Brookfield Asset Management and Castlelake to Enter into Strategic Partnership

Brookfield to acquire 51% interest in Castlelake’s fee-related earnings and invest in the firm’s funds and strategies, total capital amounting to $1.5B

BROOKFIELD NEWS, May 06, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE: BAM, TSX: BAM) (“Brookfield”) and Castlelake L.P. (“Castlelake”), an alternatives asset manager specializing in asset-based private credit including aviation and specialty finance, today announced that they have entered into an agreement whereby Brookfield will acquire a 51% stake in Castlelake’s fee-related earnings. The amount of capital to be invested will be approximately $1.5 billion, including capital to be invested in Castlelake’s investment strategies by Brookfield Reinsurance. The partnership will allow Castlelake and Brookfield to collaborate and expand Castlelake’s differentiated asset-based investment business.

Craig Noble, CEO of Brookfield Credit said, “We are thrilled to be partnering with Castlelake, a leading asset-based private credit business with an exceptional management team. There is strong demand for Castlelake’s leading private credit strategies, and tremendous growth potential in the asset class. We look forward to helping Castlelake scale their business, and the addition of their capabilities enables us to better serve our clients around the world. With growing demand from investors for diverse credit strategies, this multi-trillion market has significant tailwinds that will help drive the growth of our $300 billion credit business over the next decade.”

Castlelake was founded in 2005 by Rory O’Neill and Evan Carruthers and is one of the longest-tenured investment firms focused on asset-based investments. Its experience entails more than 18 years of execution and $39 billion of capital deployment across approximately 1,300 transactions globally. The firm manages approximately $22 billion of assets on behalf of more than 200 diverse institutional investors.

In a joint statement, Carruthers and O’Neill said, “In Brookfield, we believe we have found a like-minded partner that values experience and specialized expertise, and takes a disciplined, yet creative approach to delivering value for investors. We are excited about this partnership’s ability to enhance Castlelake’s value proposition, help accelerate its innovation, and scale its platform for the benefit of investors, business partners, and employees. Alongside the existing Executive Committee and senior leadership of Castlelake, and with the support of Brookfield’s significant credit franchise, we look forward to continuing to grow and evolve Castlelake into one of the foremost asset-based investment firms in the market.”