SEB Asset Management America, a subsidiary of Swedish financial services giant SEB, has become the top ranking US fixed income provider for intermediate duration bonds, according to a survey from Investorforce, the US-based online research and consulting firm.

The Americas unit of SEB Asset Management is up for sale and a management buy-out has been viewed as the most likely outcome. But in spite of the uncertainty surrounding its future ownership, its performance is stellar. The unit has returned 18.35% in the year to March 31, 2003, compared to the Lehman Aggregate index at 11.68%.