Reuters has signed a definitive agreement to acquire UK trading systems vendor AVT Technologies.
AVT Technologies developed the underlying transaction technology for the FXAll and Centradia portals. Its customer base includes ABN Amro, Bank of New York, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and UBS Warburg.
Concurrent with the deal, Reuters says it will establish an Automated Dealing Technologies business unit. The new division will employ 100 staff from the FX technology firm along with Reuters staff.
Mark Redwood, CEO of AVT Technolgies, who will head up the new unit, comments: "We will benefit from a global sales force and a highly respected brand. Financial institutions will benefit from our best of breed trading solutions."
The acquisition is expected to be completed in late December 2002 and the net assets of AVT Technologies are expected to be approximately £4 million at completion.
The move follows the announcement last week that Reuters was shutting down its reference data management business Synetix which it set up with CapCo. The information vendor was also one of the backers of foreign exchange portal Atriax which folded in April.