Janus Henderson expands private debt capabilities with acquisition of Victory Park Capital

August 14, 2024 (Preqin News) – London-based Janus Henderson will acquire a 55% stake in Victory Park Capital (VPC), a $6bn AUM private credit fund manager headquartered in Chicago, as the firm seeks to expand its asset-backed lending and alternative asset capabilities.

The transaction will provide Janus Henderson, which has an overall AUM of $361.4bn, access to VPC’s tailored investment approach for insurance companies, and its affiliate structured financing and capital markets solutions platform, Triumph Capital Markets.

‘Asset-backed lending has emerged as a significant market opportunity within private credit, as clients increasingly look to diversify their private credit exposure beyond only direct lending,’ Ali Dibadj, CEO of Janus Henderson, said in the deal announcement.

The VPC deal follows the acquisition of National Bank of Kuwait’s private investments team in May, as part of the firm’s new emerging markets private capital division, aiming to deepen institutional relationships across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and North Africa.

So far this year, VPC’s deals have included a $225mn refinancing of Australian fintech company Zip Co, a $100mn credit facility with real estate financing provider Sétanta Development Capital, and a $50mn delayed draw term loan for alcohol-focused private equity firm InvestBev. VPC has invested approximately $10.3bn over 220 investments since its inception in 2007.

Over half (58.9%) of investors surveyed for Preqin’s Investor Outlook H2 2024 said that private debt had met their expectations in the past 12 months, with 27.5% saying that the asset class had exceeded expectations. In the next 12 months, 41.9% of LPs are maintaining allocations to the asset class and 49.9% are committing more capital, with just 8.2% of investors looking to decrease their allocation.

Following this sustained interest, fund managers have expanded their private debt capabilities by acquiring specialist firms. For example, Arrow Global acquired Iberian private and real estate debt manager Amitra Capital from CPP Investments in May, and German real estate manager Interboden in June. Paris-headquartered Sienna Investment Managers bought Italian credit manager Ver Capital in April, with the tie-up bringing their combined private debt AUM to approximately $3bn.

Preqin forecasts that private debt AUM will reach $2.8tn by 2028. However, this forecast may prove conservative if banks continue to be cautious in extending loans, according to the Preqin 2024 Global Report: Private Debt.

_{The opinions and facts included within the above do not constitute investment advice. Professional advice should be sought before making any investment or other decisions. Preqin providing the information in this content accepts no liability for any decisions taken in relation to the above.}