Brief: London-based hedge fund Cheyne Capital is planning a new vehicle to buy up debt that’s been excessively punished by the coronavirus selloff, the latest in a number of investment firms targeting distressed credit. The firm is seeking to raise 300 million euros ($325 million) and will launch the fund as soon as next month, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Cheyne will buy up bonds and loans that it deems are now cheap and sell them once they’ve recovered, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. A spokeswoman for Cheyne declined to comment on the new vehicle. Investment firms around the globe that target distressed debt are seeking to make the most of the chaos wrought by the coronavirus pandemic by setting up new funds. Oaktree Capital Group LLC, Highbridge Capital Management and Chenavari Investment Managers are among those who are raising capital to invest in discounted debt.
Brief: JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s asset-management arm has launched a new fund to take advantage of dislocations in the public and private real estate credit markets, according to a person familiar with the matter. JPMorgan Asset Management is looking to raise $2 billion to $3 billion from institutional investors for the Real Estate Credit Opportunity Fund, according to the person, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The vehicle will target 10% to 15% net returns investing in bonds and pools of loans tied to commercial real estate, according to documents viewed by Bloomberg. The fund will invest in strategies including structured credit, rescue loan origination and both performing and non-performing loan acquisition, the documents said. A JPMorgan Asset Management spokesman declined to comment.
Brief: Covid-19 is threatening another mergers and acquisitions process. Kohlberg & Co. is trying to back out of its $550m agreement to buy Decopac, claiming the company has suffered a material adverse effect, according to a lawsuit. Snow Phipps, a New York middle market private equity firm, has sued Kohlberg, alleging the firm has acted in bad faith, has breached its stock purchase agreement to buy Decopac and refused to secure financing on the terms it initially set out, according to a lawsuit filed 17 April in Chancery Court in Delaware. Snow Phipps is seeking specific performance to make Kohlberg complete the sale, the filing said. Kohlberg, of Mount Kisco, NY, agreed on 6 March to buy Decopac, which supplies and markets cake decorating products. Snow Phipps claims that Kohlberg knew about Covid-19 and the seriousness of the virus when it signed the agreement.
Brief: Assets under management at Allianz SE fell 6.2% in the first quarter, as subsidiary Pacific Investment Management Co. recorded net outflows of €43 billion ($47.5 billion). Total AUM was €2.13 trillion as of March 31, an increase of 1.4% for the year, an update said Tuesday. Group revenue grew 20% for the quarter and 5.7% for the year, to €42.6 billion. Net income dropped 17.9% for the quarter and fell 27.7% for the year ended March 31, to €1.48 billion. Third-party assets under management — made up of Allianz Global Investors and PIMCO — fell 7.7% in the first quarter to €1.56 trillion. Third-party AUM grew 0.6% for the year. Third-party net outflows were €46.4 billion in the first quarter. That compared to €20 billion and €18 billion in net inflows for the quarters ended Dec. 31 and March 31, 2019, respectively.
Brief: SkyBridge Capital, the investment firm founded by Anthony Scaramucci, is turning to some of the biggest names in the hedge fund industry to boost returns after its portfolio lost almost a quarter of its value this year. The firm is investing $100 million each in Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates and Howard Marks’s Oaktree Capital Group, according to a letter sent to clients on Monday. The fund-of-funds will allocate an additional $90 million to Dan Loeb’s Third Point. Scaramucci said all three performed well in the last financial crisis and in other periods of market dislocation. “We believe our investors will be better served -- in good and bad markets -- by greater diversification across different strategies and across different managers,” he wrote. “We learned hard lessons in March, and we are taking decisive corrective action.” SkyBridge’s flagship fund lost nearly 24% in the first four months of the year. After investing heavily in credit hedge funds, the fund posted most of the losses in March as the coronavirus fueled a market sell-off. Clients have asked to redeem 9.3% of capital for June 30, an amount Scaramucci called “manageable.”
Brief: TIAA-CREFis offering a voluntary separation program for 75% of its U.S. employees, which includes employees ofNuveen, TIAA's investment manager.The 25% of employees not eligible for the program "involve certain groups that are involved in processes and technology necessary to conduct business, and some critical client support roles," TIAA said in an emailed statement. The program offers 45 to 91 weeks' salary, depending on length of service and salary, 100% of last year's bonus and six months of outplacement assistance, the email said. "As we navigate through these unprecedented times, we are exploring a variety of measures to reduce costs while managing our business and continuing to serve our clients. As part of that process, we have introduced a voluntary separation program for our employees, which is designed to give our people the ability to decide what's best for them," the company said in the statement…