Macquarie Financial Services has been attracted to the technology platform of foreign exchange provider, OzForex, leading it to buy 51 per cent of the company.
For Macquarie the deal will allow it to offer tailored foreign exchange services to its 670,000 retail customers, while for the Australian-developed OzForex, Macquarie’s backing gives it instant credibility and allows the continued expansion of its business offshore. Joint managing director of OzForex, Gary Lord, said the proprietary-developed technology was a competitive advantage, with no competitor able to say they had an online capability available 24 hours a day. “Macquarie is enthusiastic about our technology, they can see the scalability in the platform,” he said. The deal will see OzForex become the recommended supplier of foreign exchange to Macquarie’s 383,000 cash management trust clients, as well as clients trading in international equities. Lord said ultimately Macquarie’s financial planners and brokers would have access to the OzForex technology and be able to access prices online via the website. Head of Macquarie Private Wealth, Peter Coleman, said OzForex would provide expertise in foreign exchange services that Macquarie Financial Services did not previously have. “This particular foreign exchange business has great technology,” he said. OzForex has offices in Sydney and London, with customers in more than 40 countries, and has plans to set up in Canada and Asia, possibly in Hong Kong.
The $34 billion Brighter Super is set to shift a significant proportion of equities assets in MySuper from passive to active management. Chief investment officer Mark Rider says the move is possible because of the scale created by mergers, and the fund will be looking to its newly appointed active managers to generate performance through the cycle by taking idiosyncratic risks.
Darcy SongJanuary 21, 2025
