US-owned investment and data provider Morningstar has snapped up the UK and international arms of Australian-owned platform Praemium for £35m.

Morningstar will buy 100% of Praemium’s operations in the United Kingdom, Jersey, Hong Kong, and Dubai. 

The deal is worth £35m and will be paid in cash. 

The Praemium UK business has been up for sale for some time. Praemium is one of the smaller UK platform players in an increasingly crowded market and has struggled to achieve scale and growth.

Daniel Needham, president of wealth management solutions for Morningstar, said: “Praemium has a fast-growing UK and international business and a talented team we look forward to welcoming Morningstar.” 

“Technology is playing a larger role in everyone’s lives and expectations for how companies deploy it are evolving quickly. Advisers and the investors we jointly serve are no exception, and Praemium’s digital-first capabilities will allow us to reduce friction, lower costs, provide more choice and improve efficiency for advisers. This gives advisers time back to deliver better advice, empowering investor success.”

In the UK and internationally Praemium offers proprietary, SaaS-based technology and services for fee-based advisers. Praemium says its platform is used by nearly 500 independent financial advisers. 

Praemium’s services will add to Morningstar’s existing data, fund profiles, portfolio analytics and investment management capabilities. The two companies say they will work together to ensure a smooth transition for customers and employees.

Completion of the deal is subject to regulatory approval from the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK and the Jersey Financial Services Commission in Jersey. Morningstar and Praemium expect to complete the transaction during Q2 or Q3 2022.

Praemium UK and international managing director Mark Sanderson, said: “The focus throughout the deal process has been on finding a new owner that is the right fit for us and the right fit for our customers. We wanted a committed parent with a long-term view and the resolve to uphold our best-in-class platform experience, free from customer disruption.”

Melbourne-based Praemium Limited previously announced it wanted to focus on domestic growth in the Australian platform market and to sell its international businesses.

Praemium administers 400,000 investor accounts globally for more than 1,000 financial institutions and intermediaries. 

In the UK Praemium offers custody and administration through the Praemium platform, adviser practice management support through Wealthcraft and discretionary investment management through Smart Investment Management.

Founded in 2001 in Australia, Praemium launched in the UK in 2006 and Jersey in 2012. 

Morningstar is best known as a provider of independent investment research in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The firm also offers investment management through its investment advisory subsidiaries, with nearly £200bn in assets under advice and management. The company has operations in 29 countries.