7 July 2021
- The management company deposits its twelve investment funds and four voluntary contribution pension schemes, with €670 million in assets under management, in Cecabank, which has almost €200 billion in deposited assets
Madrid – 7 July 2021
Cecabank, a Spanish bank specialising in Securities Services, Treasury Management, Payments and Digital Solutions, has become the new depositary of Bankoa Gestión, having received the investment funds and voluntary contribution pension schemes in a transaction that was completed on 28 June.
This transfer has taken place following the acquisition of Bankoa by Abanca Corporación Bancaria. Thus, the Corporation's 2.28 billion in funds have already been deposited with Cecabank.
Bankoa Gestión joins the industry trend of separating depositary activity from marketing and management by transferring its twelve investment funds and four voluntary contribution pension schemes, with total assets of €670 million, to Cecabank. The separation of depositary activity from marketing and management allows stakeholders in collective investment vehicles to have access to greater professionalism and security. In fact, this separation is becoming a market standard. Successive legislative reforms in the European Union in pursuit of continent-wide harmonisation of the asset management industry and investor protection have encouraged the search for and appointment of independent depositaries.
With this new transaction, Cecabank consolidates its leadership in Securities Services as the largest independent Spanish depositary for collective investment institutions, pension funds, voluntary contribution pension schemes and venture capital firms. It has more than €197 billion of assets on deposit. It is also the leading national provider of settlement and custody services, with over €230 billion in assets under custody. It actively collaborates with management companies on regulatory, operational and business issues.
For its part, Bankoa Gestión is advancing in its customer service thanks to this agreement, by prioritising the management and marketing of assets and committing to independence in the control and supervision of these assets.
For Aurora Cuadros, Corporate Director of Cecabank's Operational Services Division: 'This operation endorses the advantages for our customers of our independence and neutrality in the depositary business, and consolidates and expands our leadership in Securities Services. This consolidates our strategic approach of becoming the leading depositary in Spain and Portugal and becoming a benchmark partner by providing value in the post-trading chain'.
'Having Cecabank as a depositary is a great leap forward for us. A depositary is much more than a mere custodian of securities, it is a long-term partner for a management company. And our partner is the market leader', said Javier Hoyos, Director of Bankoa Gestión.
