Merger to Create $73B Alternative Investment Firm

Alternative assets manager FS Investments says it is merging with Portfolio Advisors in a deal that could more than double its asset level to $73 billion. The transaction, the financial details of which were not disclosed, would make Portfolio Advisors an institutional investments unit of FS.

Currently, FS has some $35 billion in assets under management, while Portfolio Advisors, a private asset specialist, has over $38 billion in AUM. 

“This transaction is transformative for FS Investments, accelerating our efforts to broaden our institutional client base, diversify our offerings to include growth-oriented products such as private equity, and deepen our in-house investment capabilities,” according to FS chairman and CEO Michael Forman.

FS is based in Philadelphia, and its products include nontraded REITs and closed-end mutual funds. Portfolio Advisors is headquartered in Darien, Connecticut, and distributes its funds via selling agreements with wirehouse firms, RIAs and independent broker-dealers; it recently launched a private-equity fund for wealth management and institutional clients.