Manulife Investment Management (Manulife) has launched a new secondary investment business within its Private Markets with Jeff Hammer and Paul Sanabria appointed as Global Co-Heads.
The Secondaries capability is part of Manulife’s strategy to expand its comprehensive Private Markets platform, which includes Private Equity and Credit, Infrastructure, Real Estate, Timber and Agriculture.
Hammer and Sanabria are expected to build a global secondary investment capability that focuses on general partner-led and special situation transactions, and partners with private equity, private credit and secondary fund sponsors. The new business will serve the increasingly complex liquidity needs of private capital markets, and is anticipated to invest in solution-oriented opportunities as well as more traditional secondary transactions. Hammer and Sanabria expect to harness Manulife’s track record as a collaborative investor and long-time fund allocator to lead, participate in and invest in transactions with general partners.
Hammer and Sanabria, who have worked together for over 20 years, will draw upon their experience, creativity and problem-solving capabilities developed as both secondary advisors and investors. Over the past 10 years at Houlihan Lokey, they built and led a market-leading secondary advisory business that executed over USD15 billion USD of private equity, private credit and other esoteric asset transactions. Previously at Bear Stearns Asset Management, they built and led Private Equity Advisors, a private equity investment group that invested balance sheet and third-party capital into a cross-section of primary, secondary and co-investment transactions with AUM of USD2.1 billion prior to their departure.
Manulife, through its global Private Equity and Credit group, invests in private equity funds, co-investments and private credit securities (junior and senior financing) typically in collaboration with a broad array of leading general partners. Current Private Equity and Credit assets under management are USD6.5 billion on behalf of third-party clients and Manulife’s General Account as at 30 June, 20191.
Hammer and Sanabria will build a global team headquartered in New York. The new team is an important initiative for Manulife and will begin investing immediately on behalf of Manulife’s General Account, while contributing to the development of specialized secondary funds, separately managed accounts and other investment products for Manulife Investment Management’s global institutional client base.
Stephen Blewitt, Global Head of Private Markets, says: “The secondary market’s rapid growth presents a significant opportunity for Manulife Investment Management and our institutional clients. I am delighted that Paul and Jeff, who have decades of experience and deep relationships in the secondaries market, will lead this business.”
Vipon Ghai, Global Head of Private Equity and Credit, says: “The addition of this Secondaries investment business complements and expands Manulife Investment Management’s existing investment capabilities. It builds on the strength of our existing GP relationships, where we have established a highly collaborative approach.”
Paul Sanabria, Global Co-Head of Secondaries, says: “I am excited by the opportunity to build Manulife Investment Management’s strategic Secondaries business with my long-standing professional partner, Jeff Hammer. Manulife’s commitment to grow the range of private asset solutions for investors, its stellar reputation and global footprint can provide us with a formidable platform to establish a world-class capability.”
Jeff Hammer, Global Co-Head of Secondaries, adds: “Our broad and deep experience developing solutions for complex and illiquid assets, coupled with Manulife Investment Management’s scale and distribution through its global wealth and asset management business lines, I believe will enable us to create value for Manulife’s key stakeholders including GP partners, third-party investors, and Manulife’s General Account.”
