Nicholas J. Olson

Nicholas J. Olson’s practice focuses primarily on mergers, acquisitions and other transactions involving public and private investment management firms, broker-dealers and other financial services firms. He has been involved in many of the largest transactions in these industries over the past 10 years. Mr. Olson also has significant experience working with investors and firms on general partner stakes and other minority investment transactions.

Mr. Olson’s representative transactions include:

• BlackRock in numerous transactions, including its:
  • $12.5 billion acquisition of Global Infrastructure Partners
  • acquisition of Citigroup’s Mexican asset management business
  • acquisition of a minority investment in Circle Internet Financial
• Lincoln Financial Group in its sale of its wealth management business to Osaic
• Wells Fargo in connection with its $2.1 billion carve-out sale of Wells Fargo Asset Management and related legal entities and its collective investment trust business to GTCR and Reverence Capital Partners
• Pagaya Technologies Ltd. in its $8.5 billion de-SPAC business combination with EJF Acquisition Corp.
• Affiliated Managers Group in numerous transactions, including its acquisitions of:
  • Parnassus Investments and Abacus Capital Group
  • minority equity interests in Baring Private Equity Asia, Garda Capital Partners, Comvest Partners, Jackson Square Partners, OCP Asia, Forbion and Ara Partners
• Sun Life Financial in its acquisitions of InfraRed Capital Partners, Crescent Capital Group and Advisors Asset Management
• Aquarian Holdings LLC in its acquisition of a 43% ownership stake in Obra Capital
• Betterment in its acquisition of Makara
• Vantiv in its $12 billion merger with Worldpay
• Foresters Financial in its sale of assets related to its U.S. asset management business, including First Investors mutual funds, to Macquarie Investment Management, and assets related to its U.S. broker-dealer and advisory business to Cetera Financial Group
• Tennenbaum Capital Partners in its acquisition by BlackRock
• Resolute Investment Managers in its acquisition of an interest in RSW Investments
• Tunbridge Partners in its acquisition of a minority interest in Savanna Capital Partners
• Eurazeo in its acquisition of a minority interest in private equity manager Rhône Group
• American Capital in its merger with Ares Capital and the sale of American Capital Mortgage Management to American Capital Agency
• Raymond James Financial in its acquisition of the Private Client Services business of Deutsche Bank Securities (the legacy business of Alex. Brown)
• DST Systems/ALPS Advisors in the acquisition of Red Rocks Capital
• John Hancock in its acquisition of the retirement plan services business of New York Life Investment Management

Mr. Olson’s practice also involves counseling on the structuring of compensation, retention and equity ownership arrangements for asset management and other financial services firms and their principals. He also advises clients on corporate governance and compliance matters.