Norwegian bank-owned asset manager SpareBank 1 Forvaltning has acquired SR-Forvaltning and will use its portfolio as a base to launch its own funds.

"The SR-Bank funds will be replaced by SpareBank 1 funds. It is unclear how the new funds will look, but they will be based on the funds currently offered by SR-Forvaltning. One thing that is clear is that the main responsibility for the funds will remain at the current SR-Forvaltning premises in Stavanger," says CEO of SpareBank 1 Forvaltning, Rønni Møller Pettersen, to AMWatch's Norwegian sister media  FinansWatch.

Two index funds will be launched under the SpareBank 1 brand.

SR-Forvaltning is currently a subsidiary of SpareBank 1 SR-Bank, and in practice, the sale means it is moving to become a subsidiary of SpareBank 1 Forvaltning. SpareBank 1 Forvaltning AS currently consists of the subsidiaries Odin Forvaltning AS, SpareBank 1 Kapitalforvaltning AS and SpareBank 1 Verdipapirservice AS.

SR-Forvaltning currently has an AUM of NOK 16bn (EUR 1.6bn). When it becomes part of Sparebank 1 Forvaltning, the latter will have an AUM of NOK 160bn (EUR 16bn).

Not planning to merge Odin and SR-Forvaltning

It is not clear whether SR-Forvaltning will change its name, but Møller Pettersen states that the new SpareBank 1 funds will exist alongside the Odin fund offering.

"By launching the SpareBank 1 funds, we are using our brand name, which is well-known in Norway. We have seen that knowledge of savings has increased in Norway and we want to offer our clients good savings products," Møller Pettersen says.

Will it be a problem for Odin that the SpareBank 1 name is more well-known?

"No, I don't think so. Odin is a reputable company which has generated good returns for 30 years. We think that the new funds will have a good effect for all SpareBank 1 Forvaltning subsidiaries," he says.

Big ambitions

Møller Pettersen explains that SpareBank 1 Forvaltning wants to take bigger market shares within private savings.

"We manage two of every ten kroner Norwegian households have invested in Norwegian equity funds. With SR-Forvaltning on board, our ambition is to create even better and more attractive products and services that capitalize on the large scale advantages this size gives," he says.

(This article was provided by our Norwegian sister media, FinansWatch.no)

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