50 South Capital Advisors LLC, an investment advisory subsidiary of Northern Trust Corp. is going to acquire Aurora Investment Management. The latter part is a hedge fund manager in Chicago owned by the French behemoth Natixis Global Asset Management.
The deal will expand 50 South's alternative investment platform to include capability for the full range of alternative assets including hedge funds, private equity and real estate. The acquisition will allow offering clients of both firms access to an expanded global alternative investment platform and additional size and resources, reports FINAlternatives citing a press release as the source.
The two companies have been witnessed to maintain silence over the deal amount or further details. However, they expect to close the transaction by the end of September. Northern Trust Chairman and CEO Frederick Waddell have expressed satisfaction through a statement.
Aurora focuses on managing hedge fund strategies. It enjoys expertise in seeding and co-investing with investment managers. 50 South Capital's relationship with Northern Trust allows it to focus exclusively on alternative asset management. The focus is expected to leverage the global resources and network of one of the world's largest financial institutions. The combination will bring 50 South Capital's total global alternatives platform to approximately $9 billion, according to a report published in Opalesque.
Martino, Scott Schweighauser, the Aurora President and Anne Marie Morley, managing director of operations, will remain employees as Senior Advisors after the acquisition. 50 South Capital Advisors expects most of the Aurora Investment professionals will continue their service, reports Crain's Chicago Business quoting Northern Trust Spokesman John O'Connell. Martino has been reported to lead Aurora since 1990. Previously, he has served Grosvenor Capital Management, Chicago's biggest alternative asset manager. The alternative asset managers offer alternatives to stocks and bonds like hedge funds and private equity funds. Northern Trust has been founded in 1989 and now appears as one of the largest asset managers in the world. It provides services in wealth management and asset services. It also renders banking services to corporations, institutions, affluent families and individuals. The international financial services company has assets under management worth $875 billion as of December 31, 2015. However, Aurora has managed assets worth $5.7 billion as of January 1. It has witnessed a blow during last February with pulling of $488 million mandate by the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund.
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