Following the acquisition, which is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter, subject to regulatory approval, all Arkos products will be distributed under the GAM brand. However, they will continue to be run by the eight-strong Arkos investment team, who will remain at their base in Lugano.
Arkos, an investment boutique which is regulated by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority, was founded in 2007 and offers low-volatility, liquid absolute return funds.
These onshore- and offshore-domiciled products include long/short equity strategies covering Europe and the emerging markets, in addition to specialist offerings focusing on financial securities and convertible bonds. Clients include banks, family offices and funds of funds.
Under the terms of the deal, GAM will purchase 74.95% of Arkos’s share capital. The remaining stake, which is held by Arkos’s management team, will be acquired via deferred cash payments “linked to the future development of the business”. No significant integration costs are expected.
‘Valuable addition’
“Arkos represents a valuable addition to GAM, fully in line with our growth strategy. It has an outstanding track record of alpha generation and will substantially enhance and expand our in-house single manager offering,” said David Solo, chief executive officer of GAM.
GAM, which was established in 1983, had CHF51bn in assets under management in June 2011. The company has 60 investment strategies, encompassing equities, fixed income, absolute return, funds of hedge funds, discretionary portfolio management and tailored investment solutions.
