Societe Generale is to buy part of the structured investment business of Bank of America that lends to funds of hedge funds.
Christophe Miann, global head of SG (Socit Gnrale) CIB’s equity derivatives group, said in a statement last week that the deal would help the firm diversify its portfolio of structured alternative investment products, enlarge its US customer base, and widen its distribution to US institutions.
“We determined that continuing funds of funds lending was a non-core activity,” said a Bank of America spokeswoman, Melissa Fox. The bank’s hedge fund-linked structured investments business was set up in early 2002 to offer institutional hedge fund investors lending and structured product offerings with a focus on leverage and principal protection.
She said that 10 front-office staffers would be making the move to the Socit Gnrale affiliate. Bank of America’s structured investment sales, marketing and support staff will join SG’s equity derivatives platform in New York and London. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.