One Stone Global, an independent SEC registered investment adviser, has acquired the US office of Old Mutual Global Index Trackers, Old Mutual's South African passive portfolio management business.

With this acquisition, One Stone Global has become one of the largest minority-owned passive and smart beta investment advisers in the US with a full suite of passive and smart beta products available for investors.

The former CEO and founder of Old Mutual Global Index Trackers, Tendai Musikavanhu, will join One Stone as its CEO.

One Stone will focus specifically on providing global strategies to its institutional clients and maintain an alliance with Old Mutual.

Under the arrangement, Old Mutual will manage existing client portfolios and provide portfolio management services to certain future One Stone clients, leaving One Stone free to focus on product development, client servicing and business development activities.

Musikavanhu said: “Passive and smart-beta global strategies are increasingly important elements of large institutional portfolios, and we are thrilled to be one of the largest US minority-owned firms that provide these products.”

“In a country that is as diverse as the United States where 21.8% of its workforce employed in management and professional jobs are minority persons, only 1.1% of the assets saved by total US clients is managed by minority-owned firms. This disparity is too large to ignore or to persist,” he added.

Both firms see this acquisition as opening new growth paths through the combination of world class passive and smart beta portfolio management with One Stone Global's committed aim to be one of the leading minority-owned investment advisers in the US.

“The passive industry prides itself in providing diversification. It is time for it to provide diversity too,” said Musikavanhu.