Liontrust has announced it has entered into an agreement with Alliance Trust to purchase its asset management unit, Alliance Trust Investments (ATI), for £30 million.
The deal will increase Liontrust’s assets under management by around £2.3 billion to more than £8 billion.
In a letter to the London Stock Exchange about the merger, Liontrust said the acquisition will “broaden its distribution opportunities” and “expand its client base further… by adding a team focused on sustainable investment through active management.”
The acquisition will see ATI’s investment team - currently headed up by Peter Michaelis who is in charge of 11 sustainable funds - merge with Liontrust’s team.
John Ions, chief executive officer at Liontrust, said the investment managers will be an “excellent addition” to its seven teams, who will continue to manage the funds in the same process.
Michaelis at Alliance Trust Investments said Liontrust will provide the team and investors with long-term stability, but “we will continue to focus on running money according to our own investment process.”
Ions added: “There is strong demand for sustainable investment in the UK and internationally… The acquisition of ATI puts us in a very strong position to meet this demand.”
The acquisition is expected to be completed in April 2017.