MetLife to Acquire Logan Circle Partners for $250M

7/8/17

NEW YORK & PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) and Fortress Investment Group LLC (NYSE: FIG) announced a definitive agreement for MetLife to acquire Logan Circle Partners, L.P., Fortress’ traditional fixed income asset management business, for approximately $250 million in cash. Following the anticipated separation of Brighthouse Financial next month and assuming the closing of the Logan Circle Partners acquisition, MetLife’s Investment Management business (MIM) would have more than $560 billion in total assets under management, of which more than $140 billion would be managed on behalf of third parties.

Logan Circle Partners is a fundamental research-based investment manager providing institutional clients actively managed investment solutions across a broad spectrum of fixed income strategies. The Logan Circle Partners senior investment team has on average more than 20 years of investment management experience and has been working together since 2000. The firm has more than 100 institutional clients and more than $33 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2017. Logan Circle Partners shares MetLife’s focus on investment performance, client service, and risk management.

“This transaction is directly aligned with our enterprise strategy to deliver value by focusing on businesses with strong risk-adjusted internal rates of returns, low capital intensity and sustainable cash flows,” said Steven A. Kandarian, chairman, president and CEO, MetLife, Inc. “Logan Circle Partners will bring a talented team with a track record of outperformance and an established consultant distribution platform to our Investment Management business. We are delighted to welcome the Logan Circle Partners team to MetLife.”

Steven J. Goulart, executive vice president and chief investment officer, MetLife, Inc., added, “Logan Circle Partners has built a strong, scalable, fee-based asset management business, driven by idea generation and an investment process that has delivered superior performance for its institutional clients. Joining Logan Circle Partners with MetLife’s Investment Management business will enable us to offer our domestic and international clients a broader set of investment solutions and will significantly enhance our reach in the consultant distribution channel. We will also benefit from a significant increase in scale by combining Logan Circle Partners with our fixed income platform.”

Jude T. Driscoll, Logan Circle Partners founder, chief executive officer and chief investment officer, said, “We are excited to join MetLife and believe our collective resources across the fixed income spectrum will enable us to enhance our best-in-class investment management and client service capabilities. Our team's core focus and objectives will remain unchanged—delivering returns through research-driven portfolios built on in-depth fundamental research. This is an ideal combination for our investors and our team."

Transaction Details

Under the terms of the agreement, MetLife will acquire 100 percent of Fortress’ ownership stake in Logan Circle Partners.

This transaction will not impact MetLife’s existing $3 billion repurchase authorization, which is expected to be completed by year-end 2017.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2017.

Moelis & Company LLC served as financial advisor and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP served as legal counsel to MetLife. BofA Merrill Lynch served as financial advisor and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP served as legal counsel to the seller.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), through its subsidiaries and affiliates ("MetLife"), is one of the largest life insurance companies in the world. Founded in 1868, MetLife is a global provider of life insurance, annuities, employee benefits and asset management. Serving approximately 100 million customers, MetLife has operations in nearly 50 countries and holds leading market positions in the United States, Japan, Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.metlife.com.

About Logan Circle Partners

Logan Circle Partners is an institutionally-focused, fundamental research-based investment manager providing clients actively managed investment solutions across a broad spectrum of fixed income strategies. The Logan Circle Partners senior investment team has on average more than 20 years of investment management experience and has been working together since 2000. The firm serves more than 100 institutional clients and had more than $33 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2017. For more information regarding Logan Circle Partners, please visit www.logancirclepartners.com.

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