June 23, 2006 – Threadneedle Investments (“Threadneedle”) announced today that it has entered into exclusive negotiations with JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A. (“JPMorgan”) with the intention of appointing JPMorgan as Threadneedle’s chosen provider of outsourced Investment Operations services.
Threadneedle and JPMorgan expect to finalise contractual arrangements during July 2006 and transfer operational control of Threadneedle’s Swindon–based Investment Operations function to JPMorgan in October 2006.
The outsourcing will be achieved by way of a “lift out” of Threadneedle’s operations covering confirmation and settlement, valuations and pricing, and accounting activities for all of Threadneedle’s funds. Subsequently, Threadneedle’s Swindon operations and staff will form an integral part of JPMorgan’s expanded European service offering.
Crispin Henderson, Managing Director of Threadneedle Investments, said:
“We believe this is excellent news for our current and future clients. This deal allows Threadneedle to focus on its key strengths as a fund manager – providing excellent investment performance for its clients. Our clients will benefit from JPMorgan’s strengths in service administration and commitment to providing state–of–the–art capabilities in derivatives and complex instruments – an integral part of many of Threadneedle’s products. We aim to achieve these benefits with a high degree of continuity, as the only real difference in the short term will be a change of operational control – the people, processes and systems will remain unchanged.”
Conrad Kozak, JPMorgan Securities Company Executive, said:
“Through this agreement with Threadneedle, a leading European fund manager, we will continue to build our international operations services businesses. We are confident that we will continue to exceed our clients’ service expectations and help them achieve greater success by anticipating their evolving needs. For JPMorgan Worldwide Securities Services, this transaction is about supporting Threadneedle’s investment operations needs as well as enabling us to continue to lead the industry in servicing our clients’ complex investment strategies.”
Threadneedle was advised throughout the selection and negotiation process by, amongst others, Troika, the specialist financial services management consultancy.
About JPMorgan:
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $1.3 trillion and operations in more than 50 countries. The firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers, small business and commercial banking, financial transaction processing, asset and wealth management, and private equity. A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase serves millions of consumers in the United States and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients under its JPMorgan and Chase brands. Information about the firm is available at
www.jpmorganchase.com.
About Threadneedle:
Threadneedle Asset Management Limited manages in excess of £73 billion for clients worldwide (as at 30 April 2006). It is the
UK's third largest retail investment funds group (Source: IMA, April 2006). Threadneedle is a subsidiary of Ameriprise Financial, Inc., one of the leading providers of financial solutions in the United States.
Threadneedle is characterised by its dedication to a disciplined investment process based on four central tenets of teamwork, integrated research, dynamic style and risk control. Its team based approach connects the talents of outstanding individuals, with its investment process connects different product areas and diverse disciplines.
Disclaimer:
Issued by Threadneedle Investment Services Limited (TISL) the 3rd largest retail investment funds manager in the UK (source: IMA, April 2006). Threadneedle Asset Management Limited (TAML) is responsible for asset management for TISL. Both TISL and TAML are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
Any opinions expressed are made as at the date of publication but are subject to change without notice.
