London-based investment firm FinEx Capital Management has bid to acquire all of the asset management division of Franco-Belgian bank Dexia following the failure of a takeover deal from GCS Capital of Hong Kong.
FinEx Group, which owns FinEx Capital, says it has more than $1 billion (€740 million) under management, a fraction of the €86.4 billion that Dexia Asset Management looks after.
Simon Luhr, managing partner and chief executive of FinEx Capital Management, says the firm has been aiming to acquire an asset manager to increase the size of its platform before expanding into Asia.
“The business offers us a platform that is the right size and product mix for us and it will allow us to continue to grow our business,” he says.
GCS Capital, a private equity firm, agreed in December to pay €380 billion for Dexia Asset Management, but in July Dexia issued a statement saying the buyer had failed to meet its payment obligations.
FinEx Capital currently offers hedge funds, private equity investments and exchange-traded funds, including several Ucits funds, and has products listed on the London, Irish and Moscow stock exchanges.
Dexia Asset Management offers a range of global equity and bond funds, socially responsible investment funds and emerging market funds. It also offers liability-driven investment (LDI) products and says institutional clients account for two-thirds of its portfolio.
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