HedgeCo.Net — Victory Capital Holdings said Wednesday it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of First Eagle Investments from Genstar Capital and First Eagle employees for about $7.0 billion. Markets Media printed the firm’s announcement. Reuters independently reported the same $7 billion cash-and-stock deal. An August 26 Form 8-K attached the same press release.
The consideration is about $4.4 billion in cash and $2.0 billion of newly issued Victory equity, plus the assumption of $575 million of First Eagle’s 7.25% senior secured notes due 2032, Markets Media and Reuters both said. First Eagle managed about $222 billion as of July 31, including a $41 billion CLO and alternative-credit platform that Victory said will become the combined company’s alternatives book after close. Combined client assets are expected to be about $571 billion.
First Eagle will keep its brand, investment autonomy, and existing processes on Victory’s platform, the company said. The deal is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals, client consents, and a Victory shareholder vote on the equity issuance. Genstar is expected to own about 14.6% of Victory on a fully diluted, as-converted basis, with voting limited to 4.9% and a three-year lock-up.
Victory guided to about 35% accretion to 2027E adjusted earnings per share, including about $280 million of net expense synergies, and about $3.2 billion of combined annual revenue. Those are company forecasts, not closes. Financing is fully committed from BofA Securities and RBC Capital Markets and is expected to include a new $3.5 billion term loan B, about $950 million of new secured notes, and an upsized $200 million revolver, with the existing term loan B left in place.
The allocator object is the $41 billion CLO and alternative-credit sleeve changing owners, not a new commingled raise. Anyone marking this as a traditional-only asset-manager tuck-in has not read the credit-platform line. It is a signed agreement, not a closed book.