Kepler Cheuvreux and Unigestion have announced a strategic partnership which will see the firms launch a joint public equities asset management company.
Bernard Sabrier
The new entity, named Kepler Cheuvreux Unigestion Equities, is set to focus on quantitative strategies and together will manage more than €3 billion in assets, subject to regulatory approvals.
The first stage of integration will see Unigestion transfer the €3 billion in assets under management – specifically in the form of mandates and investment funds – and simultaneously integrate the entirety of its equities team into Kepler Cheuvreux’s operational infrastructure.
Following this, Kepler and Unigestion will create the jointly owned entity, alongside the management team, focused on accelerating the business’ development through external growth initiatives.
“Unigestion brings its quantitative and qualitative public equities expertise, enhancing Kepler Cheuvreux’s well-established research capabilities. This partnership merges fundamental and quantitative research approaches, optimising portfolio management while diversifying and expanding the range of investment strategies,” said the firms in a joint statement.
In addition, Kepler Cheuvreux is contributing a sales force of over 130 professionals and more than 1,300 institutional clients across Europe, North America, and MENA.
The firms are also set to integrate ESG criteria into the management processes for Kepler Cheuvreux Unigestion Equities, including maintaining an “active dialogue” with portfolio companies.
Speaking about the partnership, Laurent Quirin, chair of the supervisory board at Kepler Cheuvreux and Bernard Sabrier, executive chair of Unigestion’s board, highlighted that this partnership is being driven by shared ambition to “provide institutional investors with sophisticated, innovative solutions tailored to the evolving market landscape”.
They added: “The combination of Unigestion’s quantitative expertise with Kepler Cheuvreux’s research, execution and distribution capabilities, enables us to unlock unique synergies and offer a distinctive, high-value proposition.”