GSO Capital Partners (GSO), the credit division of Blackstone, has held a final closing of its second capital solutions fund, GSO Capital Solutions Fund II LP (the “Fund”), with total commitments of $5 billion, an increase of over 50% from GSO’s first capital solutions fund raised in 2010.
GSO received strong support from both existing and new investors, with demand well surpassing the Fund’s $5 billion hard cap. Investors in the Fund include a group of US state pension funds, corporate pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, endowments, foundations and family offices.
This is GSO’s second fund to provide “rescue financing” to distressed companies facing liquidity issues, including pending debt maturities, covenant violations, liquidity shortfalls and cyclical challenges, needing capital to avoid imminent bankruptcy, or seeking assistance in their exit from bankruptcy. GSO has deployed over $4 billion in the strategy to date across a broad range of sectors and geographies, with a focus on North America and Western Europe.
“We are very appreciative of the significant investor demand for our second capital solutions fund. A fund of this size uniquely positions GSO as one of few firms that can provide companies in the U.S. and Europe with large commitments to solve their balance sheet and liquidity challenges,” said Tripp Smith, Co-Founder of GSO.
Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment and advisory firms. The firm’s alternative asset management businesses include the management of private equity funds, real estate funds, hedge fund solutions, credit-focused funds and closed-end funds. Blackstone also provides various financial advisory services, including financial and strategic advisory, restructuring and reorganization advisory and fund placement services. Blackstone is based in New York (www.blackstone.com).
GSO, a division of Blackstone, is a credit-focused alternative asset manager, with approximately $62 billion of assets under management as of June 30, 2013. GSO has a global footprint with approximately 235 professionals among its offices in New York, Dublin, London and Houston (www.blackstone.com).
© 2013 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-4-13
