Amsterdam, January 19, 2018 - BinckBank N.V. (60%), Flow Traders N.V. (24%) and Think ETF's management (16%) together announce the sale of their stakes in Think ETF Asset Management B.V. to Van Eck Associates Corporation. With the sale of the Dutch ETF-company, Van Eck will receive almost full ownership of Think ETF's, only management of Think ETF's will retain a small stake. The financial details of the transaction are not disclosed at this stage.
Vincent Germyns, CEO BinckBank
"From our perspective Think ETF's has done a great job in realising a breakthrough on ETFs for the Dutch retail investors. Their first class ETF-products have been awarded many times and are regarded as 'best in class'. They are highly valued by our customers and therefore Think ETF's remains a preferred issuer for BinckBank. However to march along in the next growth phase we think Think ETF's is better off being part of a global partner in order to obtain the scale needed for tomorrows financial environment. We thank the management of Think ETF's for their tremendous efforts and are convinced they will be able to flourish under Van Eck."
Dennis Dijkstra, co-CEO of Flow Traders
"We are pleased to see that with this transaction, Think ETF's will have a solid platform to propel their proposition to a wider audience and can find the support it needs to further grow their business. Flow Traders is proud to have been part of the development of Think ETF's to where it is today. Management of Think ETF's has done a great job and will now guide the company into a new phase. With its network and knowledge, Van Eck will be able to support Think ETF's' development to become an even more complete ETF platform for investors. Flow Traders will remain committed to Think ETF's as a leading liquidity provider in their products."
Think ETF's' management has committed itself to the strategy of Van Eck and is confident about the increased growth potential.
Following this sale, BinckBank's Vincent Germyns and Flow Traders' Dennis Dijkstra will step down from Think ETF's' Supervisory Board. The transaction is subject to approval from the Dutch Central Bank (DNB) and is expected to be closed by 1Q 2018.
Berkshire Capital and Loyens Loeff advised the sellers in this transaction.
More information about ThinkETFs can be found on www.thinketfs.nl.
