BlackRock has announced a definitive agreement to acquire HPS Investment Partners, a leading global credit investment manager with approximately $148 billion in client assets, for $12 billion. The transaction, paid entirely in BlackRock equity through SubCo Units exchangeable into common stock, is set to close in mid-2025, subject to regulatory approvals. HPS’s extensive capabilities across private credit, including senior and junior debt, real estate, and asset-based finance, will complement BlackRock’s $3 trillion public fixed-income platform, enhancing its offerings for clients seeking public-private income solutions. This deal will establish a new private financing solutions business unit led by HPS executives Scott Kapnick, Scot French, and Michael Patterson, who will join BlackRock’s Global Executive Committee.
Founded in 2007, HPS has built one of the largest independent private credit platforms, with a reputation for providing bespoke financing solutions to companies of all sizes. BlackRock, founded in 1988 and managing nearly $90 billion in private debt assets, aims to leverage HPS’s expertise to tap into the rapidly growing private credit market, expected to surpass $4.5 trillion by 2030. The acquisition aligns with BlackRock’s strategy to connect companies with innovative financing solutions and is anticipated to be modestly accretive to its earnings within the first year post-close.
