Mitsubishi UFJ to buy fund business off UBS Group
(22 June 2015 – Japan) Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) will acquire UBS Group AG unit Alternative Fund Services (AFS) for as much as ¥30 billion (A$314 million) to expand its administration business.
The purchase will take Mitsubishi UFJ’s assets under administration to US$260 million (A$334 million), Yasufumi Tominaga, a Tokyo-based spokesman for the unit of Japan’s biggest bank, told Bloomberg.
It will take on 300 employees of the UBS unit, he said.
The acquisition of AFS will add to the two global fund-administration firms it bought for ¥31 billion in 2013 and 2014, Tominaga said.
“AFS’s strong client franchise, global footprint, and notably its strong presence in Asia, are an excellent strategic fit,” Junichi Okamoto, a Mitsubishi UFJ executive who oversees its integrated trust-assets business, said in an e-mailed statement.
The deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, will be completed in the fourth quarter, according to the statement.
“MUFG’s commitment to invest in the client franchise and the people, together with their strong focus on ensuring a seamless transition, were important factors in our decision-making,” Ulrich Koerner, president of global asset management at Zurich-based UBS, said in the statement.
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