BIZ BUZZ: UnionBank, ATRAM trust units merger sealed

They are all set to uncork the champagne.

Biz Buzz sources said the union between the asset management unit of Union Bank of the Philippines and ATRAM Trust Corp. (ATC) would be consummated today, creating an entity with assets under management amounting to around P485 billion—an amount that already approximates the total resources of the country’s 11th largest bank.

Within the asset management industry alone, the merger is estimated to create the country’s fifth-largest trust entity.

Our sources added that the investment agreement between UnionBank and ATR Asset Management Inc. (ATRAM) had been cleared by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in April, paving the way for the signing of the merger deal.

The deal gives UnionBank a 27.5-percent stake in ATRAM, while existing ATRAM shareholders will retain the remaining 72.5 percent. This leads to the unification of Union Bank Investment Management and Trust Corp. and ATC, with the latter as the surviving entity.

Prior to this merger, ATRAM had gobbled up the mutual fund business of First Metro Investment Corp. last year. And back in 2023, when Pru Life UK decided to exit the fund management industry, ATC was likewise there to scoop up the entire fiduciary portfolio ceded by Pru Life UK Asset Management and Trust Corp. but it was a partnership and not a merger transaction.

Suffice to say, ATC is no stranger to bulking up its portfolio beyond organic expansion.

This time, by integrating UnionBank’s digital expertise with ATRAM’s innovative asset management solutions, the parties aim to be a “game changer” in asset management, which has become more and more challenging in a world of “VUCA” or volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.

UnionBank serves over 15 million banking clients while ATRAM, which has been aggressively pursuing retail investors, has enlisted at least 2 million customers.