Nationwide Mutual Insurance will buy Gartmore Global Investments from Nationwide Financial Services for about $375 million, or 8 million shares of common stock, and $225 million in shareholder equity.
Once the deal closes later in the second quarter, Nationwide Mutual will combine its domestic asset management business with the domestic and international asset management operations of Gartmore Global into Gartmore Group, with $77 billion under management, said W.G. Jurgensen, CEO of Nationwide Mutual. Paul Hondros will continue to head the asset management business.
Nationwide Financial will continue to distribute Gartmore investment products. The firm’s strategic focus in the asset management business will be on "the distribution of mutual funds, vs. the manufacturing of mutual funds,” said Joseph J. Gasper, president and COO of Nationwide Financial.
