SYDNEY: Magellan Financial Group Ltd agreed to buy Barrenjoey Capital Partners in a deal that values the upstart Australian investment bank at about A$1.62bil (US$1.1bil).
As part of the deal, Magellan will buy about 10% in Barrenjoey from Barclays, according to a statement yesterday.
Brian Benari will become group chief executive officer (CEO), while Sophia Rahmani will continue as chief executive officer of Magellan Investment Partners.
Matthew Grounds and Guy Fowler, the former UBS Group AG bankers who help found Barrenjoey, will continue as co-executive chairs.
“Five years ago, a group of talented professionals came together with a vision to build an independent, Australian-headquartered financial services firm that could compete at the highest levels,” said Barrenjoey chairman David Gonski.
“Joining forces provides an ideal platform for our next phase of growth together as a top tier financial services group, while ensuring our clients and our people remain at the centre of everything we do.”
Since opening in 2020, Barrenjoey has grown to span corporate and strategic advisory work, capital markets underwriting and research.
The firm opened a Hong Kong office last year, following an Abu Dhabi premises the year before.
The deal is expected to complete in the second quarter of this year. It follows Macquarie Asset Management’s A$11.7bil acquisition of Qube Holdings Ltd, which gave Australia’s dealmakers a much needed lift after a tricky 2025.
The merger with Barrenjoey “marks a transformative step” for Magellan, “bringing together two highly complementary businesses to create an Australian financial services group with meaningful scale and breadth,” said Magellan chair Andrew Formica.
A former CEO of Jupiter Asset Management and co‑CEO of Janus Henderson, Formica brought three decades of global funds‑management experience to Magellan when he joined the board in 2023, later stepping in as executive chair during a transition period.
Under his stewardship, Magellan has focused on rebuilding client trust, tightening strategy, and restoring operational clarity. — Bloomberg
