The investor group at the forefront of opposing Liontrust’s takeover of GAM has announced its intention to increase its stake in the Swiss asset manager to above 10%.
NewGAMe and Bruellan currently own 8.4% of voting rights. As required under Swiss law, the group have notified the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) of its intention to go above the 10% threshold.
The news comes a week after the group formally challenged Liontrust’s proposed £96m takeover of GAM.
The investor group opposed a key condition of the announced exchange offer which would allow Liontrust to withdraw its proposal if GAM could not offload its Fund Management Services business, which has around CHF 48.4bn (£43.4bn) of third-party fund assets under management.
At the time, NewGAMe and Bruellan said the condition was unfair for GAM shareholders and “needlessly” favoured the bidder. The investor group also raised concerns over the proposed offer’s consistency with Swiss takeover law.
If all hurdles are overcome, the deal is expected to complete in the fourth quarter of this year.
See also: Liontrust takeover of GAM faces new hurdle as Geneva-based investor group formed
