The latest M&A deals in wealth management.

MJ Hudson
MJ Hudson, an international asset management consultancy, has bought a Dutch business that concentrates on the rapidly-expanding area of environmental, social and governance-driven business.

The acquired firm is called Spring Associates Responsible Investment Service. The purchase comes after MJ Hudson in January set up a legal practice in Milan, and acquired the North American and European data and analytics and benchmarking specialist, Amaces, in December last year.

The deal is MJ Hudson’s first acquisition in the ESG sector, although it has been advising its clients on ESG factors for a number of years, and recently produced a guide on implementing ESG policies in private equity.

ESG investing is, as this publication has reported, becoming a fast-growing area, tapping into public worries about man’s impact on the environment, as well as concerns over the plight of the world’s poor and the lack of openness and accountability of companies and governments around the world.

MJ Hudson said that Spring Associates, active since 2005 and based in Amsterdam, has been an “early mover in responsible investing”. Clients consist mainly of private equity fund managers and institutional investors. These clients and a team of 10 professionals, plus certain support staff, will transition to MJ Hudson Spring. The senior executive team will remain in position and the business will trade under the MJ Hudson Spring brand, the firm said.