GAM Investments is an independent, pure playasset management group headquartered in Zurich. The Group sells to a wide range of client segments such as institutions, wholesale intermediaries, financial advisers, and private investors. The Group’s investment management business is complemented by a private labelling unit which provides outsourcing for third-party asset managers. Headquartered in Zurich, GAM has been independently listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange since October 2009, following the separation of the former Julius Baer GroupJulius Baer, and is a component of the Swiss Performance Index with the symbol “GAM”. The Group has assets under management of CHF 132.7 billion and employs around 850 staff with offices in 14 countries.
History
GAM was founded as "Global Asset Management" in 1983 by Gilbert de Botton, a pioneer of the "open architecture" asset management model. In 1999, it was acquired by UBS. It remained under the UBS umbrella until Julius Baer acquired GAM and three other private banks from UBS in 2005. GAM acquired Augustus Asset Managers in 2009, and later in the year separated from Julius Baer to form an independent, pure-play asset manager. The spinoff was completed by listing GAM as a separate company in the Swiss SIX exchange. GAM has since then has acquired several asset managers: Arkos Capital in 2012 and Singleterry Mansley Asset Management in 2014. In September 2014 it appointed Alexander Friedman, the CIO of UBS Wealth Management, as the new Group CEO. Later, in 2015, GAM announced the acquisition of the real estate division of Renshaw Bay. In May 2016, GAM entered into an agreement to acquire the investment management business of Taube Hodson Stonex, a London-based global equity investment firm: the acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter 2016, subject to customary regulatory approvals. In June 2016, GAM entered into an agreement to acquire Cantab Capital Partners, an industry-leading multi strategy systematic manager based in Cambridge, UK. This acquisition was closed on 3 October 2016 following regulatory approval. In September 2019 it appointed Peter Sanderson as Group CEO who joined from BlackRock. In May 2019 it was announced that Soros Fund Management has built up a 3% stake in the company. December 2019, GAM was accused of accounting ‘misstatement’ by the Swiss bourse.
