Universal-Investment bought by UK private equity group Montagu

The Frankfurt-based Universal-Investment GmbH, the largest independent investment company in German-speaking Europe, has been acquired by British private equity firm Montagu Private Equity. Universal's existing shareholders, Berenberg Bank and Bankhaus Lampe, have agreed to sell their holdings to the British group for an undisclosed sum.

Established in 1968, Universal is now the market leader in administering master funds (Master-KGV) and private label funds for securities, alternative investments and real estate. With €280bn of assets under management, Universal is Germany's third-largest institutional manager (behind Deutsche Asset Management and Allianz Global Investors). Its growth over the last ten years has been spectacular, growing from €60bn to €280bn over the period. This year alone it saw net inflows of €15bn in the first six months, the highest in the German market.

Much of this growth has been attributable to the Master-KVG platform and the company's private label business, which enables it to offer a huge range of tailor-made options for third party mutual funds.

Bernd Vorbeck, board spokesman at Universal, commented, “Our recipe for success includes our employees’ commitment and expertise, our independence and our distinct business model as the leading Master-KVG platform. That’s why we’re especially excited to have found a new partner and owner in Montagu, which will continue to actively support this strategy in future.”

Behrenberg and Bankaus Lampe have each been 50% partners in Universal since 2012, when they jointly acquired the 27% stake held by Stuttgart-based bank LBBW.

The acquisition is Montagu's second in German-speaking Europe since buying Swiss-based Equatex, a global employee share plan administrator, from UBS Bank in 2015. Last year it also bought the largest Danish property manager DEAS from its pension fund owners PKA and Sampension.

Founded likewise in 1968, Montagu uses its €2.5bn Montagu V Fund for its acquisitions, whose focus is on "differentiated and market-leading companies operating in stable markets with an enterprise value ranging from about €100m to €1bn".