Janus Henderson Group, a leading global active asset manager, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in Victory Park Capital Advisors, LLC (“VPC”), a global private credit manager with a nearly two decade-long track record of providing customized private credit solutions to both established and emerging businesses. VPC complements Janus Henderson’s highly successful securitized credit franchise and expertise in public asset-backed securitized markets, and further expands the Company’s capabilities into the private markets for its clients.
Founded in 2007 by Richard Levy and Brendan Carroll and headquartered in Chicago, VPC invests across industries, geographies, and asset classes on behalf of its long-standing institutional client base. VPC has specialized in asset-backed lending since 2010, including in small business and consumer finance, financial and hard assets, and real estate credit. Its suite of investment capabilities also includes legal finance and custom investment sourcing and management for insurance companies. In addition, the firm offers comprehensive structured financing and capital markets solutions through its affiliate platform, Triumph Capital Markets. Since inception, VPC has invested approximately $10.3 billion across over 220 investments, and has assets under management of approximately $6.0 billion.
The Company expects that VPC will complement and build upon Janus Henderson’s $36.3 billion in securitized assets under management globally. Janus Henderson has been a pioneer in active securitized ETFs with innovative products including JAAA, the largest CLO ETF, JBBB, which provides exposure to floating-rate CLOs generally rated BBB, the recently launched JSI, which invests in opportunities across the U.S. securitized markets, and JMBS, the largest actively managed mortgage-backed securities ETF.
This partnership is highly synergistic and will enable mutually beneficial growth opportunities. VPC’s long-standing partnerships with global institutional clients, including insurance companies, pensions, endowments, and sovereign wealth funds, will enhance Janus Henderson’s position in the global institutional market. In addition, VPC’s investment capabilities tailored to insurance companies will expand Janus Henderson’s product offering for the Company’s growing insurance clientele. Janus Henderson’s global institutional and private wealth distribution platform and significant relationships with financial intermediaries will support the distribution and development of VPC products globally.
This acquisition marks another milestone in Janus Henderson’s client-led expansion of its private credit capabilities following the Company’s recent announcement that it will acquire the National Bank of Kuwait’s emerging markets private investments team, NBK Capital Partners, which is expected to close later this year.
“As we continue to execute on our client-led strategic vision, we are pleased to expand Janus Henderson’s private credit capabilities further with Victory Park Capital. 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. VPC’s investment capabilities in private credit and deep expertise in insurance align with the growing needs of our clients, further our strategic objective to diversify where we have the right, and amplify our existing strengths in securitized finance. We believe this acquisition will enable us to continue to deliver for our clients, employees, and shareholders,” said Ali Dibadj, Chief Executive Officer of Janus Henderson.
“We are excited to partner with Janus Henderson in VPC’s next phase of growth. This partnership is a testament to the strength of our established brand in private credit and differentiated expertise, and we believe it will enable us to scale faster, diversify our product offering, expand our distribution and geographic reach, and bolster our proprietary origination channels,” said Richard Levy, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Investment Officer, and Founder of VPC.
“As a leading active asset manager with a diverse, global presence, Janus Henderson is an ideal partner to support our high-caliber team and VPC’s continued expansion. We have known the Janus Henderson leadership team for many years and believe our organizations are aligned in our client-first mentality, commitment to disciplined investing, and shared values. This partnership creates tremendous value for clients through accelerated product development and cross-selling opportunities. We look forward to building on VPC’s successful track record together with Janus Henderson to continue to deliver differentiated private credit solutions for current and prospective investors and portfolio companies,” added Brendan Carroll, Senior Partner and Co-Founder of VPC.
The acquisition consideration comprises a mix of cash and shares of Janus Henderson common stock and is expected to be neutral-to-accretive to earnings per share in 2025. The acquisition is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2024 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.
Ardea Partners served as exclusive financial advisor to VPC. Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal counsel to VPC and Sheppard Mullin acted as legal counsel to Janus Henderson.