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Amundi Confirms Interest In UniCredit's Pioneer

Amisha Mehta Deputy Editor 20 October 2016

Amundi Confirms Interest In UniCredit's Pioneer

Paris-headquartered asset manager Amundi has its sights on a European investment house.

Amundi has confirmed its interest in acquiring Pioneer Investments, the asset management arm of Italy’s UniCredit.

It confirmed its interest “following rumours in the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero concerning the submission of a non-binding offer for the purchase of Pioneer by Amundi,” Amundi said in a statement.

However, the company denied the €4 billion ($4.39 billion) Pioneer valuation attributed to it in media reports.

Amundi said its interest in Pioneer is consistent with the growth strategy presented at the time of its initial public offering late last year, which raised €1.501 billion on the Euronext stock exchange in Paris.

“Amundi reiterates that its acquisition policy adheres to strict financial criteria, in particular, a return on investment greater than 10 per cent over a three-year horizon,” it said.

The company is not the only one bidding for Pioneer. Italy's Poste Italiane is reportedly in talks with a group of banks to raise up to €2 billion in financing to support its own offer. Other competitors for Pioneer include Australia's Macquarie and the UK’s Aberdeen Asset Management, according to sources cited by Reuters.

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