British asset manager abrdn said on Thursday it would buy privately held online investment platform interactive investor for 1.49 billion pounds ($1.98 billion).

Interactive investor Chief Executive Officer Richard Wilson will join abrdn and continue to lead the platform, the asset manager said in a statement.

Banks and asset managers are looking at ways to capture a new breed of investors who tend to be younger and invest directly through platforms, rather than seeking financial advice.

Abrdn is buying interactive investor, which has around 55 billion pounds in assets under administration, from shareholders including a fund advised by private equity firm JC Flowers and members of interactive investor's management, it said.

“This is a unique opportunity and a transformative step in delivering our growth strategy," abrdn CEO Stephen Bird said.

Wilson said that the deal meant interactive investor would have access to "abrdn’s additional capabilities across research, advice and wealth management services".

($1 = 0.7509 pounds)

(Reporting by Sachin Ravikumar in Bengaluru and Carolyn Cohn in London; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi and Huw Jones)