PE Deals

Blackstone forges partnership with Resolution Life and takes 6% stake

Blackstone will be Resolution Life’s investment manager for certain key areas, including directly originated assets across private credit, real estate and asset-based-finance markets.

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  • Blackstone has agreed to pay $500 million for a 6% stake in Resolution Life, according to sources close to the deal
  • The firm will manage up to $25 billion in the first year, growing to an expected $60 billion over the next six years
  • Blackstone and Resolution Life plan to raise $3 billion of new equity capital

Blackstone announced a strategic partnership with Resolution Life to support the company’s growth objectives. Blackstone has agreed to pay $500 million for a 6 percent stake in the global life and annuity insurance consolidation business, according to sources close to the deal.

The pair plan to raise $3 billion of new equity capital commitments, including the $500 million investment from New York-headquartered Blackstone, bringing the company’s overall equity capital base to more than $8 billion. The $3 billion would be raised through a newly established perpetual capital vehicle with Blackstone serving as the general partner. Resolution Life expects most of its investors to roll their investments into this vehicle.

The enlarged capital base will enable Resolution Life to rapidly scale its growth through acquisition, the firms said.

As part of the deal, Blackstone will become Resolution Life’s investment manager for certain key areas, including directly originated assets across the private credit, real estate and asset-based-finance markets. The firm will manage an initial target of up to $25 billion of Resolution Life’s existing private assets in the first year with that figure expected to rise to over $60 billion over the next six years.

“We believe that Blackstone’s world-class private credit and asset origination platform and Resolution Life’s leading position in the closed book consolidation market will be a powerful combination,” said Gilles Dellaert, global head of Blackstone Insurance Solutions. “We look forward to working closely with the Resolution Life team in the years ahead to help drive their growth.” 

Resolution Life is registered in Bermuda but its senior staff are based in London.