Challenger builds empire
Challenger International has purchased Citibank's margin lending business for an undisclosed sum.
Challenger International has purchased Citibank's margin lending business for an undisclosed sum.
Challenger managing director Bill Ireland says the terms of the deal are confidential, but that the business "was not generating a lot of profit for Citibank".
"We bought it because we were trying to get into that business ... it gives us critical mass," he says.
Challenger says the sale will be "seamless for Share Finance clients and is a positive develop-ment for the business strategies of both companies".
The margin lending business has about $80 million of loans for about $200 million of invest-ments in shares and managed funds.
Ireland says the business will complement Challenger's existing range of financial products such as warrants, property trusts and leveraging.
He says Challenger also pursued the deal as it "had identified margin lending as a key product in providing additional service to stockbrokers and financial advisers".
Recommended for you
Unregistered managed investment scheme operator Chris Marco has been sentenced after being found guilty of 43 fraud charges, receiving the highest sentence imposed by an Australian court regarding an ASIC criminal investigation.
ASIC has cancelled the AFSL of Sydney-based Arrumar Private after it failed to comply with the conditions of its licence.
Two investment advisory research houses have announced a merger to form a combined entity under the name Delta Portfolios.
The top five licensees are demonstrating a “strong recovery” from losses in the first half of the year, and the gap is narrowing between their respective adviser numbers.
