Bahrain’s Investcorp buys stake in private equity firm Centre Lane

Investcorp took a passive minority position in private equity firm Centre Lane Partners, the latest investment for the alternative-asset manager in the booming world of stake sales.

The deal was completed by Investcorp’s strategic capital group, the New York-based unit, that buys holdings in midsize general partners, according to a statement Wednesday.

Centre Lane plans to use the capital to expand its private-credit and special-opportunities platforms and to increase capital commitments toward its strategies. Terms of the transaction weren’t disclosed.

Firms are buying stakes in alternative-asset managers as investors seek different sources of yield and as aging founders look to pare their ownership. Neuberger Berman’s Dyal Capital Partners, Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s Petershill and Blackstone Group have each raised funds dedicated to the strategy.

The deals also give asset managers fresh cash to plow into new strategies.

Founded in 2007 by Quinn Morgan and Ken Lau, New York-based Centre Lane invests in the equity and debt of middle-market companies in North America.

The deal “will position us to even better serve our investors by further investing in our business as we continue to grow our existing strategies,” Morgan and Lau said in the statement.

Investcorp, which oversees more than $32bn, launched its GP investments business last year, hiring Anthony Maniscalco from Credit Suisse Group AG in 2018 to run the unit.