AFA Systems Completes Acquisition Of SAMS

AFA Systems plc, the AIM listed provider of software to banks and fund managers, has acquired Strategic Asset Management Solutions Limited (SAMS). The Board of AFA Systems announced that it had entered into a conditional agreement for the acquisition of

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AFA Systems plc, the AIM listed provider of software to banks and fund managers, has acquired Strategic Asset Management Solutions Limited (SAMS).

The Board of AFA Systems announced that it had entered into a conditional agreement for the acquisition of SAMS on 7 November. As a result of the Shareholder’s approval at an Extraordinary General Meeting held earlier today, the acquisition is now completed.

AFA Systems says its strategy has always been to complement its organic software product development with strategic acquisitions. In recent years, the Group has built up a portfolio of products for the banking and asset management sectors by both methods, and the acquisition of SAMS is consistent with this strategy.

SAMS specialises in the provision of business solutions systems and services to fund managers, through its Socrates suite of products. Socrates provides performance information to the managers of equity and fixed income portfolios and their customers. This information includes daily valuation methodology, stock level attribution, customised benchmarks and risk calculations. SAMS’ customers are leading European asset management organisations.

With the increased need for asset management companies to comply with the Global Investment Performance Standards (“GIPS”), which are being implemented internationally, AFA believes there is a growing demand for products like Socrates from the asset management industry.

The Socrates products are complementary to, but not competitive with, AFA’s existing suite of products for the asset management industry, AIMS and Interlink, as they address different requirements of the same customers. Whereas AFA’s AIMS and Interlink products are concerned principally with the processing of asset management transactions, the Socrates product range provides detailed analysis regarding the performance of the underlying assets within an asset manager’s portfolio.

“I am delighted to announce this important acquisition, which we believe will increase AFA Systems’ presence in the asset management industry and will also allow AFA to offer a more complete suite of complementary products to its customers, says Mike Hart, Chairman & Chief Executive of AFA. ” SAMS’s customers include several major European asset managers, bringing a number of opportunities for the enlarged Group.

AFA employs approximately 150 people and is headquartered in London with international offices in Cape Town, Belfast and Hong Kong.

AIMS Front & Back Office developed to support investment operations such as asset allocation, modelling exercises, funds re-balancing, order management, compliance, NAV & performance attribution, unit trust pricing, confirmations, settlements, corporate events, cash management, reporting, STP using FIX protocols for communicating with brokers and other parties.

Interlink Structured Funds, which provides the ability to define new, innovative investment products (multi-manager investment products, private wealth & common wealth products etc.) in a structured, unitised manner.

The first implementation of the Socrates product was completed in 1998 and since that time the product has been enhanced to include daily stock level attribution and fixed income attribution.

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