Alliance Trust PLC - Sale of Alliance Trust Sav...

22 October 2018

This announcement contains inside information

Alliance Trust PLC

 (“Alliance Trust” or “the Trust”)

Alliance Trust announces the sale of Alliance Trust Savings

Alliance Trust today announces that it has agreed the sale of its subsidiary company Alliance Trust Savings (ATS) to Interactive Investor (“ii”), the UK’s second largest investment platform.

Lord Smith of Kelvin, Alliance Trust’s Chairman, commented:

“The Board is pleased to announce the sale of ATS to Interactive Investor. The two businesses are highly complementary and ATS customers, many of whom are Alliance Trust shareholders, will benefit from Interactive Investor’s similar low flat-fee structure, as well as its increased scale and focus. A key consideration for the Board was a commitment to maintaining ATS' presence in Scotland. We are therefore very pleased that ii plans to invest in ATS’ Dundee operating centre.”

Richard Wilson, CEO of ii, commented:

"This is another important step in our ambition to build the UK's best investment platform. The acquisition brings together the country's two largest fixed price providers, adding significant scale to ii, and reinforcing our ability to deliver excellent choice, value and service to all our customers."

The total price payable under the sale agreement is £40m, subject to post completion adjustments, and includes Alliance Trust’s office building in Dundee, where ATS is based. The Trust, which has been headquartered in Dundee since 1888, will continue to be based in the City.

As at 30 June 2018, ATS, which represents 1.3% of the Trust's portfolio, had a fair value of £38m and the Dundee building was valued at £4.9m.

The sale is another positive step in Alliance Trust’s strategy to focus on its global equity portfolio. This has previously seen Alliance Trust’s successful sale of its in-house investment management arm, Alliance Trust Investments, to Liontrust Investment Management, as well as the recent agreement to sell off most of the Trust’s private equity assets.

The proceeds from the sale will be invested in the global equity portfolio, managed by Willis Towers Watson, which following completion will represent close to 100% of the Trust’s investment portfolio.

Evercore is advising Alliance Trust and Rothschild is advising ii on the acquisition of ATS. The sale is subject to regulatory approval from the PRA and FCA.

-END-

Alliance Trust PLC
Gregor Stewart, Deputy Chairman
Mark Atkinson, Marketing and Comms Manager	[phone] / [phone]
Tulchan (PR Advisor to Alliance Trust PLC)	[phone] or [e-mail]
Elizabeth Snow
Martin Pengelley
Lisa Jarrett Kerr
Interactive Investor	[phone]
Richard Wilson, CEO
Alex Kovach, CCO
TB Cardew (PR Advisor to ii)	[phone] or [e-mail]
Tom Allison	[phone]
Shan Shan Willenbrock	[phone]
Lucy Featherstone	[phone]

About interactive investor
interactive investor (ii) is the UK’s number one flat fee investment platform. ii offers a wealth of unbiased information, analysis, tools and expert ideas to help customers make better informed investment decisions. ii’s award-winning trading platform provides access to an extensive choice of markets, instruments and currencies within Trading, ISA and SIPP accounts. This comprehensive investing service is underpinned by a strong focus on delivering great value for investors demonstrated through an innovative and competitive pricing model – featuring simple, flat fees and unique ‘trading credits’.

Since 2013 the investment platforms market has almost doubled in size to £500bn AUM, with an extra 2.2 million customer accounts opened in the same period.  ii has approximately 10% of the UK direct to consumer investment platform market.  www.ii.co.uk