Schroders has agreed a £9.9bn takeover by US investor Nuveen, ending two centuries of family ownership of the historic British asset management group. The deal, announced on Thursday, will create one of the world's biggest fund managers, controlling approximately $2.5tn (£1.8tn) of assets.
The takeover ends 200 years of independence for the group, which will keep London as its largest office with about 3,100 workers and retain the Schroders branding. However, the deal removes another FTSE 100 company from the London Stock Exchange, adding to concerns about the UK market's competitiveness amid recent delistings by firms such as Just Eat, Flutter, and Tui.
Founded in 1804 by Hamburg financier Johann Schröder, the company began as a merchant bank in London and listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1959. It sold its investment banking arm in 2000 to focus on asset management. The Anglo-German banking dynasty, now headed by heiress Leonie Schroder, is estimated to have a net worth of £3.93bn, according to the Sunday Times rich list.
Schroders has been cutting costs after a plunge in its share price, announcing a £150m cost-cutting drive last year to boost performance amid pressure from US rivals like BlackRock and Vanguard. Chief executive Richard Oldfield, who took the helm in November 2024, has streamlined the business, ending a joint venture with Lloyds Banking Group and pulling out of Brazil and Indonesia.
Oldfield said: 'In a competitive landscape where scale can help deliver benefits, in Nuveen we see a partner that shares our values, respects the culture we have built and will create exciting opportunities for our clients and people.' The deal values the Schroder family's 44% stake at £4.4bn, at 612p a share, a more than one-third premium on the closing price on Wednesday. The transaction is expected to complete in the fourth quarter of 2026, pending shareholder approval.
