Saker Nusseibeh is chief executive of Hermes Investment Management

Saker Nusseibeh is chief executive of Hermes Investment Management

US fund giant Federated Investors is close to sealing the £400m purchase of London-based Hermes Investment Management, according to reports.

News of the US house carrying out a takeover of Hermes IM, which is owned by BT's pension scheme, is expected to be announced "within days" according to Sky News.

Hermes IM, widely known as an adviser to clients on corporate governance and stewardship issues, was established by BT nearly 25 years ago to manage its retirement funds and is responsible for £33bn in AUM and £336bn under advice.

Meanwhile, Federated Investors manages close to $400bn for clients and is thought to have been in exclusive talks with Hermes for several weeks.

The latest development comes after earlier speculation late last year that Federated, along with Australian fund manager Challenger, US-based Old Mutual Asset Management and Eaton Vance had all expressed an interest in buying Hermes.

Saker Nusseibeh (pictured), chief executive of Hermes has played a leading role in the discussions, according to reports.

If completed, the deal will be the latest in a bout of M&A activity within the UK asset management sector.

Last year, Henderson Global Investors and US bond specialist Janus merged to create Janus Henderson, while Scottish fund houses Aberdeen Asset Management and Standard Life Investments joined to form Aberdeen Standard Investments.

Consolidation continues: Highlights of the industry's M&A activity in 2017

Fenchurch Advisory Partners is acting for the Hermes management team, while the BT pension scheme is being advised by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

When approached by Investment Week Hermes IM said it did not comment on market rumour.

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Jayna is senior reporter and investment trust correspondent at Investment Week. She joined the publication in August 2015 after graduating with an MA in Multimedia Journalism from the University of Kent.

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