Integrity Mutual Funds Inc. has inked a deal to sell its mutual fund division, opting to focus solely on the broker-dealer business, The MFWire has learned.

Laura Anderson Integrity President, Mutual Fund Division

A group of employees from Integrity and Viking Fund Management are setting up a new company called Corridor Investors LLC, which will purchase Integrity Mutual Funds Inc. of Nevada, Integrity Fund Services and Integrity Funds Distributor, said Laura Anderson, president of Integrity's mutual fund division, in an interview. In a separate transaction, Corridor will purchase Viking.

"Integrity's board decided to focus the company's attention on the broker-dealer business," Anderson said.

The deal is expected to close in June, according to an 8-K filing on Monday afternoon.

Integrity runs 12 mutual funds with combined AUM of $240 million. When the deal closes, management of those funds will fall under Viking Fund Management, which, like Integrity, is based out of Minot, North Dakota. Led by president and CEO Shannon Radke, Viking currently has 4 mutual funds. The brand name of the combined fund lineup has yet to be determined, Anderson said.

According to the SEC filing, the purchase price for the 12 Integrity funds amounts to 60 basis points of the net asset value of Integrity's 12 mutual funds a day before the closing date of the transaction. In addition, Corridor will pay 10 basis points of "the then aggregate net asset value of the Closing Date Shares which then remain outstanding 12 months post Closing Date, 24 months post Closing Date and 36 months post Closing Date," the filing stated.

Integrity's mutual fund division has 25 employees, according to Anderson. It was not immediately clear how many Integrity employees will become part of Corridor.

When the deal is complete, Integrity Mutual Funds Inc. will have just one subsidiary, Capital Financial Services. The name of the parent firm will change to reflect its focus on the brokerage business.  

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