TORONTO, May 20, 2020 /CNW/ – The Investment Management Corporation of Ontario (IMCO) has committed US$250 million to Apollo Global Management, Inc.’s new Accord Fund III Series B (“The Fund”), in a Fund designed to enter the market during periods of dislocation and illiquidity. The Fund will focus on credits that have traded down due to liquidity-driven selling and non-economic reasons. IMCO’s Global Credit team closed the commitment on April 23, 2020, making it IMCO’s first investment with an Apollo-managed fund, one of the world’s largest alternative investment managers.
“Our participation in this fund demonstrates how nimble our team can be in seeking valuable opportunities for our clients,” said Jennifer Hartviksen, Managing Director, Global Credit. Hartviksen noted that the process, from analysis to fund close, took approximately one month, indicating how well-matched IMCO’s capabilities are with Apollo’s proven ability to take advantage of market dislocations. “This is an example of IMCO adapting to market conditions and exploiting our liquidity very quickly so that clients have access to dislocated opportunities as they arise,” she said.
IMCO recently launched its Global Credit program as a separate asset class to provide higher risk-adjusted returns than traditional fixed income, and to contribute additional diversification benefits to a total portfolio for clients. “As our program scales, we are initially relying on experienced strategic partners,” said Christian Hensley, Senior Managing Director, Private Equities and Credit. “The investment in this Fund is an example of the types of opportunities we’re pursuing — investments with sponsors that we believe have deep expertise, delivering diversifying and differentiating exposures, who are transparent, opportunistic, and value-oriented.”
Apollo’s fundamentals-approach and sector-specific expertise allows for selective deployment during periods of both market stability and volatility, in line with IMCO’s Global Credit strategy. The Fund’s judicious use of hedges, designed to address fundamental risks, is well suited for IMCO’s long investment horizon.
