Slew of Mergers Continues to Shake up Industry

As the industry digests announcements of mergers involving large firms such as Franklin Templeton, Legg Mason, Invesco and Oppenheimer, more combinations are coming down the line. The recent news that Morgan Stanley will acquire Eaton Vance was quickly followed by the announcement that Wells Fargo would be putting its asset management business up for sale. A report in Barron’s noted that bids for the Wells Fargo business are due within the next several days. The Barron’s report also noted that Société Général has reportedly put Lyxor, Europe’s third largest ETF provider, up for sale. Additionally, JP Morgan is also said to be considering buying Waddell Reed.