Fund administration services firm Ascent Fund Services has appointed Eric Koolen from Apex to lead its Australian expansion.
Koolen was formerly managing director at Apex Group Australia, which recently won a bidding war against SS&C to acquire Mainstream Group.
Ascent, which was based in Singapore, was looking to expand in Australia as it felt this consolidation and takeover activity among funds services groups presented the “perfect opportunity”.
It was also seeking to list on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in the next two to three years.
Omar Taheri, Ascent chair, said: “Consolidation in the Australian fund services market is leading to less competition and lower service levels. We see demand from local funds managers for customised services which they don’t get from the larger global players”.
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