River and Mercantile has received a number of offers from businesses looking to acquire its fiduciary division, known as Solutions.
In an announcement responding to press speculation, published this morning (August 10), River and Mercantile said it had received a number of approaches from “external parties expressing interest in acquiring its Solutions business”.
It has appointed Lazard and Fenchurch Advisory Partners to advise the board on any move.
The statement said: “Discussions are at an early stage and there is no assurance that a transaction will arise.
“Further information will be announced in due course as appropriate.”
According to Sky News, it is thought the sale process has been underway for weeks.
This is the first big move made by the firm since fund manager Martin Gilbert joined its board at the start of this year.
Gilbert, former chief executive and co-founder of Aberdeen Asset Management, was appointed deputy chairman of the board in January after he stood down as chairman of Aberdeen Standard Investments after 37 years.
Gilbert is also chairman of AssetCo which acquired 5m shares in River and Mercantile at a total cost of £10.4m earlier this year.
amy.austin@ft.com
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