Old Mutual to rebrand and list wealth unit

Reuters – Anglo-South African insurer Old Mutual said on Wednesday it was on course to list its wealth unit in 2018 and announced a series of planned changes to the brand.

Once the separation from Old Mutual is complete, the wealth management company will become Quilter, it said in a statement, returning to a brand that dates back to 1771.

Old Mutual acquired investment manager Quilter Cheviot in 2015.

Old Mutual, which has a primary share listing on the London Stock Exchange, said in 2016 it planned to break itself up into four parts, blaming regulatory changes for making the company too complex to run in its current form.

It plans to list the wealth unit as soon as possible after the announcement in March of its annual results for 2017.

Divisions

Old Mutual said it was splitting the wealth business into two divisions: Advice and Wealth Management and Wealth Platforms.

Advice and Wealth Management will include UK financial adviser network Intrinsic, which will be rebranded as Quilter Financial Planning; the multi-asset business, which will become Quilter Investors; and Quilter Cheviot, which will retain its name.

Wealth Platforms will include the UK Platform, which will become Quilter Wealth Solutions, and Old Mutual Wealth’s International business, which will become Quilter International.

The rebranding will take place over two years.

OMGI

As part of the break-up, Old Mutual is also looking to sell part of Old Mutual Global Investors (OMGI), the asset management business of Old Mutual Wealth.

The company said it was still conducting a review of the single-strategy fund unit run by veteran British investor Richard Buxton, including “internal and external structures”, but had yet to make a decision.