Australian Wealth Management (AWM) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Credit Suisse Asset Management Australia to act as trustee for $340 million of assets.
Under the terms of the arrangement which are subject to further due diligence, Credit Suisse will transfer the trusteeship of its three pooled super trusts (PSTs) and change the responsible entity of 11 of its non-super private investment funds to AWM in the third quarter of 2008.
Credit Suisse will however retain ultimate control over the investment decisions in relation to the underlying assets of the trusts.
"In order to deliver investment excellence, our principal focus needs to be implementing our investment strategies across a range of asset classes," Credit Suisse head and executive vice chairman Keith Ince said.
As a result of the new agreement, Credit Suisse clients can benefit from AWM's administrator expertise and the continuity of the Credit Suisse investment management functionality, he said.
The complexity associated with fund administration has resulted in an increasing number of providers choosing to transfer this aspect of their operations to administrators, according to AWM managing director Chris Kelaher.
"We are delighted that Credit Suisse has chosen to partner with AWM," he said.
This strategic transaction follows AWM's recent purchase of 70 per cent of the Ord Minnett Group, a wealth management group incorporating full-service stock broking and financial planning.
The number of clients AWM services around Australia is now more than 385,000.
