First announced in May, regulatory approval for the acquisition was granted by the Central Bank of Ireland on 28 July, with the deal closing on 31 August.
Details of the transaction were not disclosed.
Following the sale and subsequent break-up of the wider Kleinwort Benson group the firm is unable to continue trading under the KBI name. As a result, it will now trade as KBI Global Investors (KBIGI).
Growth plans
Based in Dublin and with offices in Boston and New York, KBIGI specialises in equity capabilities. The fund management firm has plans to build out its North American footprint with a number of appointments expected in the months ahead.
The company currently employs 62 people and managed €8.1bn (£6.9bn, $9bn) of assets as of 31 July 2016, mainly in global equity strategies.
According to KBIGI, the firm’s assets under management rose on average 28% per year between 2011 and 2015.
Future stratagy
KBIGI’s expertise in global equities will strengthen Amundi’s equity management offering; and in return, KBIGI will leverage Amundi’s strong retail and institutional presence in Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Moving forward, and with particular focus on getting the ownership and governance structure right, Amundi and KBIGI are focusing on three areas:
- maintaining the operating and investment autonomy, and preserving the ‘boutique’ culture, an integral part of the business and something which clients have bought in to;
- ensuring that the stability of the team was preserved, closely aligning key staff with the success of the business, and
- positioning the firm within the broader group to ensure KBIGI benefits from an acceleration in its growth trajectory.
Yves Perrier, chief executive of Amundi, said: “This acquisition is part of our strategy to offer the most effective investment solutions to our retail and institutional clients. KBI Global Investors will also significantly strengthen our offering in the equity asset class.”
Sean Hawkshaw, chief executive of KBIGI, adds, “As part of the Amundi group we have the ideal platform from which to grow. Our assets under management have increased over this period, with additional flows from our existing clients as well as some significant new mandates; that has given us a great deal of encouragement.
“Throughout the entire process Amundi showed a great deal of respect for the things that we have achieved as a team, and a deep understanding of the factors which have contributed to our success. We retain our distribution, operating and portfolio management autonmy, and for all of these reasons, I am confident that Amunidi will prove to be a tremendous long-term partner.”
