Boutique funds management group Pinnacle Investment Management is hoping to gain access to fresh seed money for new funds if it teams up with a strategic partner.
"The main objective of the initiative to bring in a strategic partner is to achieve access to FUM (funds under management) and capital to enable us to expand our range of boutiques in different asset classes, as well as potentially a bit more FUM for some of our existing boutiques, including for new products for them," Pinnacle managing director Ian Macoun told Investor Weekly.
"We think we now have a great 'platform' with Pinnacle and are very well placed to build new boutiques in interesting asset classes, if only we had access to seed FUM."
Pinnacle consists of six investment managers - Plato, Hyperion, Palisade, Resolution Capital, Solaris and Pinnacle Private Equity - and it has a third-party distribution arrangement with Capital International.
Solaris is taking up $4 billion of the firm's total FUM of $8.9 billion and Pinnacle is getting close to full capacity in Australian equities.
To continue its expansion, Pinnacle wants to establish boutique funds in other asset classes than the existing range.
"Some of these asset classes typically need substantial amounts of seed FUM. We are hoping that this will allow us to move to a whole new level and are very excited about it," Macoun said.
He also said a strategic partner could bring new distribution opportunities.
"Distribution is certainly one of those potential benefits. If it is an Australian group, then wider distribution in Australia for our boutiques could certainly be a benefit," he said.
"If it was an overseas-based manager, then overseas distribution for our boutiques such as our global REIT (real estate investment trust)manager Resolution Capital could be a benefit, and we might be able to distribute the investment offerings of an appropriate global manager in Australia."
Pinnacle's parent company, Wilson HTM Investment Group, last week informed the market it had received a number of unsolicited approaches to invest in Pinnacle.
Wilson, which owns 80 per cent of the group, said it intended to begin a formal process to examine a possible strategic partner.
Macoun said he did not expect a decision any time soon as the company would first scope all potential candidates in Australia and abroad before entering into an agreement.
