Aligned Asset Managers is buying a 70% stake in real estate investment consulting firm Townsend Group, confirmed David Minella, Aligned CEO.
This is Aligned's first transaction, Mr. Minella said. The firm was formed in January by private equity firm GTCR to take 50% to 70% equity stakes in investment-related firms.
Thirteen Townsend employees will have ownership interest in the firm, up from eight currently. The consulting firm will retain its name.
Those employees will own 30% of the company and share in 10% of future profits, said Terry Ahern, Townsend's co-founder, president and CEO.
Financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter.
Mr. Ahern and Kevin Lynch, Townsend's other co-founder, signed five-year employment contracts.
In a letter to clients, Mr. Ahern said Townsend executives view the partnership with Aligned “as a critical next step in creating a global real estate platform capable of not only keeping pace in an ever-changing real asset investment market, but possessing the independent culture and thought leadership necessary to continue our mission.”
Townsend has $100 billion in assets under advisement for institutional investment clients.
