A press release earlier this month, entitled, "BNY Mellon to Acquire U.S. Investment Manager to Cutwater Asset Manager," tells us, "BNY Mellon announced today that it has reached an agreement to acquire Cutwater Asset Management, a U.S.-based fixed income and solutions specialist with a 20-year track record and approximately $23 billion in assets under management. Located in Armonk, NY, the firm is currently a wholly-owned subsidiary of MBIA Inc." The release continues, "Upon completion of the deal, Cutwater will operate as part of BNY Mellon Investment Management and will work closely with, and be administered by, Insight Investment. Insight is one of BNY Mellon's premier investment management boutiques and one of Europe's leading investment managers. The addition of Cutwater's capabilities will enhance BNY Mellon's and Insight's U.S. platform and abilities to offer specialized fixed income solutions. Cutwater's products and investment solutions include a wide range of fixed income strategies such as core, long duration, high yield, loans and absolute return strategies." MBIA's Cutwater is known in the "cash" business for managing Local Government Investment Pools, or LGIPs, including Connecticut Cooperative Liquid Assets Securities System Plus and New Hampshire Public Deposit Investment Pool. Curtis Arledge, CEO, BNY Mellon Investment Management, said, "Cutwater brings an impressive performance history, strong intellectual capital and an investment culture consistent with BNY Mellon's. Given the unprecedented interest in the fixed income market at this time, we are excited by the opportunity to expand our investment offerings for clients as a result of this combination of fixed income capabilities." For more on recent consolidation, mergers and acquisitions in the money market space, see our article "Rates, Reforms Driving Money Fund Consolidation, Changes" in the October issue of Money Fund Intelligence.
