Insurer Manulife is acquiring a 75 per cent stake in Comvest Credit Partners, the direct lending platform of Comvest Partners, to create a combined private credit platform with $18.4bn (£13.8bn) of assets under management (AUM).
The new business will be co-branded as Manulife | Comvest, and will be headed up by Robert O’Sullivan, co-founder and chief executive of Comvest.
Comvest will retain full responsibility for day-to-day operations and investment decision-making.
The firm will also lead distribution of its strategies in close coordination with Manulife’s global distribution teams across institutional, wealth, retail, and retirement channels.
Comvest said that the new partnership will strengthen its position in the private credit market and support its continued growth in the founder-owned and sponsor-backed segments.
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It highlighted Manulife’s strong reputation within the private equity sponsor-backed market and said the deal will boost its origination reach, access to capital, and help meet increasing demand for private credit from a diversified borrower-base.
“After building Comvest over the past two decades, it was important to find a partner who shares our values and vision for the future,” said Michael Falk, founder of Comvest. “Manulife distinguished itself through their long-term investment mindset, deep credit expertise, and cultural fit with our team. I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity this partnership creates for our investors, our employees, and the next generation of leadership at Comvest.”
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Prior to the agreement, Manulife’s existing senior credit team manages $3.7bn of assets, while Comvest manages $14.7bn of private credit assets.
“Comvest offers meaningful scale, a differentiated approach to private credit, and a strong cultural alignment with Manulife,” said Anne Valentine Andrews, global head of private markets for Manulife Wealth and Asset Management. “With this acquisition, we will create a world-class alternative credit platform that can meet the distinct and growing needs of Manulife’s 19 million institutional, retirement and retail clients globally. I look forward to working with the Comvest team to help expand their market presence and extend a warm welcome into the Manulife family.”
AMG, a minority investor in Comvest since 2020, will exit its position in Comvest’s credit business following the closing but will maintain its interest in Comvest Partners’ private equity business, which will be separated into a stand-alone entity.
The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approval.
BofA Securities served as exclusive financial advisor to Comvest, and Kirkland & Ellis served as its legal counsel.
Manulife has been expanding into the private credit space in recent years. In 2024, it bought CQS, the UK-based alternative credit investor founded by Lord Michael Hintze.
Later that year, it emerged that John Hancock Investment Management launched a new multi-asset credit fund with its affiliated investment manager Manulife.
And in January this year, another segment of the business, Manulife Investment Management announced that it had appointed Ryan Hanna as global chief operating officer of private markets to scale up that segment of the business.
