UnionBanCal Corp.'s investment arm announced Wednesday that it had bought three mutual funds from a Foster City, Calif., independent investment management firm.
HighMark Capital Management Inc. said it bought the international equity, enhanced growth, and cognitive value funds from Bailard Inc. The terms were not disclosed. Each fund transferred its assets and liabilities to three new HighMark funds, which Bailard is subadvising.
HighMark has spent the past year looking to acquire funds in order to expand its $7 billion of assets under management. In an
In an interview Wednesday, he said Bailard's international equity fund, which was renamed the HighMark International Opportunities Fund, is particularly attractive because it is the third-oldest international fund in its category and was rated five stars overall by Morningstar.
HighMark will distribute the product nationally, he said, something Bailard had not done, and also will add it to its three asset allocation programs.
The three-fund Bailard family adds $435 million of assets to HighMark's total under management, Mr. Knopf said, and he expects a further $500 million of asset growth this year from increased distribution. The company will now focus on acquiring fixed-income products, he said.
