M and A
Two Asset Management Firms Merge In Canada
Toronto-based Arrow Capital Management has completed its previously-announced acquisition of BluMont Capital from Integrated Asset Management.
Toronto-based Arrow Capital
Management has completed its
previously-announced acquisition of BluMont Capital from
Integrated Asset
Management.
BluMont was IAM's retail alternative asset management subsidiary
that provided mutual funds and other products to retail
investors,
primarily through the Exemplar Portfolio of funds. BluMont had
some $260 million in assets under management as at end-August
2013.
James McGovern, chief executive of Arrow, and Robert
Maxwell, chief financial officer of Arrow, are now CEO and CFO of
Toronto-based BluMont,
respectively.
McGovern and Maxwell have also joined Veronika Hirsch on
BluMont’s
board of directors. The trio are now the officers and directors
of the Exemplar
Portfolios, which includes the Exemplar Canadian Focus Portfolio
class of
shares and the Exemplar Diversified Portfolio class of shares.
Meanwhile, the independent review committee for the Exemplar
Funds has been re-constituted with members Ross MacKinnon, Ronald
Riley and John Anderson.
Arrow said in a statement that all of the portfolio managers
and advisors, including Hirsch, Alex Ruus, Capital Innovations
and
Integrated Managed Futures, will continue to provide services to
their
respective funds.
“The combined platforms will provide investors with greater
investment choices, an improved level of service, and the
expectation of a
decrease in costs based on the capacity of a larger company,”
Arrow said.
As previously reported, the sale of BluMont to Arrow means that
Integrated Asset Management can now focus on its
institutional
business. IAM said it intends to build on its core asset classes
of real estate and
private corporate debt by rolling out new products and asset
classes.
“Despite the exceptional investment track record of all
BluMont funds, and in particular those funds managed by Veronika
Hirsch and
Alex Ruus, the challenging retail environment led us to the
decision to combine
BluMont with a larger high quality alternative asset company;
particularly one
with whom we can have a relationship going forward with other
products,” Victor
Koloshuk, chairman and CEO of IAM, said in September.
Arrow is an employee-owned company focused on alternative
asset management and manager selection. The firm has $1.2 billion
in assets
under management, including its joint venture with Generation
Asset Management in
London.
