Blue Owl Capital entered into a definitive purchase agreement to acquire Wellfleet Credit Partners from affiliates of Littlejohn & Co. The transaction is expected to close in March 2022 and is subject to customary closing conditions. The purchase price consists of upfront and earnout payments, which will be primarily funded by cash. Upon closing, Wellfleet will become part of Blue Owl’s Owl Rock division, reporting into Craig Packer, co-founder and a senior managing director of Blue Owl.
“We are excited to welcome Scott, Dennis and the rest of the Wellfleet team. Wellfleet adds a complementary, scalable business to Owl Rock’s existing platform of credit solutions. Wellfleet’s unique expertise, together with its deep institutional knowledge of the syndicated loan market and strong credit research platform, will enhance the overall strategic capabilities of the Owl Rock business,” Packer said.
Founded in 2015 as the performing credit arm of Littlejohn, a private investment firm based in Greenwich, CT, Wellfleet focuses on the management of CLO portfolios of broadly syndicated leveraged loans. Wellfleet also invests in third-party CLO equity and junior mezzanine tranches on behalf of separately managed accounts. The platform manages 16 CLOs with more than $6.5 billion in assets under management as of Dec. 31, 2021 and is led by seasoned leveraged finance professionals Scott McKay and Dennis Talley. Following the closing of the transaction, both McKay and Talley will continue serving as lead portfolio managers for the platform as employees of Blue Owl.
“The Wellfleet team is excited to partner with Blue Owl as the cultural and strategic fit will further enhance our leadership in the products we manage,” McKay said. “We would also like to thank the partners at Littlejohn for their seven years of unyielding support and look forward to their ongoing investment in Wellfleet managed funds.”
“Scott and Dennis helped build a highly successful, scalable and enduring CLO franchise that is poised for continued growth,” Michael Klein, CEO of Littlejohn, said. “We wish them continued success.”
Kirkland & Ellis acted as legal counsel and GreensLedge served as financial advisor to Blue Owl. Stradley Ronon acted as legal counsel to Littlejohn.
