Editor’s note: This story has been updated, after it was announced that Cantor Fitzgerald Europe had struck a deal to acquire "certain aspetcs and businesses of Seymour Pierce Ltd." To see the latest on this fast-moving story, click here.
A spokesman for the company said the board had “received a number of offers, which they are considering.”
Company chairman Keith Harris and other officials were not available for comment, the spokesman added.
It was understood that one of the offers was from a rival brokerage from outside the UK market that was keen to gain a foothold in the London market.
As reported here last week, even as it apparently was in talks about obtaining new funding, Seymour Pierce was making its Core and Satellite asset management service available to investors outside the UK market for the first time. Until now, it had catered mainly for British investors with this service.
As envisioned by the company’s asset managers, the strategy for offshore investors would see them placing around 80% of assets in a “core” allocation consisting of exchange-traded investments – mainly ETFs – with the remaining 20% invested in a “satellite” investment strategy that targets a higher level of return through active trading of shorter term, long/short “tactical opportunities”.
Ukranian investment
According to press reports, the recent troubles for Seymour Pierce began after the Financial Services Authority failed to approve its plan to be acquired by an undisclosed Ukrainian company.
