Investcorp, the Bahrain-based company that counts Mubadala Investment Company as its biggest shareholder, formed a partnership with a US advisory and merchant banking firm to jointly invest and pick up stakes in asset management companies.
Investcorp’s Strategic Capital Group founded last year to acquire minority stakes in established mid-sized alternative asset managers, including private equity, private debt, real estate, venture capital and hedge fund managers, entered into the partnership with Dock Square Capital - a firm founded by former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.
“Our partnership with Dock Square will allow us to establish and deepen our relationships with top alternative investment managers,” said Rishi Kapoor, co-chief executive of Investcorp. “They will further act as a resource for managers as we work with them to expand their franchise and enhance their longevity.”
Mr Bush, who is also the second son of former president George H W Bush, will serve on SCG’s strategic advisory board and Dock Square will act as a resource to SCG through its network and expertise across government, financial services and executive management in the US, Investcorp said.
Investcorp's SCG is being led by managing partner Anthony Maniscalco, who joined the company along with a team from Credit Suisse's Anteil Capital Partners in October 2018. He has previously served on the leadership team of Blackstone Strategic Capital Holdings, which managed a program focused on acquiring minority interests in alternative asset managers.
Investcorp, in which Mubadala holds a 20 per cent stake, has been on an acquisition spree in recent quarters. The company aims to double assets under management to about $50 billion (Dh183.5bn) over the next three years from $22.5bn at the end of December.
In April, the Bahrain-listed alternative investment manager acquired a portfolio of US properties, pushing its total investment into the country’s real estate market to $2bn in the past 18 months.
Since its inception in 1982, Investcorp has made more than 185 investments in the US, Europe and the broader Middle East and North Africa, including Turkey. The firm has invested across a range of sectors with the total transaction value exceeding $59bn.
Investcorp is looking to raise in excess of $7bn this year for acquisitions in the Arabian Gulf and Asia. It expects its GCC portfolio of $1bn to rise to as much as $2bn in the next five years as it eyes assets in social infrastructure including health care, education and entertainment.
