Northern Trust Acquires Omnium, Citadel's Hedge Fund Administrator

Omnium will become part of Northern Trust's Corporate and Institutional Services and operate as Northern Trust Hedge Fund Services.

Northern Trust has reached an agreement to acquire Omnium, a hedge fund administrator subsidiary of Citadel with approximately $70 billion in assets under administration. Omnium's staff will be integrated into Northern Trust's Corporate & Institutional Services business unit as Northern Trust Hedge Fund Services, LLC.

Northern Trust Hedge Fund Services will offer scalable technology and dedicated expertise to serve hedge funds and large institutional investors with complex portfolios. The business will provide administrative and middle office services including trade processing, valuation, real-time reporting, cash management, accounting, collateral management and investor servicing.

"In today's markets, asset managers and institutional investors demand high performance, greater transparency, and outstanding technology from their administrator," Northern Trust Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Frederick H. Waddell said in a press release. "This acquisition brings together the best in hedge fund administration expertise, along with Northern Trust's robust global custody capabilities and our highly respected client focus. The result is a unique opportunity to scale a world-class business."

Established in 2007 by Citadel, Omnium provides technology-driven hedge fund administration services including capabilities around middle-office support, transparent access to data allowing real-time monitoring, and support for high volume and complex investment strategies. Omnium is headquartered in Chicago, with operations in New York, Hong Kong and Bermuda.

"The hedge fund industry has changed rapidly in the past five years, driving the need for increasingly sophisticated solutions," said Northern Trust Corporate & Institutional Services President Steven L. Fradkin in a press release. "Northern Trust Hedge Fund Services will help clients in a wide variety of asset classes that require a high level of automation and expert operational support and effective risk management."

Greg MacSweeney is editorial director of InformationWeek Financial Services, whose brands include Wall Street & Technology, Bank Systems & Technology, Advanced Trading, and Insurance & Technology. View Full Bio