The proposed merger between Rothschild & Co and Compagnie Financière Martin Maurel to create one of France’s leading independent private banks announced last June is now successfully complete. The merger will build upon the relationship that has existed between the Rothschild and the Maurel families for three generations. The operational integration of the two private banks Rothschild Patrimoine and Banque Martin Maurel should be finalized in the second half of 2017 so as to create a combined group operating under the name Rothschild Martin Maurel.
Rothschild Martin Maurel will be a leading independent family controlled private banking group operating in France, Belgium and Monaco, with a distinctive market positioning targeted notably at entrepreneurs. The group will have combined AUM of €34 billion, offer a particularly broad wealth management, asset management, financing and corporate finance advisory service and enjoy a greater geographic footprint in France.
Prior to this transaction, Rothschild & Co held 2.3% of Compagnie Financière Martin Maurel while the latter held 0.90% in Rothschild & Co. In accordance with the terms of the protocol signed in May 2016, the majority of the transaction was in the form of an exchange of shares on the basis of a parity of 126 Rothschild & Co shares per Compagnie Financière Martin Maurel share. The Maurel family received shares and reinforced its presence in the extended family concert of Rothschild & Co, of which it was already a member. The transaction was financed 62% by issuing 6.1 million new shares and 38% by external bank facilities of €88.3 million. The significant non-family shareholders of Compagnie Financière Martin Maurel had already agreed to tender their shares to the cash offer in accordance with the terms of the initial protocol.
David de Rothschild, Chairman of Rothschild & Co, said, “The combination of two family controlled businesses that share the same history, the same culture and the same vision of their industry, creates an outstanding company and we are delighted to celebrate this merger today. The transaction is in line with our strategy to accelerate our growth in private wealth and of focusing on annuity style revenues. I am pleased that the Maurel family will maintain its involvement alongside the Rothschild family in the new group.”
«Our two groups embody a family model that distinguish and strengthen us when compared to our competitors. This combination allows us to broaden the range of our offerings to all our clients, especially entrepreneurs, thanks to a strengthened and broader range of asset and wealth management products and services,»underlined Bernard Maurel.
Lucie Maurel Aubert said, «We will be able to develop these offers in Paris and also, thanks to our strong regional presence, in Lyon, Marseille, Aix en Provence, Grenoble and Monaco, while adding the skills of Rothschild and Co in financial advisory and merchant banking. This alliance will enrich our expertise benefitting our customers and our teams and enabling us to meet the challenges of the future with confidence”.
The listing of Compagnie Financière Martin Maurel’s shares has been suspended. With effect from 4 January 2017, the new shares of Rothschild & Co are admitted to trading on compartment A of Euronext Paris and the shares of Compagnie Financière Martin Maurel is delisted from the Marché libre of Euronext Paris.