• KKR & Co. Inc. has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Arctos Partners, a leading institutional investor in professional sports franchise stakes and asset management solutions for sponsors.
• The transaction is valued at $1.4 billion in initial consideration, including equity vesting through 2033, plus up to $550 million in additional future equity tied to KKR share price, business performance targets, and vesting through 2031.
• Founded in 2019 by Ian Charles and David O’Connor and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Arctos is the largest institutional investor in professional sports franchises.
• Arctos manages approximately $15 billion in assets under management and provides capital solutions through Arctos Sports (sports franchises) and Arctos Keystone (GP solutions).
• Arctos is recognized for its structured growth and liquidity solutions for sports franchises and alternative asset managers.
• Managing Partners Ian Charles and Doc O’Connor highlighted KKR’s strategic, financial, and operational resources as key to accelerating Arctos’ growth and expanding relationships with leagues, teams, GPs, and sponsors.
• KKR Co-CEOs Joe Bae and Scott Nuttall emphasized Arctos’ strengths in sports investing, GP solutions, and secondaries, as well as strong cultural alignment and entrepreneurial fit with KKR.
• The acquisition supports KKR’s strategy of scaling its platform by acquiring complementary businesses in large, high-growth addressable markets.
• Arctos provides KKR with a differentiated entry into sports franchise investing, a sector with strong historical and expected long-term value appreciation.
• As a top-five GP solutions provider, Arctos’ Keystone platform delivers flexible, non-dilutive capital solutions to private market GPs.
• The GP solutions segment has experienced rapid growth and is expected to continue expanding, with Arctos gaining enhanced flexibility and scale under KKR.
• The acquisition creates a new platform for KKR to build and scale a leading secondaries and solutions business.
• The partnership strengthens KKR’s wealth and institutional distribution, as sports and GP solutions resonate strongly with high-net-worth and mass-affluent investors.
• Following the transaction, perpetual and long-dated capital is expected to represent 53% of KKR’s $759 billion in assets under management.
• Upon closing, Ian Charles and Doc O’Connor will join KKR as Partners, and the full Arctos team will integrate into KKR.
• KKR will launch a new investing business, KKR Solutions, led by Ian Charles.
