BCS Prime Brokerage

History

2024: Gerald Banks bought BCS Prime Brokerage

In July 2024, it became known that the British division of a large Russian broker BCS changed its owner. BCS Prime Brokerage Ltd. came under the control of Gerald Banks, also known as Herman Aliyev, who previously held senior positions in Vladimir Potanin's companies.

According to Frank Media, the deal was approved by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on June 27, 2024. According to UK Companies House, Banks gained control of a 75% stake in BCS Prime Brokerage, previously owned by Oleg Mikhasenko.

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The new owner plans to rename the company GBM Securities and focus on working with emerging and borderline financial markets. The main activities will be brokerage and prime brokerage services, including lending to hedge funds to finance their transactions.

Gerald Banks, who is 53, has a wealth of experience in Russia's financial sector. In 2003, he took the post of Deputy General Director of Rosbank, and in 2008 he moved to a similar position in the holding company [[[Interros|[Interros]], owned by Vladimir Potanin. In 2009, Banks founded Altpoint Capital Partners, a private investment fund in New York, where Potanin became the largest investor.

Notably, a few days before the change of ownership, on June 24, 2024, BCS Prime Brokerage paid a special dividend of US $27.5 million. The recipient of these funds is not specified in the documents.

This transaction is part of the restructuring process of the BCS group, which began at the end of 2023. In January 2024, the Russian BCS Holding was separated from the structures of the international financial group FG BCS, legally registered in Cyprus.^[1]

Notes