AMP beds down Collimate Capital as new name and brand for ASX spin-off

Beleaguered AMP is set to reveal new details of its real estate and infrastructure ASX spin-off this week, which will be called Collimate Capital Funds Management.

AMP is set to reveal new details of its real estate and infrastructure ASX spin-off this week. Picture: Hollie Adams

Beleaguered wealth group AMP is set to reveal new details of its real estate and infrastructure ASX spin-off this week, which will be called Collimate Capital Funds Management.

Documents lodged with the corporate regulator by AMP Capital Funds Management show the group has reserved the name, as it seeks to secure it across several global markets, including in the United Kingdom.

“The company is currently in the process of confirming the availability and procuring registration of the reserved name and associated trademarks in Australia and other jurisdictions. Additional time is required to complete this process,” the filing said.

The Australian can reveal AMP also has a logo ready to roll out for Collimate Capital, which is meant to reflect an alignment with all stakeholder interests. Collimate means to bring into line or make parallel.

Directors of another registered entity linked to Collimate Capital include AMP global co-head of core infrastructure Michael Bessell, AMP Capital’s global boss of corporate strategy and product development Joshua Waterhouse and senior company secretary Chris Millard. That entity has also lodged a trademark, including a new logo, with the UK’s Intellectual Property Office.

The AMP unit being demerged was being referred to as PrivateMarketsCo as the parent company fleshed out the branding details locally and offshore.

An AMP Capital spokeswoman wouldn’t comment specifically on the new name and logo but said: “We’re making strong progress on the separation and demerger of the AMP Capital Private Markets business, which has included work on a new brand.

“We have been working to develop a brand that will show our focus on being aligned with our clients, across both infrastructure and real estate, and delivering great investment outcomes for them. We look forward to sharing the new brand in the near future.”

AMP Capital chief Shawn Johnson will lead the demerged entity, which will be called Collimate Capital Funds Management.

Collimate will have about $44bn in assets under management.

That is tallied after AMP agreed to sell its infrastructure debt unit to US firm Ares Management on Christmas Eve. The infrastructure debt unit has about $7bn in assets under management which transfer to Ares as part of the deal, which is scheduled to complete in the March quarter.

AMP will provide an update on funds under management and its strategic plans when it reports earnings on Thursday.

The company’s shares finished Monday’s trading session unchanged at 95.5c, but have declined almost 5.5 per cent so far this year. That gives AMP a market capitalisation of $3.1bn, which is about half the $6bn-plus bid for the group in its entirety which was withdrawn by Ares almost a year ago.  

AMP held an investor day in late November to provide a blueprint for the demerged entity and a timeline for its separation on the ASX. That document outlined the management share plan would account for a 12 per cent equity interest in PrivateMarketsCo, with it reflecting both length of service and performance.

AMP has had to rework some aspects of the demerger given the sale of the infrastructure debt arm. But the group is holding firm on key performance and return hurdles linked to the demerged entity’s share ownership plan.

The performance-based component is 75 per cent weighted toward earnings-per-share growth and 25 per cent weighted to total shareholder returns relative to the ASX200.

PrivateMarketsCo chief Shawn Johnson provided details on the spin-off at the November briefing.

On the property side, AMP Capital is one of the top direct real estate fund managers in Australasia with more than $24bn worth of assets under management.

The business has, however, come under pressure as superannuation fund investors have raised concerns about AMP’s corporate governance issues prompting instability.

The group has performed at an asset level despite senior management ructions and departures in the property business. It controls some of the country’s largest shopping centres and office towers.

AMP Capital last year won the crucial backing of superannuation funds Cbus Property and UniSuper, which helped it take full control of two of Australia’s largest shopping centres — Sydney’s Macquarie Centre and Pacific Fair on the Gold Coast.

The manager also won the recommendation of an independent advisory committee to keep ­control of the real estate unit’s flagship $7bn office fund after making last-minute concessions to investors.

The high-profile AMP Capital Wholesale Office Fund was put in play last year and the incumbent was recommended after a hard fought process which is to be finalised this year.

The new logo of the AMP spin-off Collimate.