KKR & Co agreed to a private credit loan of about A$500 million (S$447 million) from Blackstone and Goldman Sachs Asset Management to help finance its acquisition of Australian fund manager Perpetual’s corporate trust unit, according to people familiar with the matter.
The loan is structured as a covenant-lite unitranche deal that is a blend of senior and junior debt with no financial covenants, according to the people, who asked not to be identified as the matter is private. The loan pays an interest margin in the mid-500 basis points range.
KKR, Blackstone and Goldman Sachs Asset Management declined to comment.
Perpetual said last month KKR agreed to buy its wealth management and corporate trust units for A$2.2 billion. The deal highlights the growing importance of the US$1.7 trillion global private credit market for funding mergers and acquisitions in the face of elevated interest rates as traditional lenders have less risk appetite.
The private equity giant is raising separate financing for the wealth management businesses that will be leveraged at around four times earnings, the people said. Bloomberg
