TOKYO, Sept 17 (Reuters) - French Bank Societe Generale's Lyxor Asset Management has contacted several companies on an acquisition or partnership to expand its exchange-traded fund business in the United States, Lyxor's chief executive said.
Lyxor, which is the No.2 provider of ETFs in Europe and No.4 globally, is eager to expand in the United States, the world's largest ETF market, as the French asset manager does not have a strong presence there, Lyxor CEO Laurent Seyer told Reuters in an interview in Tokyo on Friday.
"I do not rule out the fact that we might make some acquisitions or partnerships in some specific region that would come on top of this organic growth and would help us to grow even faster in assets in some regions," Seyer said.
"In particular, I have in mind the U.S. ETF market. It is by far the largest market in the world for the ETF market and we are not present in the U.S," he said.
Seyer said the French asset manager had already contacted several companies, but declined to identify them.
Lyxor is currently reviewing its strategic options to penetrate the U.S. ETF market, Seyer said.
"I want to make a decision before the end of the year. Therefore, implementation probably (would be) next year."
Lyxor, which manages $120 billion in assets, expects its assets to grow on average by about 10 to 15 percent per year for the next three years, Seyer said. (Reporting by Chikafumi Hodo; Editing by Edmund Klamann)