Alantra acquires KPMG’s global loan portfolio advisory business to create the European leader in banking portfolio advisory

• Alantra has acquired the Portfolio Solutions Group business from KPMG UK, which specialises in advising financial institutions in relation to non-performing and non-core banking assets globally. Closing of the transaction is only subject to the application of TUPE[1], expected for early August.
• The Portfolio Solutions Group was established during the Asian Financial Crisis and has been headquartered in London since 2008. The team comprises over 35 dedicated professionals and has led more than 100 transactions across 30 countries, with a combined deal value in excess of €180bn since 2014. Current live mandates exceed a face value of €16bn.
• Alantra’s existing portfolio advisory business, headquartered in Madrid and comprising 40 dedicated professionals, has led 80 transactions in five countries for a total volume of over €65bn since its incorporation in 2014.
• The joint team, to be branded as Alantra Corporate Portfolio Advisory (CPA), will become the leading portfolio advisory unit in Europe, with c.70 seasoned professionals dedicated to transaction execution, structuring, pricing, modelling and data enhancement in relation to loan portfolios and servicing platforms. The team will be led by Joel Grau, Andrew Jenke and Nick Colman, together with other managing directors based in London, Madrid, Milan, Athens, Dublin and Lisbon.
• According to the ECB[2], financial institutions on the continent had a non-performing loans exposure worth over €1 trillion on their books at the end of 2017. Alantra CPA will be in a unique position to help in the ongoing rehabilitation of European bank balance sheets, whilst serving the considerable needs of both banks and funds seeking to deploy liquidity and manage balance sheet risk.
• Alantra and KPMG will be collaborating going forward in the execution of the existing engagements and in future business opportunities in the UK.
• Alantra CPA will be part of the Alantra Group, a global independent investment banking and asset management firm with local presence in over 20 countries across four continents. The company has been listed since 2015 and has a market cap of over €550mn.
• With this transaction, Alantra reinforces its presence in Europe’s most important financial market adding portfolio advisory to its current M&A, debt advisory and capital markets[3] Alantra’s London investment banking division will consist of over 180 seasoned professionals.
• “This acquisition is hugely beneficial for our clients in many ways. First, because this addition will consolidate Alantra as a full-fledged and innovative advisor to banking institutions and global funds. Also, because it demonstrates once again the multiple benefits of the partnership model to attract high quality professionals”, Santiago Eguidazu, Executive Chairman at Alantra, said.
• Joel Grau, Managing Partner at Alantra CPA, said: “We believe this transaction is a key milestone in our strategic plan of building an international business that is able to provide an independent and credible service in the credit transactions market. Andrew, Nick and the team have a great reputation in the market and we are convinced that with this deal Alantra CPA will become the market leading advisor for credit portfolio transactions across Europe”.
• Andrew Jenke, who is joining Alantra CPA as Managing Partner, said: “We are pleased to reach this agreement with Alantra to build the largest dedicated credit transaction advisory business in Europe. Alantra’s global presence, financial strength and long-term vision thanks to its partnership model, will help us provide a stronger service to our fund and banking clients across Europe”.

[1] The acronym “TUPE” stands ’Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981’.

[2] https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/banking/statistics/html/index.en.html

[3] The activity of capital markets of Alantra is carried out in the UK through N+1 Singer, where Alantra holds a stake of 27%.