A publicly traded technology company's $18.2 billion-AUM (as of September 30, 2021) asset management subsidiary is buying Mr. Wonderful's $1.5 billion-AUM (as of yesterday) ETF business. The deal also includes an ongoing, two-part alliance between the two sides.

Kevin O'Leary O'Shares Investments Chairman

Today, Laton Spahr, president of Denver-based SS&C Alps Advisors [profile], confirms that Windsor, Connecticut-based SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc. (SS&C Alps' parent) has agreed to buy O'Shares' ETF business. Pricing and terms of the deal have not been publicly disclosed, and the deal is pending approval of the O'Shares funds' shareholders and of the boards of the OSI ETF Trust and the Alps ETF Trust.

Piper Sandler and Co. advised O'Shares on the deal. Stradley Ronon Stevens and Young, LLP provided legal counsel.

As part of the deal, Boston- and Montreal-based O'Shares' four ETFs will be transformed into brand new SS&C Alps ETFs. O'Shares will license its indexes (which the ETFs track) to SS&C Alps. And O'Shares will keep supporting the ETFs on the marketing side. Connor O'Brien, O'Shares' president and CEO, hints at future product development, too.

"This transaction provides expanded distribution for the ETFs, and also creates potential for collaboration in developing more ETFs, building on our Quality and Thematic investment principles," O'Brien states.

O'Shares' four current ETFs are: the O'Shares U.S. Quality Dividend ETF (OUSA), with about $823 million in AUM as of yesterday; the O'Shares Global Internet Giants ETF (OGIG), with about $482 million in AUM as of yesterday; the O'Shares U.S. Small Cap Quality Dividend ETF (OUSM), with about $164 million in AUM as of yesterday; and the O'Shares Europe Quality Dividend ETF (OEUR), with about $41 million in AUM as of yesterday. The expense ratio on each is 48 basis points.

Kevin O'Leary, the reality TV star known as "Mr. Wonderful" on Shark Tank and the chairman of O'Shares, describes the deal with SS&C as "a strategic move for O'Shares." (Per O'Shares' most recent form ADV, both O'Leary and O'Brien are owners of the ETF shop, which first launched back in 2015.)

"The transaction with SS&C ALPS provides important scale and enhanced distribution," O'Leary states. "We will continue to work with SS&C ALPS leadership and sales teams to support the growth of the funds in all markets across the country. The ETFs will continue tracking the proprietary indexes we developed, focusing on quality and preservation of capital."

Spahr puts the O'Shares deal in the context of the SS&C Alps team's focus on innovation and delivering "diverse investment opportunities."

"We share many of the same quality and thematic investment principles and are excited about our opportunities our new relationship presents," Spahr states.  

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