Credit Suisse sells GI business to Aberdeen Asset Management

by Richard Kilner

Story link: Credit Suisse sells GI business to Aberdeen Asset Management

Investment bank Credit Suisse has announced that it has successfully sold off a portion of its Global Investors traditional asset management business to Aberdeen Asset Management.

Credit Suisse now holds 240m Aberdeen shares equating to an equity stake of 24% and will have representation upon the board of Aberdeen.

The deal was first announced in December last year, and now the Swiss bank is subject to a staggered, three year lock-up regarding Aberdeen shares and a three year standstill to prevent it acquiring a quarter or more of the firm’s share capital.

Credit Suisse’s Asset Management CEO Rob Shafir has described the deal’s completion as an important move towards the firm’s strategic objective of focusing upon its alternatives, asset allocation/Multi Asset Class Solutions (MACS) and Swiss businesses.

Martin Gilbert, Aberdeen’s chief executive, has said that since the deal was first announced late in 2008 the two firms have collaborated closely to help enable a smooth integration of the acquisition.