Grant Thornton divests non-public wealth enterprise to Oreana
Auditing and advisory firm Grant Thornton has sold its private wealth business to Oreana Group, an investment and asset management company headquartered in Melbourne.
The decision to sell the entity comes under pressure from Grant Thornton’s global management team, who are working diligently to ensure that its member companies avoid potential conflicts of interest. Grant Thornton’s private wealth advises high net worth companies – business owners, family offices and high net worth corporations – on all aspects of their personal wealth, including wealth management, retirement planning and retirement planning.
A company spokeswoman told Australian Financial Review: “Our decision to sell this business was not made lightly and was related to our need to ensure we comply with national and international independence laws. Grant Thornton Australia is part of the Grant Thornton International network and these regulations are vital to us. “
The spokeswoman added, “The sale of this business ensures that the company is not affected by direct or indirect investment recommendations to clients or prospects.”
Grant Thornton’s Australian partners – the company employs around 1,200 people in offices in Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney – were informed of the decision on Tuesday, according to the Australian Financial Review. Integration planning has started since then.
Grant Thornton’s seniors on his private wealth team – Jon Black, Joanne Kenderes, and Laura Peressini – will join the Oreana Group, including a number of employees, to ensure continuity of client relationships.
The Oreana Group has an office in Melbourne and is dedicated to wealth advisory and licensee solutions for private and institutional clients.
The deal comes a year after Grant Thornton turned to dealmaking himself and launched the consultancy Glasshouse Advisory on boutique research and development and tax incentives.
