Martin Gilbert's AssetCo is reportedly planning to raise £25m from shareholders to fund the acquisition of a majority stake in thematic ETF provider Rize.
The cash call is expected to be announced imminently, according to Sky News reports.
It would mark the third deal AssetCo has announced since Gilbert and his colleagues took charge, following the acquisition of Saracen Fund Managers and the minority stake taken in Parmenion earlier this month. In February, the group also doubled its stake in River & Mercantile.
Billing itself as "Europe's first specialist thematic ETF issuer", Rize was set up in February 2020 by former Legal & General Investment Management staff former Rahul Bhushan, Stuart Forbes, Anthony Martin and Jason Kennard. Since then, the team has launched several thematic ETFs in areas such as medical cannabis and digital learning.
Writing for Investment Week, Gilbert said "we are in the middle of a structural shift" and, over the years to come, "we will see more and more money flowing into ETFs rather than into open-end funds"
"Ultimately, to continue to appeal to investors, the structure of mutual funds will need to change," he wrote. "For example, in the US, ETFs are potentially more tax efficient than mutual funds."
AssetCo has been contacted for comment.
