Phoenix Duff to Invest in GMG/Seneca

Phoenix Duff & Phelps Corp. said it will buy a majority stake in GMG/Seneca Capital Management, a San Francisco-based money manager with more than $4 billion in assets. The companies wouldn’t say how much of GMG/Seneca was being sold, but said that the transaction values GMG/Seneca as a whole at $54 million. Phoenix Duff & Phelps, majority-owned by Hartford, Conn.-based Phoenix Home Life Mutual Insurance Co., manages over $33 billion in assets. Under the arrangement, GMG/Seneca management will remain in charge of operations and keep an equity share. Phoenix Duff & Phelps signed a letter of intent with GMG/Seneca in February. Earlier this month, Phoenix Duff & Phelps acquired Pasadena-based money manager Roger Engemann & Associates Inc.