Ares’ Ansley Park to target ‘less-served’ equipment businesses 

Ansley Park Capital, the newly launched specialty finance arm of investment management firm Ares Management, will prioritize lending to companies that are “less well served by traditional bank lenders” and sometimes considered “non-investment grade,” co-head of Ares Alternative Credit Joel Holsinger told Equipment Finance News.

Ansley Park launched March 4 as part of Ares’ Alternative Credit strategy division. The division generated about $400 million in initial equity capital to support generating new business and expects originations at Ansley Park to surpass $3 billion, but did not provide a timeline for this.  

“While on average the credit profile of Ansley Park counterparties may be non-investment grade, these counterparties often own an exceptionally strong asset base and serve in industries which are integral to the functioning of the U.S. economy,” Holsinger said. 

Regarding underwriting, Ansley Park will prioritize keeping its portfolio of lessees diverse, and focus on the large-ticket market in the range of $5 million to $100 million. But there are also a few markets that the lender is keeping an eye on, expecting they will increasingly need financing, Holsinger said. These industries include:  

• domestic energy production;  
• food and beverage;   
• manufacturing and onshoring; and    
• transportation.  

“Our goal, however, is to build a platform for the long term rather than to focus on a particular cycle or trend,” Holsinger cautioned. “In addition, we believe there will be significant incremental growth opportunities to form bespoke asset portfolio sidecar vehicles capitalized by third parties.”  

Ansley Park Capital also plans to differentiate itself from the competition by offering an array of customizable financing options.  

“Instead of solely focusing on liquidation value of financed assets, for example, Ansley Park assesses how critical assets impact revenue and profitability of its customers’ operations, and in turn structures bespoke loans and leases accordingly,” Chief Executive Eric Miller told EFN. “Ansley Park recognizes that equipment financings are a key part of its customers’ total capital structure, so it views its role as a preferred financing partner to delve deep and provide customized tailored solutions to meet the unique needs of its customers.” 

Registration is now open for Equipment Finance Connect, the nation’s only dealer-centric equipment lending and leasing event, which will take place May 5-7 in Nashville, Tenn. Learn about the event and free dealer registration at EquipmentFinanceConnect.com.