Panmure closes in on Charles Stanley division
CITY broker Panmure Gordon yesterday said it was on the verge of buying Charles Stanley’s investment bank after a rival bid to buy the unit collapsed earlier this year.
Panmure, led by chief executive Phillip Wale, has agreed in principle to buy the unit, which has contracts with 49 corporate clients.
Mark Taylor, joint managing director of Charles Stanley Securities and had of its corporate finance team, is expected to join Panmure Gordon as part of the deal
The potential tie-up comes in the wake of separate talks held between Charles Stanley and US outfit Stifel Financial in March.
Despite Stifel getting exclusivity on the deal, talks eventually collapsed leaving Panmure’s offer on the table. Stifel is best known in the UK for snapping up UK broker Oriel Securities last year.
Charles Stanley’s new chief executive Paul Abberley – ex-boss of Aviva Investors – has been explicit in his bid to move away from investment banking and focus on its lucrative asset management business, which looks after about £20bn of assets. Charles Stanley Securities offers trading, sales and M&A advisory services to clients.