Apex Group completes purchase of Maitland International

Global financial services firm Apex Group has completed its purchase of Maitland International’s Fund and ManCo divisions, which host its fund services and third-party management businesses operations.

Read: Apex announces acquisition of Maitland International [May 2022]

Maitland was established in Luxembourg in 1976. It has more than $200 billion (R3.4 trillion) worth of funds under administration and $17 billion (R288 billion) in assets under management, strategically adding to Apex’s assets.

Apex is a Bermuda-established financial services provider with more than 80 offices in 40 countries across the globe.

Maitland, whose 570 employees will join Apex, provides a wide range of services including fund administration, transfer agency, and management company services for 120 investment managers and 25 sponsors.

“We are pleased to announce the successful close of the sale of the fund services and Manco business operations to the global Apex Group, where our talented people and valued clients will continue to thrive and prosper. Following this transaction Maitland ceases to provide fund or ManCo services,” Steven Georgala, CEO of Maitland said.

The move will expand Apex’s existing presence in the UK, Guernsey, and Luxembourg and will further entrench its recently established footprint in South Africa.

The company said it “plans to hire over 500 new experts in Johannesburg over the next twelve months to deliver its single-source solution to a global client base of asset managers, capital markets, private clients, and family offices”.

Its recent acquisition of asset management company Sanne Group added 500 employees in Cape Town, with the addition of Maitland doubling the headcount to 1 000, Apex said in a statement this week.

Apex Group founder and CEO Peter Hughes said the addition of Maitland adds “greater product depth and widens the company’s fund administration and management company offering geographic reach”.

“We are excited to build multiple strategic hubs in South Africa to access the abundant pools of talent that we need to support both our South Africa and global client bases, enabling them to concentrate on their core focus of generating returns,” he added.

The terms of the transaction remain undisclosed, with Macquarie having acted as financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis as legal counsel to Apex. Nomura served as financial advisor and McDermott, Will & Emery acted as legal counsel to Maitland.