Consortium to acquire Havilland Monaco
In a press release issued at the end of September, the Banque Havilland Group announced that it had entered into exclusive negotiations for the sale of the shares of Banque Havilland (Monaco) SAM to a “highly reputable Consortium of investors”.
The Consortium includes Martin Gilbert, Chairman of Revolut Bank, and Director of Glencore mining, as well as Monaco resident Corporate Financier Ivan Murphy. With them is a group of international and Monaco-based investors including long standing Monaco residents Eddie Jordan, the Irish Sports Entrepreneur and former Formula 1 team owner, and Bart Duijndam, the Dutch Industrialist.
The Banque Havilland Group stated that the consortium “will be well positioned to strengthen the balance sheet and build the business going forward”.
After its recent troubles (see below) the Group stated it was “pleased to have found an alternative forward looking strategy for Banque Havilland (Monaco) SAM. It is confident that the agreement found with the Consortium, who has a shared entrepreneurial DNA and ambitious project to set up a Private Bank in Monaco, offers the employees and the clients, a stable and sustainable option.” Executive Director of the Consortium, Ivan Murphy, added “We are delighted to have the opportunity to acquire Banque Havilland (Monaco) SAM and to restore the trust of its loyal clients and staff. We are excited to work with the existing team to close this transaction and move forward to build a strong traditional independent private bank in Monaco.”
Regulatory approvals permitting, the deal should complete before the end of the year. At present we have no indication of the Consortium’s intentions concerning Havilland Monaco SAM’s current employees, around 20 in number.
The announcement follows on from the withdrawal of Andorra’s largest bank, Andbank, reported by finews.com in August as having reached an agreement to buy the Monaco subsidiary of Havilland Group. However, after a due diligence review, a binding offer was not forthcoming.
While the buyout concerns the Monaco arm, in operation since 2011, the Havilland group as a whole is winding down. As Bloomberg reported late July, the European Central Bank told the firm it would revoke one of its key licenses. Meanwhile Banque Havilland is no longer accepting new money.
A former Havilland Monaco account manager, Alexandre Balga, was convicted in a recent money-laundering trial. Patrick Dauguet, the current CEO, was cleared by the Monaco courts, and the bank itself did not face any allegations.
The bank has also had its share of regulatory woes in recent years. However, the coup de grâce is the ECB’s decision, with Bloomberg sources saying it was prompted by Havilland’s failure to make required changes subsequent to a €4 million fine for anti-money-laundering failings by the Luxembourg regulator in 2018. Havilland has voluntarily liquidated its Lichtenstein operations and Zurich office.