BGC Partners Inc. (NASDAQ: BGCP), a global brokerage company servicing the financial and real estate markets, announced today that it has acquired the UK assets and subsidiaries of RP Martin Group, an interdealer brokerage firm known for its strength in European rates and foreign Exchange products.
This move further shows that BGC is determined to grow its institutional position around the world using mergers and acquisitions. Over the past few months, the group has been engaged in a bidding war with the CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) over the brokerage business of GFI Group (NYSE:GFIG), including a hostile takeover attempt in October.
"We are pleased to announce this agreement with RP Martin, one of the oldest money brokers in the UK. We expect it to bolster our European business by taking us into new geographies and complementing and strengthening our existing rates and foreign exchange platforms in the UK and Europe," said Shaun D. Lynn, president of BGC Partners. "This agreement demonstrates our commitment to making accretive acquisitions which can immediately be leveraged on our infrastructure, strengthening our financial services business."
BGC also says it expects to acquire further businesses and assets of RP Martin in Sweden and the Netherlands in 2015, subject to regulatory approvals and certain closing conditions.
RP Martin's customer base encompasses banks and financial institutions as well as local government and other public bodies. Specializing in rates, fixed income, bonds, currency and financial derivatives in the European money and capital markets, RP Martin has approximately 170 brokers and offices in the UK, the Netherlands and Sweden. Earlier this year, RP Martin was fined by the CFTC and the FCA over its traders' role in the Yen Libor Manipulation scandal, totaling $2.2M in penalties.
The assets and subsidiaries acquired, and those BGC expects to acquire in 2015, generated unaudited revenues in excess of $50 million in the financial year ending September 30, 2014. BGC expects the transaction to generate growth immediately and to boost its European rates and foreign exchange platforms. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
