Brookfield in Talks to Buy Majority Stake in $22B Castlelake

Alternative investment behemoth Brookfield Asset Management is in advanced talks with Castlelake to acquire a majority stake in the $22 billion private credit management, which specializes in aircraft leasing, according to a report by the Financial Times.

According to three unnamed sources, the planned acquisition would see Brookfield invest more than $1.5 billion in Minneapolis-based Castlelake, as well as a significant investment in its funds.

Castlelake provides funding to several large airlines, including United Airlines and Turkish Airlines. If a deal is reached, the company would be included in Brookfield’s newly established credit subsidiary, which already owns a majority stake in Oaktree Capital Management.

The discussions between Brookfield and Castlelake, which are reportedly in the final stages but may still fail, are part of a larger trend in which several large private equity and asset management firms, including TPG, BlackRock, T Rowe Price, and CVC Capital Partners, have acquired credit managers to diversify their assets.

Castlelake, founded in 2005 by co-CEOs Rory O’Neill and Evan Carruthers, specializes in real assets, specialty finance, and aircraft investing. It manages capital for over 200 organizations, including endowments, pension plans, family offices, insurance companies, and sovereign wealth funds.