Equiom buys Luxembourg fund services firm Carey

Private equity-backed trust and company services firm Equiom has bought Carey Luxembourg, the latest in a string of fund administration takeovers in the Grand Duchy.

Corporate and fund administration business Carey's 18 staff members will join Equiom with immediate effect and continue to operate from the same office location.

"It has been a goal of Equiom's to establish a presence in Luxembourg for quite some time, and now that we have achieved this, we can really make our mark in Europe," said Equiom's global chief executive Sheila Dean.

“It has been a goal of Equiom's to establish a presence in Luxembourg for quite some time

Carey specialises in the incorporation and central administration of Luxembourg unregulated and regulated alternative investment vehicles, tax reporting for alternative funds and private wealth.

Barry Black, managing director of Carey Luxembourg, said: "With the backing of a larger firm, we will have the ability to provide a consistently high standard of service, expanding into new areas offering various personal wealth protection services."

It will rebrand as Equoim by the end of the month.

Headquartered in the Isle of Man, Equiom is backed by UK middle-market private equity firm LDC, which took control of the company through a management buyout in 2013 for £20 million-40 million (€23 million-46 million), according to LDC's website.

Since then, Equoim has completed 12 buy-and-build acquisitions with £22 million of additional funding from LDC, the website states, with recent deals in Monaco and Malta.

The company, which now has combined revenues of more than £50 million, was reportedly put up for sale in 2017, but no deal resulted.

The Carey acquisition follows a handful of fund administration takeovers in Luxembourg this month.

Earlier this month, Bermuda-based fund administrator Apex Group agreed to buy German private bank MM Warburg & CO's asset management and servicing business in Luxembourg.

Jersey-based services provider Ocorian also completed the acquisition of MAS International this month, while SGG Group announced the acquisition of First Names Group in December last year.