28 December 2017, India:
State owned Bank of Baroda has agreed to acquire its Italian partner UniCredit SpA’s entire 51 percent stake in their mutual fund joint venture.
Bank of Baroda announced on Tuesday that it has signed a share purchase agreement (SPA) with UniCredit SpA, Baroda Pioneer Asset Management Company Ltd (AMC) and Baroda Pioneer Trustee Company Pvt Ltd (Trustee Company).
The bank said, “Pursuant the share purchase agreement, the Bank will be purchasing from its joint venture partner, UniCredit, their entire stake of 51 percent in the AMC and the Trustee Compnay. Pursuant to the acquisition, the bank will become the sole shareholder of the AMC and the Trustee Company and the sole sponsor of the Baroda Pioneer Mutual Fund.”
Managing Director and Chief Executive of Bank of Baroda, P S Jayakumar said, “Given the rapid growth in the mutual fund industry and the trend of household savings moving towards financial assets, the bank sees merit in building out the asset management business, with an aim to become a meaningful player in the asset and wealth management space.”
Jayakumar further said that Bank of Baroda is keen to see significant growth in the business and will evaluate options in that regard, including strategic partner if needed.
After this deal, the bank will become the sole shareholder of the AMC and the Trustee company and the sole sponsor of the Baroda Pioneer Mutual Fund. The transaction is pending subject to requisite regulatory approvals.
Earlier this year, a subsidiary of UniCredit, Pioneer Investments was acquired by Amundi. Amundi already has a presence in Indian AMC.
The JV was formed in 2008. The AMC website tells that the company operates out of 40 locations in India and managed quarterly average assets of about ₹11,023 crore for the month ending August 2017.
(Image – MouthShut)
