MutualFundWire.com: The Guggenheim-DWS Deal Falls Apart

MutualFundWire.com

The insiders' edge for 40 Act industry executives!
an InvestmentWires' Publication

Friday, May 11, 2012

The Guggenheim-DWS Deal Falls Apart

Deutsche Bank is no longer in exclusive negotiations to sell DWS Americas [profile] to Guggenheim Partners [profile]. Today the German bank's management board revealed that the exclusive talks with Guggenheim are over, except when its comes to the alternatives business. Yet DWS is still on the block.

A spokeswoman for Guggenheim declined to comment for this story.

Bloomberg, Dow Jones, the Financial Times, Opalesque, Reuters and RTTNews all reported on the change in the negotiations.

Deutsche officially started weighing "strategic options" for its global asset management business, including the U.S. mutual fund business but excluding the DWS franchise in Asia, Germany and the rest of Europe. In February Deutsche narrowed the bidding to one, Guggenheim, entering "exclusive negotiations."

Here's today's announcement from Deutsche Bank:

Frankfurt am Main May 11, 2012

Deutsche Bank and Guggenheim Partners focus their discussions on a potential sale of RREEF

Deutsche Bank (XETRA: DBKGn.DE / NYSE: DB) announced today that its Management Board, which initiated a strategic review of its global Asset Management division on November 22, 2011, has agreed to focus its exclusive negotiations with Guggenheim Partners on a potential sale of RREEF, its global alternative asset management business.

The Bank and Guggenheim Partners mutually agreed to end exclusive negotiations about a potential sale of DWS Americas, the mutual fund business in the Americas; DB Advisors, the global institutional asset management business; and Deutsche Insurance Asset Management, the global insurance asset management business.

Deutsche Bank will continue to evaluate these businesses and is fully committed to maintaining the stability of its investment teams and to ensuring that clients continue to receive the highest level of quality in investment management services.