Apex Group has closed the acquisition of Brazilian fund administrator BRL Trust Investimentos, as it becomes the largest independent fund services firm in the region.
Clients of BRL Trust can now access Apex’s global single-source solution, which also includes custody, corporate services, depositary and ManCo services.
The acquisition of BRL Trust expands Apex’s growing presence in the Latin American market, with an addition of 160 new employees and a new office in São Paulo.
Apex claims that the addition further supplements its local market private equity expertise, while adding liquid asset servicing capabilities for Brazil.
BRL Trust serves a wide range of clients including large international institutional investors, sovereign wealth funds, private equity firms, as well as prominent domestic investors including asset managers, single and multi-family offices, and other professional investors.
The BRL Trust business adds $44.4 billion in assets under administration and $37.1 billion in assets under custody across 560 international and Brazilian investment funds.
“With the acquisition of BRL, Apex now becomes the largest independent services provider in the Brazilian market. The close of this acquisition means we can now support our clients, whether they are looking to raise, operate and invest funds in, and between, Brazil and the international markets. We are delighted to expand our footprint to Brazil so that Apex continues to be the global provider of choice for managers on every continent,” said Peter Hughes, founder and CEO of Apex Group.
The acquisition of BRL Trust falls in line with Apex’s intent to acquire MAF, the fund administration business of the Brazil-based Banco Modal, with regulatory approval expected in the third quarter of this year.
“We see significant opportunity for further growth both domestically as one of the leading fiduciary service providers in Brazil, and internationally. As part of the Apex Group we can now offer our clients the broadest depth and range of services in the industry as we benefit from being part of an established, global financial services group, with over 50 offices worldwide,” said Danilo Barbieri, co-chief executive officer, BRL Trust Investimentos.