Aberdeen and Standard Life merge to become one of the world’s largest investment companies

Aberdeen Asset Management PLC and Standard Life plc merged today to become Standard Life Aberdeen plc, one of the world’s largest investment companies. The group’s investment business, Aberdeen Standard Investments, will manage £583 billion of assets.

Expert views

Keith Skeoch, co-Chief Executive commented: “Today marks the culmination of many months of hard work and preparation by our business, and the beginning of a new chapter in our history as Standard Life Aberdeen plc. Our leadership team is in place and we have full business readiness from day one.”

Martin Gilbert, co-Chief Executive, added: “As ever, our priority remains the delivery of strong investment performance and the highest level of client service. The merger deepens and broadens our investment capabilities and gives us a stronger and more diverse range of investment management skills, as well as significant scale across asset classes and geographies.”

Darius McDermott, managing director of FundCalibre, concluded: “It is early days yet, but from a corporate view it makes sense. In this era of increasing cost, regulatory burden and fee compression, there is clearly a move towards finding more economies of scale. With more than 100 fund management companies in the UK, there is certainly room for more merger and acquisition in the sector, without it impacting consumer choice.

“It will take time for the dust to settle, but any changes to funds and managers should be visible within about 6-12 months’ time. We will keep FundCalibre users updated on any changes that impact the seven funds that are currently Elite Rated.”