 Renamed "British Car Auctions", Wickins then expanded the company across Europe and the United States through acquisition.This included the purchase of the car auctions division of British conglomerate Hawley Goodall, owned by Michael Ashcroft.This proved to be the start of a lifelong friendship between Wickins and Ashcroft, and through his Bermuda and Belize based holdings in various banks, Ashcroft would finance a number of Wickins' later business ventures.