By Hadeel Al Sayegh and Federico Maccioni
DUBAI (Reuters) -Global asset manager Janus Henderson plans to buy National Bank of Kuwait's alternative investments business in a deal that is expected to strengthen its position in emerging markets and its access to clients in the Middle East.
As part of the deal, the team at NBK Capital Partners (NBKCP) will join the $353 billion asset manager as the firm's new emerging markets private capital division, according to a joint statement on Thursday.
The value of the transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, was not disclosed.
NBKCP's Director Yaser Moustafa told Reuters that the Kuwaiti bank will retain the legacy funds - worth over $600 million of fee-paying assets under management, while NBKCP team will take care of their day-to-day management under Janus Henderson.
NBK Capital Partners advises across emerging markets including the Middle East and North Africa, and its private credit strategy has attracted investment from some of the region's biggest sovereign wealth funds.
Money managers are vying for a slice of the growing private credit market that emerged after the 2008 financial crisis. Private credit funds are increasingly competing with banks, including for financing large company buyouts.
That has attracted the attention of sovereign wealth funds in the Gulf, including Mubadala Investment Company, Qatar Investment Authority and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.
The deal is "expected to provide Janus Henderson with the access to engage with new clients in the Middle East, and globally, who want to actively invest in emerging markets, thereby expanding its footprint in the region," the statement said.
NBKCP, which operates from Abu Dhabi's financial centre ADGM, will retain its investment independence and will receive strategic support from Janus Henderson as part of the relationship across the entire platform.
The NBKCP team is expected to join Janus Henderson in the second quarter, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
Janus Henderson also plans to launch a number of emerging markets focused alternatives strategies in the second half of 2024.
"We'll be out in the market with a new vehicle in September", Moustafa said, adding that NBKCP hopes to raise an overall $400 million for the fund, with Henderson acting as anchor investor.
"I would expect us to continue to grow sub-Saharan. We see a tremendous opportunity there" and "I would expect us to look east towards India, which is obviously a very large market," he said.