Morgan Stanley to buy Canada's Solium Capital for $900m

Morgan Stanley has agreed to buy Canada's Solium Capital - a provider of software-as-a-service for equity administration, financial reporting and compliance - for around $900m in cash.

Morgan Stanley will pay CAD19.5 per Solium share, representing a total equity value of around CAD1.1bn, or $0.9m.

Solium’s 3,000 stock plan clients, with one million participants, include Instacart, Levi Strauss, Shopify and Stripe and a range of fast growing private companies, as well as newly public companies. Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley has 320 stock plan clients, with 1.5 million participants, of which a quarter are in the Fortune 500.

MS said on Monday that the acquisition positions it to be an "industry leader" in workplace wealth solutions.

Chairman and chief executive officer James Gorman said: "The acquisition provides Morgan Stanley with broader access to corporate clients and a direct channel to their employees, as well as a greater opportunity to establish and develop relationships with a younger demographic and service this population early in their wealth accumulation years."

Andy Saperstein, co-head of wealth management at MS, said: "We view this acquisition as part of our broader, longer-term strategy, leveraging our digital capabilities in the workplace.

"By combining stock plan administration, 401(k), other forms of deferred compensation, employee financial wellness education and our core goals-based planning technology, we plan to create an integrated ‘Morgan Stanley Wealth Portal,’ which will offer employers the opportunity to deliver tailored financial counselling and industry leading advice to their employees."