Media. News and press releases from across Man Group.

24 January 2013

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OFI Group and Man Group plc (“Man”) today announce a strategic partnership to provide alternative multi-manager capabilities to the French market.

Man Investments Holdings Limited, a subsidiary of Man, one of the world’s largest independent alternative asset managers, will invest EUR 1.6 million to acquire a 20% stake in OFI MGA, OFI Group’s subsidiary dedicated to alternative investment, with the option to become a majority shareholder in three years’ time.

In return, OFI MGA, which manages EUR 600 million for French institutional investors, will be able to take unique advantage of Man’s managed accounts platform, through which some USD 9 billion is currently invested with approximately 80 alternative asset managers.

Managed accounts give institutional investors enhanced transparency and liquidity with regard to their underlying investments as well as an appropriate level of disclosure with regard to regulatory requirements such as Solvency II.

"We are convinced of the case for managed accounts for institutional investors in the alternative multi-management industry. In this respect, we are thrilled to be collaborating with Man, thus offering our investors access to the scale and infrastructure of a broad alternative asset manager" Gérard Bourret, CEO of OFI Group, said.

"We are pleased to be collaborating with OFI Group, allowing us to provide investment solutions tailored to French institutional investors’ needs" said Emmanuel Roman, President and COO of Man and CEO of GLG. "In addition, this agreement has been completed along with an exclusivity clause for OFI MGA, which becomes the only French investment company able to invest into our managed accounts platform."

The transaction is subject to approval from the Autorité des Marchés Financiers, the French regulator.

OFI Group

For 40 years, OFI Group has been developing specific expertise within two investment management areas: a ″collective management″ branch offer which gathers various fund management activities and ″investment mandate″ branch offer in regards to institutional and private mandate. Thanks to the diversity of its capabilities, the OFI Group upgrades its offer to the evolution of investors needs and reglementation and responds to its customers demands. Backed by two major French institutional companies, Macif and Matmut, the OFI Group employs 260 staff members and managed EUR 53,7 billion at the end of November 2012. www.ofi-am.fr