Credit Suisse’s 58 ETFs will be rebranded and renamed, and will begin trading as iShares ETFs on the exchanges with immediate effect.
The deal boosts BlackRock’s Swiss presence, and gives the firm the broadest range of Switzerland-domiciled ETF exposures. At the end of May it had CHF 7.7bn across equities, fixed income and gold funds.
The buyout was originally announced in January, but was delayed by the Office of Fair Trading for a further ten working days in May. It received the all-clear from the OFT in June.
David Blumer, head of Europe Middle East and Africa, said “Switzerland is an important market for us. We believe more investors will have an interest in owning financial products denominated in Swiss francs and we want to serve them. This acquisition is just one sign of BlackRock’s commitment to Switzerland and it deepens and expands our presence in the market.”
When questioned about whether there would be job losses among the Swiss team, a spokesperson for BlackRock said: "As a matter of policy, the firm does not comment on people moves. Joe Linhares will lead the combined ETF platform for iShares and is supported by a strong leadership team in Switzerland with an established track-record of serving clients."
