Amundi and ICG, Private Markets Asset Managers in Europe, Establish a Long-Term Strategic Alliance in Distribution, Product Development, and Shareholding
Specifically, Amundi will acquire a 9.9% economic stake in ICG, becoming a strategic shareholder without diluting existing ICG shareholders, thereby strengthening the long-term alliance.
A 10-Year Exclusive Distribution Agreement
Under the terms of the agreement, Amundi will be the exclusive global distributor in the wealth channel for ICG’s evergreen and other specific products for the next ten years. In turn, ICG will be the exclusive provider of these products for Amundi’s distribution business. Both firms have also committed to jointly developing new products specifically designed for and suited to wealth investors.
According to Amundi, “this partnership creates new and exciting opportunities for both parties.” It allows Amundi to benefit from ICG’s investment expertise and track record to accelerate its distribution of private assets, one of the most dynamic areas in asset management. Meanwhile, ICG will benefit from Amundi’s international distribution capabilities in the wealth channel and its structuring expertise in designing investment solutions for wealth clients—a high-growth segment in private markets.
Key Statements
“This alliance with ICG, a recognized and diversified leader in private markets, represents an outstanding opportunity to offer our retail clients and the entities and clients of the Crédit Agricole group access to high-performing strategies with a proven track record, traditionally reserved for institutional investors. This is fully aligned with Amundi’s strategic plan, which aims to reinforce our leadership by expanding our offering in promising segments supported by long-term trends. Such is the case with the private assets market, whose opening to wealth investors responds to their growing need for diversification and long-term retirement savings accumulation. This partnership opens up highly promising new opportunities for both parties and is expected to be a driver of profitable and sustainable growth for the benefit of all stakeholders,” said Valérie Baudson, CEO of Amundi.
Benoît Durteste, CEO and CIO of ICG, added: “Our long-term strategic partnership with Amundi marks a significant step forward in developing ICG’s strategy to access the wealth management channel in a way that is clearly complementary to and additive to our strong existing institutional offering. Combining ICG’s investment expertise and entrepreneurial mindset with Amundi’s structuring capabilities and broad distribution network creates a differentiated partnership with substantial potential and significantly accelerates our ability to access and shape evolving wealth management channels for private markets. At the heart of this relationship is a shared philosophy: that investment performance remains central to our long-term success. We are proud of our reputation for unwavering focus on delivering superior investment performance, and we are excited to work with Amundi to develop more products and strategies tailored to the important and growing wealth management market for private investments.”
First Steps
The firms explain that Amundi and ICG will initially focus on developing, during the first half of 2026, two perpetual European funds: a secondary private equity fund and a private debt fund. Both parties have also committed to developing a broader range of investment strategies and products suited for wealth investors. “This partnership will also allow Amundi to offer Crédit Agricole Assurances opportunities to diversify and expand its allocation to private assets, particularly in private debt,” they add.
The collaboration is expected to deliver significant value to stakeholders of both firms and reinforce their strategic positions and long-term ambitions in private markets.
Amundi’s Equity Investment in ICG
The firms note that Amundi’s equity investment in ICG underlines the strategic and long-term nature of the partnership, as Amundi intends to acquire an economic stake of up to 9.9% that will not dilute the holdings of existing ICG shareholders. Amundi will appoint a non-executive director to ICG’s board, allowing it to actively participate in the group’s strategic decisions. Within Amundi, the investment will be fully accounted for using the equity method.
Two Players With Complementary Expertise
Currently, ICG manages nearly $125 billion (€108 billion) in assets on behalf of primarily institutional clients across various strategies in structured capital, private equity secondaries, private debt, credit, and real assets. Meanwhile, Amundi manages €70 billion in private market assets, primarily built around real estate and multi-management activities, strengthened in 2024 by the acquisition of Alpha Associates.
The companies highlight that the partnership between ICG and Amundi will allow more than 200 million retail investors served through Amundi’s global distribution network to access a range of diversified, high-performing private market strategies from ICG through products specifically aimed at wealth management and retirement planning. “Amundi has recognized expertise in structuring investment vehicles suited for this clientele (including evergreen funds, closed-end funds, blended strategies, and ELTIFs). It serves a network of over 600 distributors, including retail banks, private banks, asset managers, insurers, and digital platforms, as well as the regional banks Crédit Agricole, LCL, and Indosuez Wealth Management,” they state.
