The price was not disclosed.
Today’s news confirms reports circulating at the end of 2010, which were reported in International Adviser in January.
Offshore Incorporations (Hong Kong) Ltd, or OIL, is a major player in Asia’s company formation and associated services market. In a statement today, it said it planned to create a "world leading global trust and corporate services provider" by merging its corporate service arm, Acceptor and Credence Trust, with IKIP’s Vistra, which is based in Geneva and has a large operation in Jersey. The merged entity will keep the Vistra name.
Offshore Incorporations specialises in helping companies set up in such offshore jurisdictions as Anguilla, Bahamas, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Delaware, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Samoa, Seychelles and Singapore.
In its statement today, OIL said the acquisition would result in a 500-employee business that was positioned to benefit "from favourable long term growth characteristics, such as Asian GDP growth, foreign direct investment flows to and from Asia, acceleration of Asian HNWI growth, and an increase in M&A activity".
The merger would also enable Vistra, which last year expanded into mainland China with the acquisition of a trust and corporate service business in Guangzhou, to increase its presence there, as well in such other markets as the Americas, Indonesia and India, OIL noted.
"Importantly, the combined company will be able to leverage the strengths of their respective firms to enhance the product and services offering to its existing and future clients across its markets," OIL said in its statement.
It said Vistra’s specialist experience in the areas of cross-border structuring, wealth protection, fund administration and its European network would be made available to OIL’s Asian client base as a result of the acquisition, "while Vistra’s clients will be able to benefit from their new partners’ network in Asia and knowledge of Asian-based solutions".
New roles, titles
As a result of the acquisition, Vistra chief executive Bart Deconinck will become executive chairman of the board of the combined entity, and Martin Crawford, CEO of OIL, is CEO.
In a statement, Deconinck described the acquisition as "a very exciting union of two successful companies" that he said would result in "a truly global service provider with substantial scale".
He noted that by joining forces, the two entities would be able to "bridge Europe and Asia for clients requiring such solutions".
"The new group will be ideally positioned to tap into the growing market of professional services generated by cross border structuring and international wealth planning,” Deconinck said.
