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Fulcrum Group and Butterfield Fund services merger

Posted: 08 August 2008

Fulcrum Group, backed by global private equity firm, 3i and Butterfield Fund Services (BFS), has agreed to merge the two businesses to create Butterfield Fulcrum Group (BFG).

Headquartered in Bermuda, BFG will have approximately 400 employees in 10 locations across 9 countries. The firm will have close to $100 billion in assets under administration from nearly 1,000 hedge funds, fund of funds, private equity and institutional investment management clients. BFG is expected to rank amongst the top 10 independent alternative asset fund administration companies in the world.

Butterfield will retain a substantial equity stake and 3i, an existing shareholder in Fulcrum Group, will own a majority interest in Butterfield Fulcrum Group.

"This is an enormous win-win for both companies that will leverage sales and operational capabilities of Fulcrum Group, and the tremendous customer relationships and global reputation of Butterfield Bank Group." said Akshaya Bhargava, Chief Executive Officer of Fulcrum Group. He added, "Our vision is to create the best fund administration company in the world."

Alan Thompson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Butterfield, echoed Mr. Bhargava's sentiments, saying "We believe that the merger of these two highly successful businesses will result in significant business growth, more services for fund administration customers and career opportunities for employees. In BFG, Butterfield and Fulcrum are creating a company that will have a powerful presence in fund administration globally."

Mr. Bhargava will become the Chief Executive Officer of BFG and Jill Considine, current Chairman of the Fulcrum Group, will be the Chairman of the BFG Board. Mr. Thompson and Graham Brooks, Executive Vice President, International at Butterfield will also join the BFG Board, along with other representatives from Fulcrum and 3i.

Representatives of both Fulcrum and Butterfield noted that ensuring seamless delivery of client services during the integration is a top priority for BFG. "Clients will continue to receive the same high levels of service and from the same relationship centres while the two companies are being integrated," said Mr. Bhargava. "We expect integration to be completely seamless from a client point of view."

Merrill Lynch acted as a third-party adviser to Fulcrum Group on the agreement, while UBS Investment Bank advised Butterfield.

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