Two historic shipbroking names — dry bulk-focused Ifchor and tanker and sale-and-purchase specialist Galbraiths — are to merge to create a new global name in the slowly consolidating broking world.
Finally confirming frequently denied rumours that have been rumbling around the industry for several months, the two shops announced on Thursday that they are in the final stage of completing a share-for-share agreement that is expected to close in the next few weeks.
The duo said the new company — whose final name has yet to be formalised — will be headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, home to Ifchor’s current HQ. It will boast 20 offices with over 300 employees.
Ifchor co-chief executive Ghigo Ravano will take on the role of executive chairman.
His brother and Ifchor co-CEO Manu Ravano together with Galbraiths chief executive Bjorn Andersen will become joint CEOs of the merged venture, which is expected to begin trading at the start of the new year.
The companies said the new entity will invest in its core business, digitalisation and research while growing its global footprint to deliver what they describe as “a truly innovative brokerage and shipping advisory services platform”.
The new partners said they are committed to growing the merged group and will actively look to “expand and enhance” in areas such as gas, offshore, renewables and environmental transition services to keep pace with the increasingly sophisticated needs of customers and the industry.
No redundancies will be made, and any duplicate offices will be combined.
“Joining forces will allow the two firms to add value to customers combining their passion and dynamism with their long-standing presence in shipping,” they said.
The pair said their “key people” have played a crucial role in supporting the merger and are all “convinced by the added value” it will bring.
They said the two companies come together with strong financial positions, very similar corporate cultures and a set of complementary skills and offices.
No financial terms or valuations on the deal have been revealed as yet.
In a statement to clients and the industry, Manu and Ghigo Ravano said: “Bringing Ifchor and Galbraiths together makes for an exciting, innovative broking and advisory platform which is present in every shipping centre.”
The brothers highlighted that Ifchor is known for its dry bulk and continental Europe presence and Galbraiths for its long history in tankers and S&P.
“Both businesses are highly complementary with very little overlap and share the same commitment to delivering unparalleled client service with utmost professionalism,” they said.
Bjorn Andersen, their counterpart at Galbraiths, said: “Consolidation in shipping is the key to remaining competitive and the opportunity to combine forces with such a complementary partner in Ifchor is extremely exciting.
“The new combined entity will build on Galbraiths’ 177-year heritage and Ifchor’s impressive platform.
“We see the potential for a long-term future together and are excited by the prospect of building a privately held firm capable of competing with anyone in the market.”
- Due to start trading: Start of 2023
- Executive chairman: Ghigo Ravano
- Joint CEOs: Manu Ravano and Bjorn Andersen
- Headquarters: Lausanne, Switzerland
- Staff: Around 300
- Offices: 20 comprising Lausanne, Geneva, Zug, London, Genoa, Monaco, Copenhagen, Bergen, New York, Houston, Seattle, Tokyo, Seoul, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Melbourne, Mumbai, New Delhi and Dubai
- Areas of operations: dry bulk, tankers, offshore, renewables, sale and purchase, projects, research, advisory, environmental services
- Merger website: www.ifchorgalbraiths.com
