- FintechGeneralM&A
- June 19, 2021
- 4 minutes read
Deal: JPMorgan Buys UK Robo-Advisor Nutmeg
US-based banking giant JPMorgan has ventured into Europe to make a new major fintech acquisition. It’s bought Nutmeg, an online…
US-based banking giant JPMorgan has ventured into Europe to make a new major fintech acquisition. It’s bought Nutmeg, an online wealth manager that’s one of the biggest in the UK.
- Though JPMorgan didn’t announce the price of its acquisition, a report from The Wall Street Journal puts it at about $1bn. At that, it’s a major exit in the UK’s fintech startup scene.
- Nutmeg is a Robo-advisor managing investments digitally for many clients. It has 140,000 clients with a collective £3.5bn ($4.8bn) of assets under management.
- With Nutmeg, JPMorgan is making a play to shore up its retail banking business in the UK. Its acquisition precedes the bank’s plans to launch a standalone digital bank brand in the UK later this year.
- Nutmeg is a testament to JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon saying last year that the bank would be “much more aggressive” in searching for acquisitions to add capabilities.
- At the reported $1bn price tag, Nutmeg’s acquisition would be JPMorgan’s biggest purchase since the 2008 global crisis. It’s a big win for the fintech industry in Britain, a country that houses many booming fintech startups.
- Nutmeg was founded in 2012. It has raised $154mn in venture funding from investors including Balderton Capital and JPMorgan’s rival Goldman Sachs.
