Tocqueville's gold investment team of senior portfolio manager John Hathaway and portfolio managers Douglas Groh and Ryan McIntyre will join Sprott Asset Management.
Sprott will pay Tocqueville up to $50 million comprised of a $10 million cash payment at closing and $5 million in Sprott shares. Tocqueville can receive an additional $30 million in cash and $5 million in Sprott shares subject to the achievement of certain financial performance conditions over the two years following closing.
"John Hathaway and his team are among the world's most respected gold equities managers and we have enjoyed an excellent working relationship during the planning and launch of our joint venture over the past year. This transaction is a natural extension of that partnership, through which John will become a Sprott shareholder," said Sprott president Whitney George.
Under an agreement between the two firms Tocqueville will transfer the management of gold strategies managed or sub-advised by the Tocqueville gold investment team for various clients to Sprott including the Tocqueville Gold Fund (TGLDX) and certain other institutional accounts.
Sprott already runs the SPDR gold shares fund, one of the largest gold exchange traded funds in the world.
"We believe that this transaction is an excellent fit for our mutual fund shareholders and our clients. It ensures us continued participation in the gold space, as well as access to the best investment talent and resources in the sector," said Tocqueville president, CEO and chief investment officer Robert Kleinschmidt.
The transaction remains subject to various approvals and is expected to close in January 2020. Seward & Kissel LLP represented Tocqueville in connection with this transaction.
