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Omni Bridgeway and Ares Management complete landmark secondary market transaction for legal assets, valued at A$320 million
ARESAres(ARES) Prnewswire·2025-04-15 13:36

Core Insights - Omni Bridgeway and Ares Management have completed a strategic transaction to establish Omni Bridgeway Fund 9, which includes a diversified global portfolio of over 150 legal assets [1][2] - Ares acquired a 70% interest in Omni Bridgeway Fund 9 for approximately A320million,resultinginaday−1cashmultipleoninvestedcapitalexceeding3xforOmniBridgeway[2]−Thetransactionissignificantasitrepresentsthefirstcontinuationfundinthelegalfinanceindustryandoneofthelargestsecondarymarkettransactionsinscopeandsize[2][6]CompanyInsights−OmniBridgewayisaglobalalternativeassetmanagerspecializinginlegalassets,withapproximatelyA320 million, resulting in a day-1 cash multiple on invested capital exceeding 3x for Omni Bridgeway [2] - The transaction is significant as it represents the first continuation fund in the legal finance industry and one of the largest secondary market transactions in scope and size [2][6] Company Insights - Omni Bridgeway is a global alternative asset manager specializing in legal assets, with approximately A3.5 billion in cumulative capital raised across 11 funds and a track record of over 35 years [7] - The company has a team of 175 professionals operating from over 20 locations in 15 countries, making it the largest and most diversified fund platform for managing legal assets [7] - The transaction has allowed Omni Bridgeway to fully deleverage its balance sheet while providing significant added working capital, enhancing liquidity for reinvestment in new funds [3][6] Industry Insights - The transaction highlights the increasing interest of institutional investors in legal assets due to their attractive, asymmetrical, and uncorrelated return profile, especially in a volatile capital markets environment [4] - Ares Management's selection of Omni Bridgeway reflects the global scale, diversification, and long-term track record of Omni Bridgeway's portfolio, showcasing the value of its institutional-grade asset management platform [5] - The deal demonstrates that deep pools of institutional secondary capital are available to increase liquidity and mitigate duration risk for well-managed portfolios of legal assets [6]