New Quantum Holdings, a Sydney-based tech firm that created an innovative operating system for financial services firms, completed its acquisition of 80% of Morrison Securities Pty Ltd, the clearing, brokerage, and settlement arm of ASX-listed Sequoia Financial Group.
What does this mean for New Quantum’s growth plans?
As of August 31st, New Quantum concluded the last tranche of the $40.5m acquisition, creating a combined entity handling over $2.2bn trades per annum and with $20bn of committed funds under management on the New Quantum platform. Its near future includes a public listing on the Nasdaq via its reverse merger with Canna Global, with the business combination deal signed in June valuing New Quantum at $800m USD, or over $1.2B AUD.
This acquisition is the cornerstone of a series of transactions laying the foundation for New Quantum’s growth. Within Australia, New Quantum seeks to build on Morrison’s infrastructure to become the definitive platform for fintech and financial services firms, focusing uniquely on automating the complex workflows around wealth management and superannuation funds.
Globally, New Quantum plans to develop further strategic partnerships in the Middle East, Asia, and the US, centering its efforts around its tech infrastructure platform for government pension funds. New Quantum continues to be backed by its equity sponsor, Beaconsfield Capital Management, a technology-focused hedge fund based in London and Boston.
What does this mean for the financial services sector?
Jong Chung, Executive Director of New Quantum’s Australia business, commented: “The acquisition of Morrison makes New Quantum a unique value proposition in the Australian financial services world. We offer a technology platform of unique breadth and depth buttressed by one of Australia’s most reputed independent financial services firms.”
Beaconsfield’s Chief Investment Officer, Shantanu Jha, will be the incoming Group CEO of New Quantum and its subsidiaries, overseeing domestic and international expansion.
Subsequent to the acquisition’s closing, Shantanu stated: “New Quantum’s mission to automate and abstract away the complexities of regulation, administration, and capital allocation is uniquely geared to creating a revolution in the financial services world.”
“We continue to believe New Quantum’s operating system for financial services firms, combined with the venerable financial infrastructure of the newly acquired Morrison, exemplifies the power of vertically integrated business models that can internalise the value created by the underlying technological automation,” Shantanu Jha further commented.
