CIFC Asset Management Acquires LBC Credit Partners
Posted on 12/13/2021
CIFC Asset Management LLC agreed to buy Radnor, PA-based LBC Credit Partners Inc., a U.S. middle-market direct lending firm supporting sponsored and non-sponsored transactions. LBC Credit Partners was founded in 2005 and has over US$ 3 billion of assets under management. As a result of the acquisition, LBC’s team and investment funds will become part of the CIFC platform as a subsidiary and continue to trade as LBC. LBC’s investment strategy, senior management, origination, underwriting and research, and portfolio management processes will remain unchanged. LBC will also retain its offices in the Philadelphia area and Chicago and four regional origination offices in New York, Cleveland, Atlanta, and Los Angeles.
Pennsylvania Private Capital
Ira M. Lubert founded Radnor Venture Partners, Safeguard’s first venture fund, in 1986. Lubert co-founded Lubert-Adler Management Co, L.P. (1997), LLR Walnut, L.P. (LLR Partners) (1999), Quaker Partners Management, L.P. (2002), LEM Capital, L.P. (2002), LBC Credit Management, L.P. (2005), and Patriot Financial Partners, L.P. (2007). Lubert is also the founder of Independence Capital Partners. The “LBC” in LBC Credit Partners stands for Ira Lubert, John Brignola, Nate Cohen, and Chris Calabrese (exited LBC in 2018).
John Brignola joined AT&T Capital before it was acquired by PPM Finance in 1998 and then worked at a hedge fund before LBC was created. Brignola and Nate Cohen, who worked at LLR Partners in special situations investing, connected and had talks to create LBC. LBC Credit Partners launched its first fund called LBC I in October 2005 with US$ 300 million of equity capital. In February 2010, LBC pushed out its second fund LBC II with US$ 645 million in equity capital. In April 2021, LBC Credit Partners V, L.P. raised US$ 808 million of equity capital commitments.
CIFC
Founded in 2005, CIFC Asset Management LLC is an alternative credit specialist serving institutional investors globally with US$ 35 billion in assets under management at October 31, 2021.
On August 19, 2016, Jersey-based investment platform F.A.B. Partners acquired CIFC Asset Management for approximately US$ 333 million in cash when CIFC had US$ 14 billion in AUM at the time. F.A.B. is a global alternative investment platform that focuses on originating, structuring and actively managing investments across geographies and asset classes. F.A.B. was founded by former senior ex-Deutsche Bank employees Michele Faissola, Dalinc Ariburnu, and Nizar Al-Bassam, each of whom has significant capital markets and investment management experience. F.A.B. changed its name to Centricus Partners Holdings Ltd.
In May 2017, Centricus acquired a majority stake in London-based equities hedge fund manager Halkin Asset Management.