The asset management arm of a publicly traded investment banking giant is buying a model portfolio shop that advises on more than $33 billion in assets.

Michael Thompson Standard & Poor's Investment Advisory Services President, Chairman

New York City-based Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM [profile]) has agreed to acquire Standard & Poor's Investment Advisory Services (SPIAS) from S&P Global's S&P Global Market Intelligence division, Goldman Sachs' Eric Lane and Tim O'Neill confirmed yesterday. O'Neill and Lane serve as co-heads of Goldman's consumer and investment management division (CIMD, which includes GSAM).

The deal is expected close by the end of Q2. Pricing and terms were not disclosed.

SPIAS is an ETF strategist, but also uses mutual funds and stocks for its multi-asset and rules-based models. Yet the firm offers non-discretionary advice, so advisors and other allies implement the models for their clients.

CIMD had more than $1.5 trillion in assets under supervision as of December 31, 2018. That includes a proprietary ETF business, Barron's notes, whose distribution could be boosted by incorporating its wares into SPIAS' models. And GSAM has offered its own mutual funds for some time, too.

"The firm is acquiring a compelling platform for growth and a differentiated team with a strong long-term track record of performance," Lane and O'Neill state. "The team's expertise will allow us to deliver greater value to the financial intermediaries and institutions we serve."

Michael Thompson, president and chairman of SPIAS, notes that becoming part of GSAM "will deliver additional resources" to SPIAS' clients.

"S&P Global enabled us to grow our investment advisory business, and as our business continues to evolve, our focus on providing client solutions to more easily and efficiently manage their portfolios fits perfectly within GSAM," Thompson states. 

Edited by: Neil Anderson, Managing Editor


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