Of the three major Frankfurt private banks, whose history dates back to the 17th and 18th centuries, only the Metzler private bank has been family-owned for a long time. The Bethmann private bank has belonged to the Dutch ABN Amro since 2004. Now, with Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe, another private bank is changing hands, and once again the buyer is ABN Amro. The Dutch banking group announced on Tuesday that it had reached an agreement with Fosun International, the institute’s Chinese parent company. ABN Amro will acquire the Frankfurt-based bank for 672 million euros. With the purchase, the financial group wants to strengthen its German business. The takeover makes Germany the second largest market for the Dutch financial group. The purchase is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2025.
“This is a rare opportunity to expand our German activities,” said ABN Amro CEO Robert Swaak. “The acquisition of Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe in the German market, which is central to us, supports our growth ambitions and shows our long-term interest in strategically expanding our market position in this important region.” ABN Amro wants to combine the Hauk Aufhäuser business with the Bethmann Bank, which belongs to the group, and significantly expand its market share in Germany. After the acquisition, ABN Amro is likely to become number three in the German asset management market – after Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank.
In 2016, the Chinese conglomerate Fosun took over the Frankfurt-based private bank Hauck & Aufhäuser, but was apparently unable to fulfill its ambitious plans for growth with Chinese customers. Most recently, Fosun had liquidity problems and also sold other assets and investments in the USA and Europe. The geopolitical tensions are likely to have made Fosun’s global business even more difficult.