Macquarie's $2.8b Nomura deal sharpens private markets push
Macquarie Group has exited its public markets business in Europe and the US to free up capital for expansion in private markets and alternative assets.
Macquarie Group is doubling down on its bet on private markets with its decision to sell Macquarie Asset Management’s (MAM) public investments in North America and Europe to Japanese investment house Nomura.
The $2.8 billion sale largely unwinds the 2009 $US428 million Delaware Investments acquisition — Macquarie’s largest at the time — and the 2020 $US1.7 billion acquisition of Waddell & Reed. While the sale appears to be a loss on paper, Macquarie has told analysts it will result in a small profit, which some estimate at around $300 million.
Sources at Macquarie said the transaction was not material for earnings. As such, there was no ASX announcement or investor briefing. Macquarie will report its full-year earnings in three weeks. Notably, both of the public market acquisitions that form the bulk of the sale were initiated by current CEO Shemara Wikramanayake during her tenure running MAM.
Following the transaction, MAM will have about $640 billion in assets under management, with roughly $370 billion in private markets. The sale to Nomura includes assets under management of $285 billion.
