US fund firm Allspring targets overseas takeovers in race for scale

By Iain Withers

LONDON, June 25 (Reuters) - U.S-based asset manager Allspring Global Investments is seeking overseas acquisitions, including in Britain and elsewhere in Europe, and has informally sounded out potential targets, the company's CEO Kate Burke told Reuters.

Spun out of U.S. bank Wells Fargo in 2021, Allspring manages $625 billion globally, placing it among the ranks of mid-sized asset managers that face competitive pressures to grow and provide a broader range of products for its clients.

Asset management is consolidating fast as several European names have been taken over by U.S. acquirers, including Britain's Schroders that agreed to a $13.5 billion sale to Nuveen.

In an interview, Burke said scale mattered and Allspring was talking to people, although she did not name them and said that no deal was imminent.

"It is one of the areas we're focused on - finding a partner that brings more to the table," she said.

So far, less than 10% of Allspring's assets are managed outside its home market.

Burke said Allspring wanted to buy firms that manage up to $20 billion in assets and potentially more.

The firm's private equity backers GTCR and Reverence Capital were tapping their networks as part of the search, she said, adding target areas included expanding in global equities or opportunistic credit.

Like rivals, Allspring is striving to fend off pressure on its equities funds from cheaper index-trackers offered by giants including BlackRock and Vanguard. 

Burke said, however, its fixed income funds, which make up two-thirds of assets, were resilient.

She also played down any pressure from Allspring's private equity owners to prepare for a sale or float of the business given that it was five years after they bought in, saying her focus was to re-invest for growth.

The firm is relatively unusual in that it has avoided private assets such as credit and infrastructure that have boomed in recent years.

Burke said tightening spreads in private credit had helped to validate her decision to stay away. 

"The idea that we were going to pick the right one and pay a premium for it was just not appealing to me," she said.

(Reporting by Iain Withers; Editing by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes and Barbara Lewis)