Old Mutual Asset Management is about to add another boutique asset manager. Today OMAM revealed that it will buy an eight-person former Morgan Stanley international equity portfolio management team from Invesco to create a brand new subsidiary, Echo Point Investment Management, led by Invesco's Hans van den Berg.

Thomas M. Turpin Old Mutual Asset Management President, CEO

Van den Berg confirmed that the team has sub-advised mutual funds and managed separate accounts. The new unit will be based in West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania and may return to the mutual fund business.

"We will now, for the time-being, focus on institutional asset management," van den Berg told The MFWire in an interview. "There's plenty of growth opportunity in this business."

Hans van den Berg Echo Point Investment Management Chief-to-Be

Invesco spokesman Bill Hensel confided that Invesco did not use an outside bank or consultant, instead handling the deal "all in-house." Tom Turpin, president of OMAM, confirmed that the deal is set to close by the end of this quarter (i.e. by September 30), that the pricing and terms were not disclosed, and that OMAM, too, did not use an outside banker.

"The team will get an equity stake in the new business," van den Berg confided. "We're hoping to tie everybody in and keep them excited."

Van den Berg and his seven team members joined Invesco when the firm closed on its acquisition of Morgan Stanley's retail asset management business, including Van Kampen, on June 1. At that time, according to Hensel, Invesco's Austin-based international growth equity team led by Clas Olsson took over the retail assets -- including the Morgan Stanley International Growth Equity Fund, the Van Kampen International Growth Fund and the Van Kampen UIF International Growth Equity Fund --which van den Berg and his team had managed.

Turpin praised van den Berg and his team for their "depth of expertise and knowledge, and a very strong track record," describing the future Echo Point group as the kind of boutique "you can never have enough of."

"His team is well-experienced, high-caliber and in an investment specialty that we think is pretty critical," Turpin told The MFWire. "We're just delighted to have them on board."

Van den Berg praised OMAM for being equipped and offering the "working capital" to support Echo Point's work going forward.

"We were looking for people that are committed to this business," van den Berg said. "It's all about consistency for us ... We can continue to focus on our clients and our portfolios."

"We will be hiring a COO and a number of support staff," van den Berg added.

Matthew Appelstein, OMAM's head of sales and marketing, added that his team will be "working closely" with van den Berg's in the coming months.

"It'll be a close partnership," Appelstein told The MFWire.

OMAM's 18 current boutique managers include: Acadian Asset Management, an active global and international equity manager based in Boston, London and Singapore; Old Mutual Asset Managers, a specialty manager based in the UK; and Rogge Global Partners, a global fixed income institutional manager.

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Company Press Release

BOSTON -- July 13, 2010 -- Old Mutual Asset Management (OMAM) announced today that it has agreed to acquire an international equity portfolio management team, led by Hans van den Berg, from Invesco.

Under the agreement, the team will form a new OMAM affiliate, Echo Point Investment Management, based in West Conshohocken, Penn. Mr. van den Berg and his team joined Invesco, Ltd. following Invesco's acquisition of Morgan Stanley's retail asset management business on June 1, 2010.

Van den Berg and his investment colleagues have delivered strong long-term results and have worked together for many years. The senior portfolio management team has an average of 20 years of international investment experience and is expected to remain intact during the transition. The addition of this tenured and respected international team will expand OMAM's capabilities in the actively managed international equity area.

"We're pleased to increase our capabilities in international equities, which continue to be an attractive market sector for investors, and to further diversify our boutiques," said Tom Turpin, President and Chief Executive Officer of OMAM. "Hans and his team bring decades of experience and a track record of success, which strategically complement Old Mutual's existing resources in the growing international category."

Van den Berg, with 30 years of international investment experience, looks forward to joining OMAM's family of affiliated investment firms.

"Old Mutual offers the business partnership that we require to concentrate on serving our clients," van den Berg said. "We expect to compete as one of the premier managers in international equity today."

OMAM intends to effect a smooth transition of client accounts following the closing, which is expected to close by the end of the third quarter 2010.

About Old Mutual Asset Management

Old Mutual Asset Management (OMAM), the name under which Old Mutual (US) Holdings Inc. conducts its U.S. asset management business, is the holding company for 18 distinct, boutique firms, including asset managers that specialize in high-quality, active investment strategies for institutional and individual investors.

OMAM's assets under management were $263 billion as of March 31, 2010. The group's parent is Old Mutual plc, an international financial services company based in London, with operations in asset management, life assurance, banking and general insurance. More information on Old Mutual Asset Management, its member firms, and their investment teams and strategies, is available at www.oldmutualus.com. 

Correction: A previous version of this article misidentified the number of boutique manager affiliates Old Mutual Asset Management will have once the Echo Point deal closes by the end of September. OMAM CEO Tom Turpin confirmed that one OMAM's 18 boutiques, Thomson, Horstmann & Bryant (TH&B), will be leaving at the end of the month. So, when Echo Point joins up, OMAM will again have 18 boutiques.

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