Financial services provider Apex Group on Tuesday said it has closed its acquisition of the data and analytics division of troubled London-based asset services provider MJ Hudson Plc. The deal includes part of MJ Hudson’s business in Luxembourg. The acquisition of the firm’s regulated business units remains remains to be closed as it is still subject to regulatory approval, Apex said.
In April, Apex agreed to pay 15 million pounds for MJ Hudson’s data and analytics services and 25 million pounds for its services business, according to a filing to the London Stock Exchange. The bulk of this amount - 13 million pounds - relates to its Irish business. MJ Hudson’s Luxembourg, Guernsey and Jersey services businesses were valued at 4 million pounds each.
The deal, announced on 11 April, followed the suspension of MJ Hudson CFO Peter Connell and the resignation of its CEO Matthew Hudson in February and months of discussions over its audit statement, which saw auditor EY quit over “lost trust”, according to the Reuters news agency. MJ Hudson was only listed on London’s AIM market in December 2019, when it had a market value of just below 100 million pounds.
Luxembourg, Ireland and the Channel Islands
Apex said that MJ Hudson’s Data & Analytics business, with activities in Luxembourg, Ireland and the Channel Islands, will be rebranded under the Apex Group banner. It includes ESG, custodian bank benchmarking and quantitative solutions as well as Investor Relations and Marketing support, serving approximately 80 billion euro under management.
“We are pleased to welcome the clients and employees of these business divisions of MJ Hudson which will deepen our service offering and will add complementary solutions, including in the fast-growing ESG space,” said Apex founder and group CEO Peter Hughes in a statement.
“As we drive positive change in the industry, we will continue to evolve our pioneering ESG solutions to be the best possible partner for our clients; the addition of MJ Hudson’s ESG & Sustainability business further reinforces our position as a leading service provider. We look forward to updating the market on the successful conclusion of our acquisition of MJ Hudson’s regulated business activities including ManCo solutions, in due course.”
Apex said its ownership will provide additional growth capital, resources and global reach, which will benefit existing MJ Hudson clients. This is the latest in a series of strategic acquisitions for Apex Group, including successful integrations of Sanne Group and Maitland, which continue to expand the Group’s single-source solution, local presence and technology platforms available to clients.