Record $2.4 billion originated on behalf of unaffiliated / third-party clients reveals strong investor demand amid Fed interest rate uncertainty and low-yield investment environment
WHIPPANY, N.J., August 14, 2019
MetLife Investment Management (“MIM”), MetLife, Inc.’s (NYSE: MET) institutional asset management business, announced today it originated $7.7 billion in private placement debt for the first half of 2019, a 10% increase over the same six-month period in 2018 and a record amount for MIM. This included $2.4 billion of investments originated on behalf of unaffiliated/third-party clients.
MIM’s private placement debt origination for the first half of 2019 comprised $5.1 billion in corporate private placement debt transactions and $2.6 billion in infrastructure private placement debt transactions. This origination activity helped grow MIM’s total private placement debt portfolio to $78.7 billion as of June 30, 20191.
Notably, MIM invested over $900 million in Australia, nearly $800 million in the United Kingdom, in addition to over $800 million in the broader Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) region, reflecting the continued strong global demand for private capital.
MIM’s corporate private placement debt transactions again spanned a broad range of industries including industrials, utilities, consumer products, REITs, aviation and sports finance. MIM’s infrastructure platform continued to be a market leader in long-term global infrastructure private placement debt lending with activity focused on core infrastructure assets, including airports, ports, railroads, renewable power and social infrastructure. The infrastructure group saw strong origination across the U.S., EMEA and Australia.
Investment highlights include nearly $2.6 billion in the power and utility space across electric and natural gas utilities as well as pipelines; approximately $1.3 billion in REIT transactions across the globe; and $750 million in the transportation sector, including airports, railroads and toll roads. This investment activity supports the development and expansion of essential services to communities around the world and plays a role in helping drive real economic growth.
John Wills, global head of private placements at MetLife Investment Management, said: “The continued demand for private financing structures with varying tenors and across multiple currencies points to the fact that issuers remain optimistic about their growth. And, with monetary policy in the United States likely to remain accommodative through the rest of the year and possibly beyond as the cycle extends, investors are also thinking more about the relative value of investing in private debt that offers incremental yield and greater investor protection by way of covenants. The asset class has experienced a great deal of demand, and MIM remains selective in our underwriting process throughout the cycle.”
About MetLife Investment Management
MetLife Investment Management, MetLife, Inc.’s institutional asset management business, is a global fixed income and real estate manager providing differentiated investment solutions to institutional investors worldwide. MetLife Investment Management provides institutional investors including corporate and government pension plans, insurance companies and other financial institutions with long-term public and private investment and financing solutions. MetLife Investment Management leverages a disciplined credit research and underwriting process to provide institutional investors with asset origination and acquisition opportunities and proprietary risk management analytics across public fixed income strategies, private placements, and commercial real estate debt and equity investing, among others. For more information, visit https://investments.metlife.com.
About MetLife
MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), through its subsidiaries and affiliates (“MetLife”), is one of the world’s leading financial services companies, providing insurance, annuities, employee benefits and asset management to help its individual and institutional customers navigate their changing world. Founded in 1868, MetLife has operations in more than 40 countries and holds leading market positions in the United States, Japan, Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.metlife.com.
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