Manulife Investment Management to acquire CQS

• Manulife will acquire the CQS credit platform and the CQS brand
• The transaction is expected to close in early 2024
• Manulife is a wealth and asset management affiliate of Manulife Financial Corp

Manulife Investment Management has agreed to acquire CQS, a London-based multi-sector alternative credit manager.

Manulife will acquire the CQS credit platform and the CQS brand upon completion of the transaction.  CQS credit platform has around $13.5 billion in assets under management as of 31 October.

“CQS brings to our portfolio a proven investment process, robust performance, and expertise across market cycles, and a culture that has attracted both talent and flows into the firm,” said Paul Lorentz, president and CEO, Manulife. “We are very excited for the opportunity as CQS’s capabilities are a complement to our existing fixed income and multi-asset solutions business and a powerful addition to our global credit offering.”

CQS will continue to be led by its CEO Soraya Chabarek and Craig Scordellis, CIO Credit, and Jason Walker, CIO ABS.

Manulife intends to align CQS with the Manulife brand as a co-branded logo – Manulife | CQS Investment Management, the release said.

CQS’ founder Lord Hintze’s hedge fund, the Directional Opportunities Fund, and certain related mandates are not included in the transaction.

The transaction is expected to close in early 2024, subject to regulatory approvals.

No financial terms of the transaction were disclosed.

Manulife is a wealth and asset management affiliate of Manulife Financial Corp, a Canadian insurance and financial services company. It is based in Toronto, Ontario.