The Association of British Insurers will merge its investment arm with the Investment Management Association to form a new and as-yet unnamed trade body that will more broadly represent the interests and provide greater oversight of fund managers.
According to a statement from both parties, final discussions are underway which will result in the ABI’s investment activities, including the institutional ‘voting information service’ joining the IMA.
The ABI will continue to represent insurers as asset owners, and the newly-created trade association will recieve a new chairman to replace current IMA chair Dougie Ferrans, who is due to step down this year.
According to a story posted on the Sky News website, which broke the story yesterday evening (10 April), inside sources said an in-principle merger agreement has been ratified by the boards of the respective trade bodies and the yet-to-be-named new organisation will be led by current IMA chief executive Daniel Godfrey.
Sky reports that about a dozen people will move from the ABI to the IMA’s new incarnation, which aims to address issues including a perceived dwindling of clout carried by the ABI.
