Aberdeen finalises deal for RBS assets
ABERDEEN Asset Management yesterday said it had finalised a deal for part of troubled Royal Bank of Scotland’s (RBS) business.
Aberdeen paid £84.7m for part of RBS’s fund management arm, which has £13.5bn of assets under management. Under the terms of the deal, Aberdeen has entered into a distribution agreement with the bank to exclusively provide investment products to private bank Coutts, part of the RBS empire, for the next five years.
Around 65 staff are expected to transfer over to Aberdeen in mid-February.
The sell-off marks the beginning of a wave of divestments for RBS, which is now 84 per cent owned by the taxpayer.
It is also looking to sell a 300-strong network of retail branches, its global merchant services unit and its majority stake in joint venture RBS Sempra – a sale which fell victim to US President Obama’s plans to restrict proprietary trading last month. JP Morgan pulled out of buying the stake after Obama’s announcement.