If the AMP board had a brief feeling of jubilation after recruiting the highly regarded Alexis George as the next chief executive of the wealth management giant, the mood must have turned to frustration over the impasse in negotiations with Los Angeles-based Ares Management.

In February, AMP announced that it had entered a non-binding deal that would see Ares pay $1.35 billion for a 60 per cent stake in AMP Capital’s private markets business – which includes its coveted unlisted infrastructure and real estate arms. AMP would retain the remaining 40 per cent of the $60 billion private markets business.