Private markets division boosts Pengana’s FY24 FUM
Pengana Capital Group has reported funds under management (FUM) of $3.35 billion at the end of June.
This is up from $3.16 billion at the end of May.
At the start of the financial year, the firm had $3.05 billion in FUM, demonstrating growth of 9.6 per cent over the 12 months.
The growth during the year is a positive move after FUM declined from $3.32 billion to $3.05 billion in the previous financial year.
In an ASX statement, the asset manager said it earned a performance fee of $3.2 million during the year, having not earned any at the same time a year ago.
Pengana will pay distributions (net of reinvestment) of $62.5 million in July, which will be reflected in the July FUM update.
During the financial year the firm embarked on several strategic initiatives, much of which focused on private markets.
A new dedicated capital markets division was launched in February 2023 as the asset class was seeing escalating interest from sophisticated investors.
In October, it launched its first diversified global private credit investment fund following a joint venture agreement with Washington H. Soul Pattinson to fund the capital markets division with a $200 million seed investment. It also appointed consulting firm Mercer to act as an investment adviser on its portfolio construction.
To lead the division, it appointed Nehemiah Richardson as Pengana Credit’s managing director and chief executive, while Charles Finkelstein was appointed chief investment officer.
The wholesale Pengana Diversified Private Credit Fund targets a total net return equivalent to the RBA cash rate plus 8 per cent, with a minimum three-year lock-up period and annual distributions for investors.
This was followed by an IPO for its Pengana Global Private Credit Trust which raised $160 million when it closed on 11 June.
The fund will be invested in over 2,000 individual loans across 19 underlying managers curated by Mercer, providing access to a highly diversified portfolio across the US and Europe. It also utilises a quarterly off-market buyback offering which will allow investors to make redemptions at net asset value on a quarterly basis.
Pengana has said it expects private credit to “be a major growth engine” for the business over the coming years.
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
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