Citi, Apollo In Deal To Form $25 Bln Private Credit, Direct Lending Program

(RTTNews) - Banking major Citigroup Inc. (C) and alternative asset manager Apollo Global Management (APO) announced Thursday that they have entered into an exclusive agreement to form $25 billion private credit, direct lending program initially in North America.

A unit of Citi and certain affiliates of Apollo will form the landmark program, which will have the potential to expand to additional geographies.

The program will include participation from Mubadala Investment Company as Apollo's strategic partner as well as Apollo's subsidiary, Athene.

The companies noted that the program will join Citi's expansive banking client reach, origination and capital markets expertise with Apollo's scaled, extensive capital base.

The strategic program will significantly enhance access for corporate and sponsor clients to the private lending capital pool, at a scale and size which can provide funding certainty in strategic transactions.

The firms anticipate the program will finance around $25 billion of debt opportunities over the next several years, encompassing both corporate and financial sponsor transactions.

Citi and Apollo expect strong client demand and maintain the flexibility to significantly expand the size of the program beyond the initial $25 billion.

Viswas Raghavan, Head of Banking and Executive Vice Chair at Citi, said, "Combining the strength of Citi's Banking and Capital Markets franchise with Apollo's deep capital resources will provide clients with a range of options to meet their evolving financing needs and achieve their strategic goals."