Phil King’s Regal Partners, one of the market’s most influential funds management houses, is weighing up a bid for Platinum Asset Management, the legendary contrarian investor founded three decades ago by billionaire stockpicker Kerr Neilson.

Regal, which has made a string of acquisitions in the past year and now manages $16.5 billion, is working with Barrenjoey Capital Partners as it sizes up Platinum, one of the country’s oldest global equities players. Platinum has had a difficult decade, with investors pulling funds and returns falling. Yet, it still manages $12.2 billion.