Real Estate Investment, Asset Management
Businesswire | July 18, 2023
Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) (“Ares”) announced today that Ares has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of Crescent Point Capital (“CPC”), a leading Asia-focused private equity firm with approximately $3.8 billion of assets under management, as of March 31, 2023.
Founded in 2003, CPC has approximately 50 professionals. The team is headquartered in Singapore and has a presence in China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam. CPC pursues a private equity strategy focused on investing in industry-leading consumer companies across the larger Southeast Asia markets and China. Supported by a loyal and growing investor base over its nearly 20-year history, CPC has established a strong reputation and delivered attractive results investing through market cycles in its target sectors and geographies.
Ares has established direct sourcing and investment capabilities in the Asia Pacific region across the credit, private equity, real estate and infrastructure asset classes through Ares Asia, previously known as Ares SSG. Ares Asia operates with approximately 165 professionals across a local footprint of nine offices in key Asia Pacific markets, as of March 31, 2023. This transaction highlights a continuation of Ares’ global expansion and creates a compelling opportunity for Ares to capitalize on the strong growth prospects for dedicated Asia Pacific private equity strategies.
“We are proud of the significant Asia Pacific presence that we have established over the years, and we believe that CPC is an excellent platform that will further enhance our footprint and capabilities in the region,” said Michael Arougheti, Chief Executive Officer and President of Ares. “We have enjoyed the opportunity to develop a great relationship with the Crescent Point team. They are experienced investors who we believe will bring impactful synergies to our existing Asia team.”
“Similar to Ares, we believe CPC possesses a highly collaborative culture. We believe that they will bring deep private equity experience, relationships and a demonstrated track record of investing in markets that will greatly complement our efforts and footprint in the region,” said Edwin Wong, Head of Ares Asia. “The expansion of our local capabilities will also strengthen our position as a creative solutions provider to management teams and sponsors in the market.”
As part of Ares, CPC is expected to benefit from the advantages of Ares’ scaled global platform and network, including Ares’ local market presence across the Asia Pacific region. The transaction provides opportunities to enhance CPC’s growth through greater access to capital, market intelligence, transaction opportunities and expanded investor relationships.
“We look forward to joining Ares and we firmly believe that this combination will help further catalyze the growth of our business,” said David Hand, Managing Partner of CPC. “As part of a leading global brand and scaled platform, we expect to realize several shared benefits that will support our ability to deliver attractive investment returns for our investors, including greater market intelligence and a broader set of local sponsor relationships.”
The transaction is expected to be immediately accretive to Ares’ after-tax realized income per share of Class A and non-voting common stock. The transaction consideration will be primarily comprised of Ares Class A common shares subject to a multi-year lock-up. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2023 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.
Latham & Watkins served as legal counsel to Ares and Kirkland & Ellis and Milbank LLP acted as legal counsel to CPC.
About Ares Management Corporation
Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a leading global alternative investment manager offering clients complementary primary and secondary investment solutions across the credit, private equity, real estate and infrastructure asset classes. We seek to provide flexible capital to support businesses and create value for our stakeholders and within our communities. By collaborating across our investment groups, we aim to generate consistent and attractive investment returns throughout market cycles. As of March 31, 2023, Ares Management Corporation's global platform had approximately $360 billion of assets under management, with more than 2,600 employees operating across North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East.
About Crescent Point Capital
Crescent Point Capital pursues a private equity strategy focused on investing in category-leading companies in Southeast Asia and China. We focus on forming close partnerships with our portfolio companies by providing hands-on operational, financial and strategic value-add from the inception of an investment through to its exit. Since inception, we have completed investments in more than 50 transactions in our target markets, with 31 partial or complete monetization events accomplished as of March 31, 2023.
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Investments
PR Newswire | August 29, 2023
Curbio, Inc., the leading pay-at-closing contractor solution for real estate agents, today announces the launch of its official Realtor's Guide to Pre-Sale Home Improvement. This free playbook is intended to be a resource for real estate agents as they navigate the home sale process.
In today's competitive real estate market, buyers want move-in-ready homes, with 77% of buyers surveyed saying that they wouldn't consider a home that isn't move-in-ready. By offering a turnkey, pay-at-closing concierge service, agents can not only meet buyer demand for move-in-ready properties, but can also stand out from the competition to win listings. With 47% of agents surveyed reporting Curbio's fix first, pay when you sell service helped them win a listing, agents can grow their business and stand out from the competition when other agents are simply offering sellers the status quo.
"Agents know that every home, regardless of age or condition, will benefit from pre-sale home improvements, but sometimes that can be a tricky conversation with sellers. And with the hot market over the last few years, truthfully, some agents didn't have to navigate the topic. But, that's no longer the case and pay-at-closing repairs and updates are more important than ever. We created this playbook to help agents navigate their conversations with data, expertise and confidence. Our goal here is to help agents shine in their listing appointments, providing them with the tools and information they need to win listings and get them market-ready successfully," said Olivia Mariani, Chief Marketing Officer at Curbio.
Curbio's Guide to Pre-Sale Home Improvement provides a comprehensive overview of pre-sale home improvements for agents, with contents including:
• The benefits of pre-sale home updates
• Overview of the current market and common seller personas
• Guide to pitching pre-sale improvements to win listings
• List of the top ROI driven pre-sale updates
• Listing walkthrough checklist
• Guide for getting ahead of client concerns
• Comprehensive overview of Curbio's solution and process
Other resources available to agents from Curbio include an agent marketing toolkit, which features everything that agents need to share Curbio with their network, such as customizable social media templates and listing presentation slides.
The playbook's release comes on the heels of news earlier this month announcing a US roadshow tour offering free seminars for real estate agents looking to level up their pre-sale home improvement expertise.
About Curbio
Curbio is the leading pay-at-closing contractor working with real estate agents to get homes ready for sale reliably and without hassle. Curbio has modernized home improvement with an easy-to-use mobile app and five-star project management team that streamlines project work and communication, while eliminating the delays and uncertainties that have made home improvement so frustrating, especially for agents and home sellers. Our turnkey approach and pay-when-you-sell model has made Curbio the most trusted contractor for real estate agents and brokerages nationwide, including eXp Realty, RE/MAX, HomeServices of America, Long & foster, and many more. Curbio operates in more than 60 real estate markets across the US.
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Market Outlook, Mortgage and Lending
Businesswire | July 10, 2023
Today, Valligent a market-leading appraisal management company, recently acquired by VerosTM, an industry leader in enterprise risk management and collateral valuation services, announced their integration to the ICE Mortgage Technology™ Platform. Through this integration, mortgage industry stakeholders have the most efficient access to all collateral valuation related products and services.
The combined forces of Valligent and Veros provide lenders with a unified ecosystem of solutions for a compliant, efficient, and accurate valuation process. By partnering with Valligent and leveraging the ICE Mortgage Technology® Platform, lenders will have access to a seamless technology solution that can solve all property valuation and collateral risk management needs. A full spectrum of valuation products is available including traditional appraisals, AVMs, desktop valuations, and the only 4-hour Evaluation product for equity lending.
“Integrating with Encompass® by ICE Mortgage Technology® was always part of the plan when we acquired Valligent,” said Darius Bozorgi, CEO of Veros Software. “Providing a streamlined experience with our full spectrum of appraisal, valuation data and analytics and related collateral risk management solutions has always been our priority. Our partnership with ICE Mortgage Technology enables Veros and Valligent to drive more efficiency for all our customers. Collectively, we can expand our products and services to meet the demands of the digital mortgage industry.”
About Valligent
Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Roseville, California Valligent established itself as a leader in appraisal, alternative valuation, QC and Regulatory Audit solutions. Utilizing a combination of experienced property valuation personnel, automation, Artificial Intelligence, powerful functionality, and mobile technology, Valligent is dedicated to making the property valuation process simple and efficient for everyone involved. Valligent provides comprehensive valuation technology expertise and services to hundreds of banks, credit unions, mortgage lenders and insurance companies nationally. We have developed a state-of-the-art valuation technology platform, fully integrated with best-in-class data providers, Loan Origination Systems (LOS) and on-demand cloud computing platforms and API providers. For more information, visit valligent.com.
About Veros
A mortgage technology innovator since 2001, Veros is a proven leader in enterprise risk management and collateral valuation services. The firm combines the power of predictive technology, data analytics, and industry expertise to deliver advanced automated solutions that control risk and increase profits throughout the mortgage industry, from loan origination to servicing and securitization. Veros’ services include automated valuation, fraud, and risk detection, portfolio analysis, forecasting, and next-generation collateral risk management platforms. Veros is the primary architect and technology provider of the GSEs’ Uniform Collateral Data Portal® (UCDP®). Veros also works closely with the FHA to support its Electronic Appraisal Delivery (EAD) portal. The company is also making the home buying process more efficient for our nation’s Veterans through its appraisal management work with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
About ICE Mortgage Technology
ICE Mortgage Technology® is part of ICE (NYSE: ICE), a global data, technology and market infrastructure company that designs, builds, and operates digital networks to connect people to opportunity. Backed by ICE’s global resources, we offer a truly differentiated digital platform that provides straight-through processing for a more comprehensive end-to-end workflow than any other provider in the market. We reach almost every mortgage in the U.S. by combining the native automation of Encompass® with the e-collaboration and e-recording capabilities of Simplifile®, along with the national electronic registry for nearly 90% of the U.S. mortgage market in MERS®. Ultimately, our technology enables people across the industry to focus on personal connections when they need it most, and support borrowers for a better journey of homeownership. Visit icemortgagetechnology.com to learn more. ICE Mortgage Technology combines technology, data, and expertise to help automate the mortgage process, from consumer engagement through loan registration, and every step and task in between. ICE Mortgage Technology is the leading cloud-based loan origination platform provider for the mortgage industry, with solutions that enable lenders to originate more loans, lower origination costs, and reduce the time to close, all while ensuring high levels of compliance, quality, and efficiency. Visit icemortgagetechnology.com or call (877) 355-4362 to learn more.
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