Redwood Asset Management, Ark Funds to Merge

Date: Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Author: Marketwire.com

Redwood Asset Management Inc. and Ark Financial Holdings Ltd. are pleased to announce their recent merger. The combined firm will continue to offer the highest quality mutual fund and alternative strategy funds delivering equity, income and market-neutral strategies to Canadian investors.

"The synergies between our two firms were just too large to ignore," said Redwood CEO Jonathan Clapham. "Our products are complementary, our people mesh well together and with this combination we are better positioned to grow both organically and through acquisition."

There are no changes to the firms' Funds or sub-advisors which include Aston Hill Financial, Lawrence Decter Investment Counsel, SciVest Capital Management, NorthRoad Capital Management and Sentry Select Capital.

"While our companies will consolidate, investors in our Funds won't see any changes on their portfolio statements. We will promote three distinct brands within our fund family. The Redwood Funds, a performance-oriented fund family; core offerings through the Ark Funds and Market-Neutral through the SciVest family of Funds," explained Peter Shippen, the new President of Redwood Asset Management Inc. and founder of Ark Fund Management Ltd.

While clients will not see any changes in the names or management of their Funds, they will benefit from Fund cost synergies and a strengthened compliance and oversight infrastructure. Investment Advisors across Canada will benefit from broader sales coverage and improved marketing tools.

"This is a win-win for investment advisors and their clients. We look forward to continuing our significant growth while establishing ourselves as an attractive business partner for asset managers and portfolio managers who wish to leverage our sales, compliance and distribution infrastructure," Shippen said.