Swedbank has taken a 6% stake in Kepler Cheuvreux as the two firms agree to combine their services for equities.
The deal will see Swedbank’s institutional clients gain access to Kepler Cheuvreux’s equity research and distribution.
Swedbank’s distribution capacity will be expanded with the addition of corporate client access to Kepler Cheuvreux’s network of 1,200 intuitional investors and 120 brokers in 11 countries.
Both parties said it would create a ‘top-ranked’ equity capital markets (ECM) service in the Nordic region, with plans to also hire more than 100 equity analysts.
Ola Laurin, head of merchant banking at Swedbank, explained Kepler Cheuvreux was the ideal partner for strengthening its ECM offering.
“They have a good reputation as a global, independent broker with strong analytical function and distribution capacity,” he added.
Laurent Quirin, CEO of Kepler Cheuvreux, commented the addition of Swedbank as a partner is “further proof that we have a strong platform in Europe and that we have a unique concept that allows us to continue to invest in leading equity research and brokerage”.
Kepler Cheuvreux’s ECM partner model began with UniCredit in 2011, with Credit Agricole joining in 2013 and Rabobank in 2016.