Alvarium Investments, formerly LJ Partnership, has acquired Iskander, an asset manager dedicated to large private investors, giving it a presence in France and further strengthening its international reach. This is the fifth transformative acquisition made by the firm in the last eight months, extending its capabilities into the Italian, French and Australasian markets.
The Iskander acquisition comes in the same week that Queensgate Investments, a partnership between the Kow Family, Alvarium Investments, Peterson Group and Dilmun acquired four Grange Hotels in Central London in a deal valued at £1 billion ($1.3 billion).
Alvarium also recently completed its merger with London-based media, consumer and technology boutique Lepe Partners, creating a merchant banking platform (Alvarium Merchant Banking Division). Alvarium Merchant Banking has already supported tech unicorn Tradeshift in an extension of its series E round, taking funds raised to $300 million in the round. Tradeshift is the leader in supply chain payments and marketplaces valued at $1.2bn. Investors in the business include Goldman Sachs Group, PSP Investments and HSBC, among others.
This week, the firm announced that it has rebranded as Alvarium Investments, marking a new chapter that sees it consolidating its existing brands and its position as the leading independent global investment boutique. Over the last 12 months, the firm has extended its reach into new geographies across the United States, Europe and Asia Pacific; and developed new investment strategies in M&A, private equity and technology, to supplement its already strong position in direct real estate, private debt and public markets.
Prior to that, the firm expanded its international investment advisory business by merging with Guggenheim Partners’ investment advisory groups in Hong Kong, Geneva, Lisbon, New York and Miami and the London-based Deloitte & Salisbury Partners investment and consulting teams. This has allowed it to provide unbiased advice mobilizing a global view of research across a wide set of asset classes. These investments have all served to significantly expand the access that Alvarium can offer its clients and shareholders as it seeks to match long-term capital with global investment opportunities.
Alvarium’s biggest backers include Hong Kong’s Peterson Group and Dilmun, a New York family office with ties to the Qatari royal family, according to Bloomberg.
Alvarium’s global expansion plans were given a significant boost in July 2018 when it received an equity investment from Dilmun, which acquired a 40 percent stake in the business. Simultaneously the firm announced the high-profile appointments of co-chairman Ken Costa, the former chairman of Lazard International; and partner Ali Bouzarif, the former head of investment execution at the Qatar Investment Authority.