Fairfax announces acquisition
Fairfax Media has announced the acquisition of online non-advisory managed funds business InvestSMART for $12 million, which will be merged with Fairfax’s current distributor of personal investment products, Direct Access.
The merged wealth management business will be launched in October 2007 under the InvestSMART brand and will have over $1 billion in funds under management.
Fairfax Digital chief executive officer Jack Matthews said while it was a small acquisition it was a significant step towards creating a market leading position within the online financial services market.
“The merger of InvestSMART and Direct Access comes at a time when non-advisory wealth management and online transactional sectors are experiencing strong local demand,” said Fairfax Digital chief executive officer Jack Matthews.
“Direct Access and InvestSMART have highly complementary audiences but little customer duplication, meaning the combined entity will be a leading provider of access to investment products, with no ownership ties to any financial institution.”
According to Mathews, the InvestSMART acquisition will make DIY investing more accessible and affordable to more Australians.
InvestSMART allows investors to purchase managed funds directly without the need of a financial planner, meaning no entry fees are involved. It will offer over 4,000 managed funds and provide a range of research material, including fund performance, fund size and ratings.
InvestSMART’s founders Ron Hodge and Nigel Poole will remain as joint general managers of the new business.
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