One River's Quant Leap: Acquires LGT Unit in Major European Push

STAMFORD, Conn. – February 25, 2026 – One River Asset Management today announced a definitive agreement to acquire the Quantitative Investment Solutions (QIS) business unit from Swiss alternative investment giant LGT Capital Partners. The landmark deal includes the unit's core eight-person team, its intellectual property, and two long-established systematic investment strategies, significantly expanding One River's capabilities and establishing its first European footprint.

The transaction is expected to bring over $900 million in additional assets under management (AUM) to One River, boosting its total AUM to approximately $3 billion. The acquired business will be rebranded as One River Switzerland AG, operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Stamford-based firm upon the deal's expected close midway through 2026.

"One River is the leading systematic risk mitigation firm for institutional investors, and this acquisition advances that position on every front," said Eric Peters, Founder, CEO & CIO of One River Asset Management, in a statement. "World-class talent, established strategies, and our first European footprint — the incoming team is a natural extension of who we are and a meaningful step forward in what we can deliver."

A Strategic Leap into Europe and Systematic Scale

This acquisition represents a pivotal moment for One River, accelerating its growth trajectory and solidifying its position in the highly competitive systematic investment landscape. The increase in AUM by nearly a third provides crucial scale, an essential advantage in a sector characterized by high fixed costs for technology, data, and top-tier talent. The move aligns with a broader industry trend of consolidation, where specialized asset managers are joining forces to enhance their offerings and operational leverage.

The establishment of One River Switzerland AG is more than a symbolic flag-planting; it provides a strategic base of operations within a key global financial hub, granting the firm closer proximity to European institutional clients and a deeper pool of talent. The move signals a clear ambition to compete on a global stage for institutional mandates seeking sophisticated risk management solutions.

For LGT Capital Partners, a global powerhouse with over $110 billion in AUM, the deal represents a strategic partnership. LGT will remain a significant investor in the two strategies, demonstrating its continued confidence in the team and their investment process. "We have great confidence in the QIS team and the strategies they have built over the past decade," commented Pius Fritschi, Managing Partner at LGT Capital Partners. "Partnering with One River ensures that the QIS franchise can continue to evolve within an environment built for systematic liquid alternatives."

Acquiring Proven Performance and Talent

At the heart of the transaction are two battle-tested strategies with impressive live track records. The first, to be renamed One River Dynamic Protection, is a futures-based long volatility strategy with over 11 years of history. This type of 'crisis alpha' strategy is designed to perform well during periods of market stress, a valuable characteristic for institutional portfolios. It proved its mettle during the COVID-19 market crash in early 2020, delivering strong positive returns that helped offset equity losses for its investors.

The second strategy, One River Systematic Macro, has a nearly 10-year track record and takes a multi-asset approach to capitalize on broad macroeconomic trends. This strategy also demonstrated its diversifying power during the turbulent markets of 2022, generating double-digit performance amid a challenging environment of rising inflation and simultaneous sell-offs in both stocks and bonds.

Beyond the strategies themselves, the real prize may be the human capital. One River is absorbing the entire cohesive QIS hedge fund team, a group that has worked together for years to build and refine its models. This 'brain gain' allows One River to bypass the time and expense of building such a capability from the ground up.

New leadership joining One River includes three new partners: Jean-François Bacmann, formerly Head of Research for the QIS team, will become Deputy CIO of Diversifying Strategies; Pascal Spielmann, who led the QIS unit at LGT, will serve as President of the new One River Switzerland; and Simone Villa will take the role of Chief Technology Officer. Christian Jung will also join as a senior leader, serving as COO/CRO of the Swiss entity.

"Our team has always focused on disciplined research, systematic implementation and delivering robust diversification for investors," said Pascal Spielmann. "This transaction will position the QIS team to further develop this work under One River's ownership, and we remain fully committed to ensuring continuity for all investors throughout the transition."

Redefining Portfolio Construction for Institutions

The strategic rationale behind the acquisition extends beyond mere expansion. One River aims to directly address one of the most persistent challenges in institutional portfolio construction: the inefficiency of traditional diversification. Assembling a portfolio by simply combining multiple managers through fully funded allocations often leads to redundant costs, inefficient capital usage, and layered fees.

By integrating these complementary systematic strategies into its existing platform, One River can offer more sophisticated and capital-efficient solutions. The firm's approach allows for 'stacking' different risk and return exposures without diluting the portfolio, passing netting and margining benefits directly to clients. The highly liquid, futures-based implementation of the acquired strategies is particularly well-suited for separately managed accounts (SMAs) and other partially funded structures that maximize both capital and fee efficiency for large allocators.

"This acquisition provides One River with additional thought leaders in the industry and long-established live track records in defensive systematic strategies," noted Patrick Kazley, President and Head of Solutions at One River. "This enhances our ability to deliver on our mission – to improve our clients' portfolios by delivering the best systematic risk mitigation solutions through capital-efficient, liquid structures."

By adding proven long volatility and systematic macro capabilities, the firm strengthens its ability to deliver on its promise of providing lowly correlated, positively convex returns that are designed to protect and enhance a client's core portfolio over the long term. This focus on advanced, integrated risk management solutions positions One River to capitalize on the growing institutional demand for smarter, more dynamic approaches to asset allocation in an increasingly complex global market.