KKR’s earnings announcement this morning revealed a large fundraising haul and deployment figures, but the most interesting figure may well be the staggering portion of assets under management now sourced from perpetual capital.
Even after taking in a record $59 billion in Q2, permanent capital constitutes 30 percent of total assets under management for KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR). That’s a bit shy of the 33 percent pro forma contribution the perpetual capital vehicles were expected to make after KKR’s $4.4 billion takeover of Global Atlantic last year, but is still a strong component given record fundraising hauls.
The $130 billion figure also signals that an increase in fee-related earnings could be here to stay. Remember that recurring fees from permanent capital commitments net high, compounding managing fees and higher operating margins. We are approaching a tipping point where the composition of the largest private equity players’ fee-related earnings (FRE) derived from perpetual capital vehicles is so substantial that it can offset the periodic FRE declines between flagship fundraises.
“Fee-related earnings per share as well as after-tax distributable earnings per share were both record quarterly figures for us,” said co-president and co-COO Joseph Bae on this morning’s earnings call. KKR’s FRE surged 68 percent year over year to $470 million in the quarter.
Permanent capital vehicles are a mature investment strategy for large financial sponsors, recent earnings from Blackstone Group Inc. (NYSE: BX) and KKR make clear. Should middle-market private equity firms look for sources of its own, the ongoing dealmaking bonanza will have yet another catalyst.
For more on KKR’s earnings, call see KKR Crushes Fundraising Record with a $59B Quarter.
– Brandon Zero
