Headlines:
Fidelity National Acquires ClearPar
Four days after announcing a financial restructuring intended to help it pursue acquisitions, the title insurer and outsourcing vendor Fidelity National Financial Inc. announced its purchase of ClearPar LLC.
ClearPar, of Valley Cottage, N.Y., offers online settlement systems for primary and secondary loans. Fidelity, of Jacksonville, Fla., announced the acquisition Monday. The price was not disclosed.
The financing plan Fidelity announced Dec. 9 included putting off a planned spinoff of its technology operations and taking on up to $2.8 billion of debt to finance a $10-per-share dividend and potential acquisitions.
In response to the announcement of the financial restructuring, Fitch Inc. downgraded Fidelity's insurer financial strength ratings to A-minus from A and its long-term issuer rating to BBB-minus from BBB.
"The downgrade reflects a willingness of FNF to leverage its balance sheets" beyond what the ratings company considered appropriate, Fitch said in a Dec. 10 press release.
On Tuesday, Fidelity said it had bought 2.5 million shares of its common stock, for $112.2 million.
Harris of Chicago Outsourcing to SEI
SEI Investments Inc. said its multiyear deal with Harris Private Bank is evidence that banks are increasingly willing to outsource the routine, back-office tasks associated with managing customer investment accounts.
The Oaks, Pa., asset management and investment services provider announced last week that it would take on trust accounting, portfolio management, and operational services for Harris, a Chicago subsidiary of Bank of Montreal. SEI will also manage and execute trade orders and monitor compliance and report activities for Harris.
SEI will provide a browser-based suite of applications to help Harris manage customer administration tasks, measure performance, and give institutions and private clients access to their accounts.
"Large financial services companies that are looking to grow, such as Harris, are strategically outsourcing routine business processes more and more," Al Chiaradonna, SEI's senior vice president for strategy, said in a press release. "We allow them to concentrate their resources on customer-facing activities."
