A New Era for Strategic Insight and Our Clients

Strategic Insight began in 1986, with a 64-page report written by Joel Rosenthal, SI’s visionary founder, typed out on an IBM Selectric. The report’s title was prescient: “Mutual Funds: Investing in the Future.” Since that point 23 years ago, the global mutual fund industry has grown more than 20-fold and Strategic Insight has grown along with it—becoming a mission-critical technology and research organization at the heart of this $20 trillion-plus global industry. Currently, our global team supports more than 60 of the world’s largest fund managers outside the US. And SI clients supported by our US team collectively oversee nearly 90% of the US mutual fund industry’s $11 trillion of assets.

Today, we would like to share with you exciting news that will help SI grow further and provide more resources to help your organizations succeed and become stronger in the coming years.

Asset International, Inc. (“AI”) has agreed to acquire Strategic Insight, which now joins Asset International’s other prominent industry brands, including PLANSPONSOR, PLANADVISER, Global Custodian, ai5000, and The Trade. Asset International CEO Jim Casella will become the new CEO of Strategic Insight, succeeding SI’s Joel Rosenthal, 70, who has announced his retirement.

What does this mean for you and your company?

• SI’s entire staff continues with the firm, and will be led by the same dedicated individuals you have come to depend on, including Avi Nachmany, the firm’s co-founder, and Phil Herzog, SI’s Chief Information Officer, along with our global management team which includes Jag Alexeyev, Head of Global Research, and Daniel Enskat, Head of Global Consulting. Jag and Daniel collectively bring nearly three decades of fund industry experience to their work with clients.

• SI has modestly expanded its staff in the past year, which now number more than 70, and will continue to invest in people and technological resources to ensure the quality of our service to you is improved year after year.

• Following the acquisition, SI will be an independent unit of Asset International, headquartered in New York City, with satellite offices to support our Europe and Asia-based clients. Strategic Insight retains our distinctive brand identity, as well as our core mission of helping each of our clients in the US and globally, while also supporting the mutual fund industry overall.

• This growth-oriented collaboration between AI and SI will result in additive synergies. Some examples:
  
  
• AI’s international presence will accelerate Strategic Insight’s ability to service its European and Asian clients (beginning with a London office).
• The combined organization will leverage the retirement-area expertise of PLANSPONSOR and the mutual-fund expertise of Strategic Insight to create value-added, retirement-focused services for organizations within the retirement-investment businesses.
• As part of the AI organization, Strategic Insight will have access to greater financial resources that will help accelerate the developments and enhancements of our various database services. For Simfund Global, this includes our efforts to incorporate new markets like Canada, Latin America, and the Middle East into the database.
• SI and AI are likely to expand their data subscriptions with Morningstar Inc. and Lipper Inc. over time, and thus develop and offer a wider range of technological and analytical solutions to you

For more than a year SI has been looking for a new CEO and for a parent company with a global vision and footprint, and the professional and financial resources to help the firm innovate and expand its services to the investment management industry worldwide.

Jim Casella, our new CEO, is an accomplished, 35+ year career, client-centered leader with many years of experience in the financial services and technology industries. His previous experience includes serving as CEO of Reed Business Information’s US operations and chief operating officer of International Data Group (IDG).

Casella commented on the SI acquisition, Asset International's second acquisition within a month: “This latest acquisition brings AI significantly closer to creating a next-generation media and knowledge-management company for the global financial industry.” Previously, on June 25, AI announced its acquisition of The Trade, a London-based firm that provides institutional investors with news and information focused on buy-side electronic trading.

Jim Casella and each of Strategic Insight’s leaders are committed to maintaining SI’s core principles of objectivity, integrity, and passion. Thus, our firm’s collaborative and inter-dependent culture, dedicated work ethic, relentless pursuit of improvement in every business area, and focus on the client experience, will continue to build on a strong, two-decade foundation to ensure that we help you personally, your firm, and our industry, in whichever way we can.

Expect more from the new and improved Strategic Insight.

To Learn More:

• Read the Press Release
• Asset International: www.AssetInternational.com
• About Jim Casella: http://www.assetinternational.com/team.html

Or, contact us individually:

Or contact any other SI associate you have become friendly with, just to chat…

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