The Fortis/Dryden Deal: What does it Mean For Both Firms

Contributing Editor

1 July 2005

Fortis, in acquiring Dryden, has bought a significant wealth manager which will give it a presence in the UK wealth management market, increase its business in Asia and add to its offshore muscle in Switzerland and Monaco. The Belgian-Dutch financial firm gains also a sizeable chunk of managed assets - $11 billion, according to a statement yesterday from Fortis. This will add considerably to Fortis’s current level of assets under management in its MeesPierson wealth management business. “The purchase also gives us an extension of our offering in wealth management,” Yvan de Cock, chief executive of Fortis Bank in the UK, told WealthBriefing. “MeesPierson has an open architecture approach, whereas Dryden is a specialist in active investments.” But Mr de Cock said the most important thing about the acquisition was gaining a foothold in the UK wealth management business. “To buy a wealth management team in London with a sizeable team was uppermost in our strategy.” There are around 160 staff in the London office of Dryden. Fortis also gains a presence in Monaco and Taiwan wealth management sector for the first time. For Dryden the fit makes sense “from a strategic and cultural sense”, according to Carol Robbins, chief executive of Dryden, who spoke to WealthBriefing yesterday. “I believe the entrepreneurial spirit of both firms is a major plus factor in the acquisition.” Ms Robbins will not be staying on with Dryden, but remain at Prudential, as predicted by WealthBriefing last week. The Dryden chief executive said Dryden would be re-branded “along the lines of the current moves by Fortis.” Jean-Paul Voltron the recently appointed chief executive is moving the various parts of the Fortis business to a “one-brand” strategy. This will also probably mean the end of the MeesPierson brand within a year, say analysts. Redundancies are expected at Dryden where there is duplication of job functions. “There will be duplication and every effort will be made within the Fortis group to accommodate those who are surplus to requirements in the wealth management section,” said Mr de Cock. But he added: “We’re not buying a company to make people redundant.” Already there have been a few senior members of the Dryden team in London who have left the firm — a couple to stockbroker Charles Stanley and one announced today at Schroders. Further staff are expected to leave, according to headhunters.