Aberdeen engaged in private negotiations for the sale of financial advice platform Finimize

Aberdeen in Exclusive Talks to Sell Finimize

In a significant move under the leadership of its new CEO, Jason Windsor, Aberdeen, a FTSE-250 asset management group, is in exclusive negotiations to sell Finimize, an investment insights platform it acquired four years ago for £87m. The exact terms of the sale, including the potential buyer's identity and the sale price, have not been disclosed.

The talks with the buyer, whose identity is currently unknown, have been ongoing for at least a month according to insiders. This potential sale would be another step in the reshaping of the company, which was formed in 2017 through the merger of Aberdeen Asset Management and Standard Life. The Abrdn branding, introduced as a result of this merger, was ditched by Mr. Windsor last year.

The market capitalization of the company, after this reshaping, is currently £3.6bn. It's important to note that investors were left underwhelmed by the merger, which originally valued the enlarged company at about £11bn.

As of Friday, Aberdeen shares closed at 194.7p, showing a 30% increase over the past year. However, the potential sale of Finimize and its impact on the broader investment industry, as well as its subscribers, has not been addressed in the article.

It's worth mentioning that Finimize charges an annual subscription fee for investment tips and had over one million subscribers to its newsletter at the time of Aberdeen's acquisition. The list of parties that had previously held talks with Aberdeen about a deal for Finimize includes Brave Bison, a London-listed marketing group.

However, Aberdeen has declined to comment on the ongoing talks regarding the sale of Finimize. The exact timeline for the sale, including when a deal might be finalized, is not specified in the article. This development underscores the strategic direction Mr. Windsor is taking to reposition Aberdeen in the competitive asset management market.