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Contact: Mags Andersen
Tel: +44 20 7178 3513

United Kingdom
London, 5 November 2009

Mercer has launched a range of services for European wealth managers, including private banks, family offices, fund platforms and insurance companies. Drawing on 30 years of experience advising the world’s largest institutional investors, the firm now offers advice on a full range of topics that include governance, investment strategy, implementation, portfolio construction and manager research.

Wealth management firms will be able to supplement their internal research with Mercer’s institutional investment manager research and investment knowledge as well as tap into the firm’s analytical tools and applications. Mercer employs more than 70 full-time professional researchers and recently announced the formation of four asset class-based "boutiques" covering equities, bonds, property and alternatives. These boutiques enhance Mercer’s ability not only to provide forward-looking research, with a focus on identifying specialist managers with distinct competitive advantages, but also to give clients direct access to its research specialists.

Michael Curtin, head of Mercer’s European wealth management business, said: “The destruction in wealth that the credit crisis has wrought on private client portfolios has been extremely painful for all but the most risk averse investors. The players in the industry who are most likely to succeed post the financial crisis will re-focus their resources on core strengths and seek expert advice or indeed outsource functions where they do not have a competitive advantage.”

Mr Curtin continued: “As a global investment advisory firm, Mercer is well positioned to understand and advise on the challenges wealth management firms face in building competitive and lasting investment solutions for the increasing demands of their clients. We see a major opportunity to benefit clients through bringing ‘institutional-quality’ research and consulting to the retail world.”

Mercer’s client base has traditionally been dominated by large institutional investors, such as corporate pension plans, endowments and foundations. However, in recent years Mercer has seen an increased appetite from financial services firms for advice to enhance their end-client investment propositions. This development has been most evident in Asia Pacific where Mercer has developed a significant presence amongst wealth managers, but is also increasingly prevalent in Europe.

Tom Geraghty, head of Mercer’s investment consulting business in EMEA, commented: “A number of private banks and retail multi-manager platforms in the UK and Europe already utilise our manager research to find best-in-class products. Others have asked Mercer to help with asset allocation and portfolio construction techniques, as well as the provision of outsourced investment arrangements.

“We believe wealth managers can benefit from our global reach coupled with our independent and long-standing research experience which we apply to identifying the strategies and products most likely to outperform into the future.”

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Contact: Mags Andersen
Mercer Press Office
Tel: +44 20 7178 3513