Lovell Minnick Partners LLC, a private-equity firm based in Pennsylvania, has agreed to purchase a majority stake in Portland-based financial services firm Foreside Financial Group LLC.

Foreside, which has about 140 employees, provides a variety of regulatory compliance and distribution services to clients in the investment management industry. Terms of the private acquisition deal were not disclosed.

Established in 2005, Foreside is led by CEO Richard Berthy and President Dave Whitaker, who will remain shareholders and continue in their current management roles, the company said in a news release.

Foreside delivers outsourced services to investment advisers and broker-dealers, including the financial products they manage or distribute. Servicing more than $800 billion in fund products, Foreside offers legal underwriting, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority licensing, compliance consulting, fund officer services and trust governance.

Foreside said it expects demand for its services to continue growing as a result of increasing and costly fund compliance requirements, growing risk-management needs, new fund launches and greater cross-border investment activity.

“Our relationship with Lovell Minnick goes back many years, and we share a strategic vision to achieve greater scale in our core distribution and compliance services for investment managers and their funds, both in the U.S. and offshore markets,” Berthy said in the release. “Lovell Minnick has an excellent track record of partnering with financial services firms in the investment management industry, and their capital and strategic insight will help us grow our client base and offerings while ensuring that we continue to deliver first class service.”

Lovell Minnick said it believes the market opportunity for outsourced fund and compliance services is “compelling.” The firm holds ownership stakes in several of Foreside’s existing clients, including 361 Capital, Chartwell Investment Partners and Matthews International Capital Management.

“As one of the most respected outsourced service providers in the asset management industry, Foreside is uniquely positioned to help clients navigate the changing financial and regulatory landscape,” said Spencer Hoffman, a partner at Lovell Minnick. “We look forward to working closely with … Foreside’s strong management team as they execute their strategy to grow the business and to further broaden the scope of services they provide.”

The acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter, subject to regulatory reviews and approvals. Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP served as legal counsel to Lovell Minnick Partners.

J. Craig Anderson can be contacted at 791-6390 or at:

canderson@pressherald.com

Twitter: jcraiganderson

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