European News in Brief
June 2009
Royal Bank of Canada’s corporate
and investment banking arm, RBC Capital Markets, has
made further hires in Europe in an effort to bolster its European platform.
Carmine Meoli has been appointed head of private banking solutions sales,
while Arif Hussein and Peter Drewienkiewicz have been chosen as directors
in RBC’s rates sales and trading team. RBC Capital Markets has hired
over 300 people throughout its global capital markets operations.
Credit Suisse has completed the sale of its Global Investors
business to Aberdeen Asset Management, and now holds
a 23.9 per cent equity stake in Aberdeen. The deal was announced on 31
December 2008, which comprised CHF 75bn of assets under management, and
includes the majority of the Global Investors business in Europe, the
US and Asia Pacific.
MGM Advantage has completed a longevity reinsurance transaction with Pacific Life RE, involving a portfolio on in-payment annuities with underlying liabilities of £220m. Ken Hogg, Interim Finance Director at MGM Advantage comments the longevity swap “means we are releasing capital that can be directed towards business growth.” Pacific Life RE said the transaction will make for more efficiency and easier management of capital.
AEGON has completed its acquisition of Banca Transilvania's 50 per cent shareholding in Romanian pension business BT AEGON set up by the two companies last year. The argreement, which was originally announced in January 2009, saw AEGON pay around EUR 11million for the shareholding, and gives AEGON full control of the pensino business.
KAS BANK has expanded its clearing and
settlement services to include the Nordics. The group offers Trading Member
Firms its integrated clearing, settlement and custody services for transactions
executed on NASDAQ OMX and relevant Multi Trading Facilities (MTFs). Albert
Röell, chairman of the managing board, said: “In line with
our European strategy, KAS BANK’s commitment to the Nordic region
is very strong. Our highly sophisticated equities platform will be directly
connected to the Nordic infrastructure and will offer clients access to
the expert securities services that they are used to in the rest of Europe.”
Sun Life Financial of Canada is to acquire Lincoln
(UK), which will provide the Canadian company with additional
product development and IFA distribution capability. Lincoln UK will continue
with the promotion of its i2Live product, Financial Foundations and Unit
Trust range, and the acquisition is expected to be completed by the end
of September 2009.
Hymans Robertson has expanded its business with the opening
of a new office in Edinburgh in late summer 2009. The office will be headed
by Martin Potter, partner at Hymans Robertson, and will initially be staffed
by around 25 employees, including new recruits and existing staff who
will transfer from the Glasgow office. Potter said: “Out new base
in Edinburgh will be our fourth national office. It will meet the growing
demands of our clients and will complement our existing office in Glasgow.”
A European equity capability has been added by FOUR Capital Partners
Limited which will launch a long-only pan-European fund. Europe
ex-UK, Euro benchmarked portfolios and long/short hedge funds will also
be offered to Europe, and the team will be led by Dino Fuschillo.
BlackRock has agreed to acquire Barclays
Global Investors, including its iShares business,
in a cash and share deal worth £8.15bn. The deal will see Barclays
PLC have a 19.9 per cent economic interest in the combined firm, and means
risk management and advisory platform BlackRock Solutions will benefit
from greater risk and analytical capabilities.
Aberdeen Property Investors has expanded its presence
in Italy with new offices in Milan, a move which cements the Group’s
commitment to the Italian real estate market. Vittorio Annoni will be
responsible for asset management in the new office, and has worked in
the international property business for more than 20 years. The parent
company, Aberdeen Asset Management, plans to add resource to service its
Italian client base.
Watson Wyatt has opened an office in Moscow in response to increasing demand for their services in Russia. The team, led by managing consultant Vladimir Resnick, will focus on providing consulting services to insurance and financial services companies and human capital and strategic reward consulting. Watson Wyatt plans to expand the range of services available from its Moscow office to include employee benefits consulting in the near future.
