GLOBAL – Blackstone has acquired a fund-of-funds business that specialises in acquiring secondary stakes in private equity vehicles, including real estate funds.
Blackstone announced it closed the deal to acquire Strategic Partners more than three months after it had reached an agreement with the seller, Credit Suisse.
Strategic Partners buys secondary interests in private equity, real estate and venture capital funds from investors that want to liquidate their investments, and has $10bn (€7.5bn) under management.
Founded in 2000, Strategic Partners has acquired more than 1,500 limited partnership interests, raising more than $11bn in capital commitments.
Its encompasses various strategies: leveraged buyout, mezzanine, real estate, venture capital, funds-of-funds, infrastructure and distressed debt.
Stephen Can and Verdun Perry lead a team of 29 professionals.
When the deal was announced in April, Tony James, president and CIO at Blackstone, said Strategic Partners complemented Blackstone's existing business, and he expected it would expand into new product areas, though he did not specify which ones.
For Credit Suisse, the sale is part of a strategic divestment plan announced a year ago that sets out its intention to sell its more illiquid private equity businesses and move into more liquid alternative strategies.
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