InvestmentsDec 19 2014

RIT Capital Partners in deal for GVO Investment Management

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RIT Capital Partnershas agreed a deal to acquire GVO Investment Management (GVOIM) from Hansa Aktiengesellschaft subject to regulatory approval.

GVOIM was acquired by Swiss fund manager Hansa last year, which led to a reshuffle of senior management in May, with Jamie Seaton being appointed chief executive of the company.

The specialist fund group, previously known as SVG Investment Managers before its rebrand in November last year, runs the £243.9m GVO UK Focus fund, an Irish listed Oeic managed by Mr Seaton. It also manages the £102m Strategic Equity Capital investment trust, which is run by Stuart Widdowson.

Both products have performed well with the GVO UK Focus fund outperforming both the IMA UK All Companies sector and the FTSE All Share index across one, three, five and 10 years, including a five year return of 118.19 per cent, according to FE Analytics data.

Meanwhile the investment trust has outstripped the AIC UK Smaller Companies sector average across all time periods, with its five year return of 286.23 per cent more than double the sector average of 110 per cent.

In a statement RIT Capital Partners, which is an investment trust chaired by Lord Rothschild, stated it had entered into an agreement to acquire GVOIM, and as part of the deal it would also acquire Hansa’s holding in the Strategic Equity Capital investment trust “conditional upon the transaction’s regulatory approval”.