REGULATORS have cleared the way for the merger of Aberdeen Asset Management and Standard Life.
The deal will create the second biggest fund manager in Europe, taking in £670 billion in client cash.
Investors in both companies voted in favour of the merger, which was announced in March and aims to save £200 million a year.
Around 800 jobs are expected to be lost from the current 9,000 global headcount over three years.
Yesterday, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced it will not refer the move to an in-depth investigation.
The tie-up is expected to be completed in August, with the new firm to be called Standard Life Aberdeen and led by Keith Skeoch, chief executive of Standard Life, and his Martin Gilbert, who holds the same role at Aberdeen, which he co-founded. A 16-member board will also be appointed.
The decision helps pave the way for the deal’s completion in August, though some regulatory hurdles are yet to be cleared.
The companies only confirmed talks about a potential merger in March and, reacting to the watchdog’s decision in a joint statement yesterday, they said: “Standard Life and Aberdeen note the announcement today by the CMA that it has completed its review of their proposed merger and has cleared the transaction unconditionally.
“The transaction is currently expected to complete on August 14, 2017, subject to remaining regulatory approvals.”
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