UBS finds Credit Suisse buyer

UBS Group AG has agreed to sell a 36.01% holding in Credit Suisse Securities (China) Ltd. to Beijing State-owned Assets Management Co. for $91.4 million, dealing a blow to the ambitions of Ken Griffin’s Citadel Securities to expand in China, reports Bloomberg. Founder Securities Co. Ltd. will also sell its entire 49% stake in the venture for $124 million.

That gives the Beijing firm an 85.01% majority stake, according to a statement. UBS will retain 15% after the sale, confirming an earlier report by Bloomberg News.

The announcement brings the months-long rivalry for Credit Suisse’s investment bank in China to an end, in which Citadel Securities had bid for the firm to help it build a local platform for its market-making capabilities. The sale is a consequence of UBS’s acquisition of its Swiss rival in an emergency rescue last year, which left it with two domestic brokerages in the country.