ESTATE agents Atlantis have sold their Reading-based agency to the Romans Group.

The transaction marks the largest acquisition to date for Romans with the sale resulting in a £5 million fee paid to Atlantis owner, John Sykes.

Mr Sykes said: “Since I conceived Atlantis in 2000 our group has grown considerably and I felt that we were not able to devote the time needed to this part of our business in order to continue its development and growth.”

Atlantis has several other trading subsidiaries across the UK, but in addition the group has amassed a commercial and residential property portfolio internationally and in the UK.

Mr Sykes continued: “There will continue to be lots of activity from Atlantis in Reading moving forward, perhaps the most visual being the re-development of Kings Walk, or Atlantis Village, as it will be known.”

The transaction does not include the transfer of the Atlantis brand and no assets were included as part of the transaction. Atlantis retains ownership of its premises in 23/24 Market Place where the estate management business, which was not part of the sale, will continue to operate.

Andrew Strong, CEO of the Group said: “We believe that the transfer of this area of our business to Romans will be a benefit to our clients and the team here in Reading will be providing interim support to ensure that there is a smooth transition. The estate agency was the smallest part of Atlantis, yet the most time consuming to operate from the group’s board.

“Our estate management business, whose headquarters are in Reading, has grown considerably over the years and will benefit from the increase in space in our Reading office.”

The transaction was completed on July 24 and with the exception of the directors, the staff involved in the estate agency business now work under the company’s new owners at the Romans office just a few doors away.