chapter, grounded in our values and strengthened by Opera’s global reach and shared philosophy.”
Pending regulatory approval, integration will be conducted thoughtfully, preserving Meritus’ legacy while leveraging Opera’s resources to enable future growth.
Following completion of both the Meritus and Accuro acquisitions, Opera’s operating jurisdictions will expand to eight: Bermuda, Geneva, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Jersey, London, Mauritius and The Bahamas, with combined assets under administration exceeding $71.6bn+.
Wyvern Partners introduced the transaction to Opera.
To learn more about Opera’s vision and its group of businesses, visit www.operalimited.com.
For insights into Meritus difference, visit https://meritustrust.com/the-meritus-difference/.