Legg Mason(LM) has acquired Fauchier Partners, the investment bank said in an official statement. Fauchier, a unit of BNP Paribas (BNPQY 0.11%), is a fund-of-hedge-funds manager that Legg Mason will combine with its Permal asset management affiliate. This combination will result in an entity with around $24 billion in assets under management.
The purchase is the latest in a wave of mergers and acquisitions of hedge funds and related enterprises. Earlier this year, KKR (KKR -1.23%) bought Prisma Capital Partners, and Franklin Resources (BEN 0.08%) took a majority share of K2 Advisors.
Legg Mason did not disclose the terms of its acquisition or the price. It expects the Fauchier transaction to close in 1Q 2013 and be accretive to earnings in the first year.
