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Article: Citi/Legg Asset Swap An Innovative Solution.(asset swaps of Citigroup Inc. and Legg Mason Inc.)(mergers of New York Stock Exchange and Archipelago Holdings Inc.)
- Article from:
- Investment Dealers' Digest
- Article date:
- January 16, 2006
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It's not often that an M&A transaction is called "elegant," but that's just what investment bankers consider Citigroup's $3.8 billion asset swap with Legg Mason. "Transformational" was another common description of the deal, in which Citi exchanged its fund management arm for Legg's brokerage and capital markets groups, along with cash and shares. That is because it marks a halt in the consolidation of the mutual fund and brokerage businesses and a move toward their unbundling.
"As a practitioner, it's always impressive for me to see a business swap," says Jane Wheeler, head of the financial institutions group at Evercore, a high-end advisory boutique. "They are ...