Manulife Investment Management will acquire London-based multisector alternative credit firm CQS, in a deal that will add $13.5 billion in assets under management to the global money manager.
Manulife IM will acquire the credit platform and the CQS brand, which will be aligned with Manulife’s brand as a co-branded logo where permitted, the Nov. 15 news release said. Financial terms were not disclosed, and the deal is set to be completed early next year.
CQS will continue to be led by CEO Soraya Chabarek and her fellow senior partners: Craig Scordellis, CIO credit, and Jason Walker, CIO asset-backed securities.
“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 of Manulife IM, in the release. “We are very excited for the opportunity as CQS’ capabilities are a complement to our existing fixed income and multiasset solutions business and a powerful addition to our global credit offering.”
Chabarek described Manulife IM as “the optimal long-term partner.”
A spokesperson said both firms are "excited about two areas of alignment." The first is that CQS is retaining its investment autonomy and will expand into Manulife IM's globally scaled distribution channels. The second is that CQS and Manulife IM have "aligning investment philosophies that are bottom-up at the team level to deliver alpha," an email said.
CQS's multisector alternative credit platform complements Manulife IM's existing public market fixed-income and multiasset solutions business, the spokesperson said.
CQS manages alternative credit strategies, including corporate credit, asset-backed securities, collateralized loan obligations and convertible bonds. It was founded in 1999 by Michael Hintze as a hedge fund firm. Hintze formed a senior partners group in 2021 to take higher equity stakes in the business and develop a firmwide strategy, according to Bloomberg. Hintze’s flagship strategy, the Directional Opportunities Fund, and certain related mandates are not included in the deal. Hintze will form his own firm to continue to manage his strategy on behalf of investors, the release said.
Details on CQS’ ownership were not disclosed, the spokesperson said.
Manulife IM has a total $746 billion in assets under management.
