RoundShield has sold a minority stake to Azimut Alternative Capital Partners, a subsidiary of Azimut Group

RoundShield Partners

RoundShield Partners is an independent private investment firm focused on European special opportunities. Established in 2013, RoundShield specializes in providing private capital solutions in the small to mid-sized real estate, infrastructure, hard asset and financial asset markets. RoundShield manages approximately €2.9 billion of discretionary capital on behalf of pension funds, endowments, foundations and other institutional investors.

RoundShield’s investment strategy prioritizes opportunities with strong underlying fundamental value, driven by their diverse network of long-standing relationships across a wide range of sectors, and an in-depth understanding of western European market dynamics. RoundShield has a team of over 40 professionals with extensive portfolio management, restructuring and investment experience working across their offices. As of July 2022, the firm has exited 128 assets and fully realized 16 debt facilities with a weighted average gross internal rate of return of 23% and a multiple of 1.6x.

The Deal

The transaction entails acquiring an equity interest in RoundShield and contributing permanent capital to the business going forward. Substantially, all of the after-tax proceeds will be used by RoundShield’s partners to invest in future firm-sponsored funds, bolstering the firm’s commitment to align itself with its investors and drive the long-term growth of the business. There will be no changes in the strategy, management, investment process or day-to-day operations of RoundShield, or any RoundShield-managed vehicle as a result of Azimut Alternative Capital Partner’s (AACP) investment.

Our Perspective

Antoine Dupont-Madinier, Managing Director in Lincoln’s Financial Institutions Group, commented, “RoundShield is a truly differentiated alternative asset manager with an unmatched track record in sourcing, investing in and managing asset-backed special opportunities in Europe. RoundShield has all the characteristics that general partner minority stake investors are looking for — a stellar track record in an all-weather strategy, delivering uncorrelated returns to its investors and strong management team. We are thrilled to have had the opportunity to advise RoundShield on the transaction and look forward to the company’s continued success as it benefits from its partnership with Azimut.”

AACP

AACP was established in November 2019 with the purpose of partnering with private market-focused alternative asset managers by providing them with permanent capital to grow and reach their greatest business potential. AACP has made four prior minority equity investments — Kennedy Lewis (2020), HighPost Capital (2021), Pathlight Capital (2021) and BroadLight Capital (2022). The transaction with RoundShield marks AACP’s fifth transaction, first real assets transaction and first transaction in Europe.

Azimut Group

Azimut Group is one of Europe’s leading independent groups active (since 1989) in the asset management sector. The parent company, Azimut Holding, was listed on the Italian stock exchange on July 7, 2004 (AZM.MI) and is a member, among others, of the main Italian index FTSE MIB. The shareholder structure includes more than 1,900 managers, employees and financial advisors bound by a shareholders’ agreement that controls approximately 22% of the company. The remaining is free float. The group is comprised of various companies active in the sale, management and distribution of financial and insurance products, with registered offices mainly in Italy as well as Australia, Brazil, Chile, China, Egypt, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Monaco, Portugal, Singapore, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and the United States.

In Italy, Azimut Capital Management SGR sells and manages Italian mutual funds and Italian alternative investment funds, and is active in the discretionary management of individual investment portfolios. Furthermore, Azimut Capital Management SGR distributes group and third-party products in Italy via a network of financial advisors while Azimut Libera Impresa focuses on the alternatives business. The main foreign companies are Azimut Investments SA (founded in Luxembourg in 1999), which manages the multi-strategy funds, AZ Fund 1 and AZ Multi Asset and the Irish Azimut Life DAC, which offers life insurance products.

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