London-based Merchant Capital, an independent Dublin-domiciled UCITS umbrella structure and part of the Merchant House GrPARA_BREAK_SENTINEL_9f8e7d6c

London-based Merchant Capital, an independent Dublin-domiciled UCITS umbrella structure and part of the Merchant House Group PLC, announced this week that it was entering into a strategic partnership with Munich-based Altarius GmbH; a division of Maltese-headquartered Altarius Group. The rationale behind the decision is to help open distribution channels into Austria and Germany for Merchant’s stable of UCITS funds. At present there are three fund managers on the platform – Spain’s leading independent fund distributor, Tressis SV, Hong Kong-based Galaxy Asset Management and most recently, the Merchant Global Resources UCITS Fund managed by Tal Lomnitzer. The agreement complements Merchant’s strategy of growing its clients’ assets and should see the platform registered for distribution across most EU Member States by year-end. It already has distribution agreements in place in the UK, Spain, France, Benelux, Scandinavia and Switzerland. Altarius GmbH will help Merchant’s fund managers gain access to a network of high-net-worth individuals, private banks and institutional investors. President of Altarius Group, Pierre Maliczak, said: “We offer Merchant a strong presence in Germany, a country very difficult to penetrate. In turn, the relationship with Merchant allows us to offer our clients a richer mix of alternative investment opportunities with a commitment to transparency backed by the UCITS brand.” Merchant’s Head of Business Development, George Cadbury, added: “Working with regional partners who have strong relationships with local investors provides the best value-add for our clients.”