MutualFundWire.com: Touchstone Wraps a Deal and Augments a Relationship
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Monday, April 16, 2012

Touchstone Wraps a Deal and Augments a Relationship


Touchstone [see profile] is in the news again today with the closing of an acquisition and the expansion of a service provider relationship.

The Cincinnati-based firm has closed its acquisition of 17 Old Mutual funds, bringing Touchstone's total assets under management to $12 billion. Of the 17 funds acquired, Touchstone will retain the original sub-adviser for 13.

Also today, Touchstone president Steve Graziano said that the firm is expanding its fund administration relationship with BNY Mellon.

Graziano has tapped BNY Mellon to provide mutual fund accounting and administration, transfer agency, and blue sky services for 14 additional Touchstone mutual funds. This will bring the total number of Touchstone funds serviced by BNY-Mellon to 56.

Earlier this month, Touchstone announced that is was acquiring the assets of Fifth Third Asset Management's 16 mutual funds. (see MFWire.com 4/5/12)


Company Press Release

CINCINNATI, April 16, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Touchstone Investments announced the completion of its acquisition of selected fund assets of Old Mutual Asset Management's (OMAM's) U.S. mutual fund business that were previously managed by OMAM's Old Mutual Capital subsidiary.

The addition of these Old Mutual Funds brings Touchstone's total fund lineup to 45, assets under management to nearly $12 billion and several new sub-advisors to its current roster of fund managers. The company announced the planned acquisition in October 2011.

"This acquisition reflects Touchstone's continued commitment to its primary mission - providing access to best-in-class, institutional money managers to a wide range of investors through our mutual funds," said Steven M. Graziano, president of Touchstone Investments. "With the addition of these Old Mutual Funds and their affiliated managers, Touchstone increases the range of funds we offer and enhances our current offerings - particularly in the areas of U.S. Equity, Non-U.S. Equity, Asset Allocation, and Alternatives funds."

Thirteen of the 17 acquired funds will retain their current Old Mutual affiliated sub-adviser. The Old Mutual Funds deliver an ideal fit with Touchstone as both firms have applied a sub-advised mutual fund approach built around offering investment products created through partnerships with premier money managers.

Graziano added, "Those financial advisors and private wealth managers who represent Touchstone Funds to their clients expect our sub-advisors to be accomplished and expert in their respective asset class. The OMAM money managers clearly meet that standard. I am proud to add them to the Touchstone fund complex."

Earlier this month, Touchstone announced the acquisition of 16 mutual funds from Fifth Third Asset Management Inc., expanding Touchstone's fund offering and providing access to Fifth Third Bancorp's premier distribution system. Both acquisitions further Touchstone's dedication to its sub-advised mutual fund approach and commitment to offering distinct investment products based on partnerships with premier money managers.

About Touchstone Investments Touchstone Investments is a mutual fund company committed to providing investors with access to institutional asset managers who act in a sub-advisory capacity. While its sub-advisors are held to strict performance standards, they work with a large measure of independence and operate within their own demonstrated areas of expertise. Touchstone's rigorous asset manager evaluation process and robust oversight approach are designed to ensure delivery on Touchstone's commitment of achieving competitive long-term results. The Touchstone Funds are advised by Touchstone Advisors, Inc., a registered investment advisor, and are distributed nationally through intermediaries including broker-dealers, financial planners and institutions by Touchstone Securities, Inc., a registered broker-dealer and member FINRA/SIPC.

Touchstone, Touchstone Funds and Touchstone Investments are federal service mark registrations and applications owned by IFS Financial Services, Inc. Touchstone Securities, Inc., Touchstone Advisors, Inc. and IFS Financial Services, Inc. are members of Western & Southern Financial Group. For more information, please visit TouchstoneInvestments.com.

About Western & Southern Financial Group With a heritage dating to 1888, Western & Southern Financial Group (Western & Southern) is a Cincinnati-based Fortune 500 diversified family of financial services companies with assets owned and managed in excess of $55 billion as of March 31, 2012. Western & Southern is one of eight groups in the world to earn Standard & Poor's AA+ rating for its life insurance units, and is consistently recognized by A.M. Best, Moody's and Fitch for financial strength and sound management. For more information, visit www.westernsouthern.com . Western & Southern is the title sponsor of the Western & Southern Open ( www.wsopen.com ) tennis tournament, a premier event in the U.S. Open Series featuring the world's top-ranked professional male and female players.

Ratings are current as of March 1, 2012, and refer to the claims-paying ability of the insurance company and not to the safety, stability or performance of any investment product.

About Old Mutual Asset Management Old Mutual Asset Management (OMAM) is a global multi-boutique investment organization, managing and growing a diverse portfolio of asset managers that serve institutional and individual investors around the world. The assets under management of OMAM's 17 affiliated investment firms were $231 billion as of December 31, 2011. OMAM is the name through which Old Mutual (U.S.) Holdings Inc. conducts its U.S. asset management business. Old Mutual Capital is a wholly owned subsidiary of OMAM. OMAM's parent company is London-based Old Mutual plc. More information on OMAM, its member firms, and their investment teams and strategies, is available at www.oldmutualus.com

About Old Mutual plc Old Mutual plc is an international long-term savings, protection and investment Group. Originating in South Africa in 1845, the Group provides life assurance, asset management, banking and general insurance to more than 15 million customers in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia. Old Mutual plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, among others.

Important Additional Information Please consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the Fund carefully before investing. The prospectus and the summary prospectus contain this and other information about the Fund. To obtain a prospectus or a summary prospectus, contact your financial advisor or download and/or request one at TouchstoneInvestments.com/home/formslit/ or call Touchstone at 800.638.8194. Please read the prospectus and/or summary prospectus carefully before investing.

Investment return and principal value of an investment in a Fund will fluctuate so that investor's shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Performance data quoted represents past performance, which is no guarantee of future results. Current performance may be higher or lower than the performance data quoted. For performance information current to the most recent month-end, visit TouchstoneInvestments.com/home/pricingperformance/.

Investment products offered are not FDIC insured, may lose value and have no bank guarantee.

Company Press Release

NEW YORK, April 16, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- BNY Mellon, the global leader in investment management and investment services, has been selected by Touchstone Investments to provide mutual fund accounting and administration, transfer agency, and blue sky services for 14 additional Touchstone mutual funds. This brings the total number of Touchstone mutual funds being serviced by BNY Mellon to 56, representing more than $11 billion in assets and more than 200,000 shareholder accounts.

BNY Mellon also provides call center servicing and regulatory administration services for Touchstone's mutual funds.

"We have been impressed by BNY Mellon's technology and sophisticated service offering," said Steven Graziano, president of Touchstone Investments. "BNY Mellon has proven that it is committed to Touchstone's continued success and can support our needs as we act on our strategic goals to grow our business."

"We are pleased that Touchstone has expanded our relationship and recognized the efforts we are making to continually enhance client service and technology," said Nancy Wolcott, executive vice president, Global Financial Institutions client service delivery, at BNY Mellon. "We continue to invest in our middle- and back-office capabilities as mutual fund complexes increasingly focus on their core skills of money management and attracting new investors."

BNY Mellon currently provides fund accounting and administration services for more than 164 fund complexes with $1.3 trillion in assets in more than 1,500 funds, shareholder recordkeeping services to over 95 million shareholder accounts and middle-office outsourcing services to over 70 clients worldwide.

Touchstone Investments is a mutual fund company committed to providing investors with access to institutional asset managers who act in a sub-advisory capacity. While its sub-advisors are held to strict performance standards, they work with a large measure of independence and operate within their own demonstrated areas of expertise. Touchstone's rigorous asset manager evaluation process and robust oversight approach are designed to ensure delivery on Touchstone's commitment of achieving competitive long-term results. The Touchstone Funds are advised by Touchstone Advisors, Inc., a registered investment advisor, and are distributed nationally through intermediaries including broker-dealers, financial planners and institutions by Touchstone Securities, Inc., a registered broker-dealer and member FINRA/SIPC. For more information, please visit TouchstoneInvestments.com.

BNY Mellon Asset Servicing offers clients worldwide a broad spectrum of specialized asset servicing capabilities, including custody and fund services, securities lending, performance and analytics, and execution services. BNY Mellon Asset Servicing provides services through BNY Mellon and other related companies.

BNY Mellon is a global financial services company focused on helping clients manage and service their financial assets, operating in 36 countries and serving more than 100 markets. BNY Mellon is a leading provider of financial services for institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals, offering superior investment management and investment services through a worldwide client-focused team. It has $25.8 trillion in assets under custody and administration and $1.26 trillion in assets under management, services $11.8 trillion in outstanding debt and processes global payments averaging $1.5 trillion per day. BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation BK +0.20% . Additional information is available at www.bnymellon.com and through Twitter@bnymellon.



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