BlackRock takes stake in GDG in retirement push
BlackRock has taken a $25 million stake in Generation Development Group as the two firms announce a strategic alliance to design and distribute tailored retirement solutions.
This will combine BlackRock’s investment and technology expertise with GDG’s retirement leadership in Australia and holistic products are expected to launch this year.
“The alliance is looking to help retirees transition from accumulation to decumulation by providing sustainable income streams with longevity protection,” it said.
The two companies have a goal to reduce the overall complexity of decumulation in Australia, it said.
As part of the alliance, BlackRock will acquire a $25 million minority stake in GDG through a share subscription of $4.15 per share.
Funds will support the development and rollout of the new retirement solutions and the alliance will explore additional product and service opportunities.
GDG CEO Grant Hackett said: “This transformational relationship brings together Generation Life’s innovation in retirement income with BlackRock’s global scale and expertise, delivering solutions that address the evolving needs of Australian retirees while creating long-term value for advisers, superannuation funds, and shareholders.”
Earlier this year, GDG announced the acquisition of Evidentia to create a managed account provider with over $25 billion in funds under management. Evidentia was launched in January 2020 and provides tailored separately managed account portfolios and investment management services to private wealth firms and has $12.7 billion in FUM.
Evidentia, a key provider of investment management and tailored managed account solutions in Australia, will merge with GDG’s Lonsec Investment Solutions and Implemented Portfolios, under the name Evidentia Group, further strengthening its position in the growing managed accounts market – currently valued at over $200 billion and projected to reach $474 billion by 2030.
The deal saw the Lonsec Group businesses realigned into Lonsec Research & Ratings, while the Lonsec Investment Solutions business combined with Evidentia.
Meanwhile, BlackRock acquired private markets research house Preqin in February to create a ‘pre-eminent’ private markets and technology data provider.
Preqin provides data on asset classes such as private equity, venture capital, hedge funds, infrastructure, and real estate. It currently has 48,000 customers and 16 global offices, having been founded in 2002.
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Laura Dew
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