Liontrust Asset Management has confirmed it is in talks to acquire the entire issued share capital of Switzerland-based asset manager Gam Holding.
In a statement released on the London Stock Exchange this afternoon (18 April), Liontrust acknowledged the recent media speculation, and confirmed its intention to combine the two firms’ investment management businesses.
Liontrust, which is led by CEO John Ions (pictured), has approached Gam’s board regarding the acquisition. However, the statement added that there could be no certainty that it would lead to a formal offer, and it gave no timeframe regarding the completion of the acquisition.
If such a deal were to go through, it would create a business with approximately £100bn of assets under management.
Gam announced in January that its yearly results would be delayed, and expected to post net losses of over £270m. At the time, the asset manager blamed difficult markets and negative flows across the year for the poor performance.
Its full results were due to be published on 28 February, but have now been delayed until 25 April.
