Investcorp takes minority stake in Swiss private bank

Investcorp, the Bahraini investment firm that counts Mubadala Investment Company as its biggest shareholder, said it made a minority investment in Swiss-regulated Banque Paris Bertrand Sturdza for an undisclosed sum.

The bank, which will be renamed Banque Paris Bertrand, had 5.3 billion Swiss francs (Dh20bn) in assets under management at the end of June.

The independent bank, which is based in Geneva and Luxembourg, offers services to more than 400 highnet-worth individuals, family offices and institutional clients, mainly from Switzerland and Europe.

“Investcorp, which benefits from 35 years of direct investments in Europe and the US, has developed a specialist expertise in private equity, real estate and alternative investments, which perfectly complements the offering of PB [Paris Bertrand],” Mohammed Alardhi, executive chairman of Investcorp said yesterday.

“Investcorp brings unique access to one of the most attractive investor bases for private and institutional investors.

“The synergies between the two institutions will therefore be significant, and should be mutually beneficial for both parties.”

Investcorp, in which Mubadala has a 20 per cent stake, is on an acquisition spree to nearly double its AUM to reach $50bn in the medium-term from $22.6bn at the end of June. Last year, the company acquired a $12bn assets under management business now known as Investcorp Credit Management.

Since its inception in 1982, Investcorp has made more than 170 corporate investments in the United States, Europe and the broader Middle East and North Africa region, including Turkey. The company has invested across a range of sectors including more than 450 commercial and residential real estate investments in the US, with transaction values exceeding $55bn.

“The investment from Investcorp will provide PB with additional support to advance its growth strategy, enabling the bank to further broaden and enhance its commercial offering to clients,” Investcorp said. “Equally, the investment is in line with Investcorp’s strategy to selectively partner with companies that complement and grow both its existing client offering and international footprint. It brings the additional capability of offering Investcorp’s clients access to PB and its independent investment advice.”