Dyal, Goldman, Landmark team up for stake in Clearlake Capital

  • Deal is first time Dyal, Goldman team up for minority stake
  • Landmark helped finance deal with Clearlake last year
  • Clearlake closed Fund V earlier this year

The management company of Clearlake Capital Group is selling a minority stake of about 20 percent to Dyal CapitalGoldman Sachs Asset Management and Landmark Partners, sources told Buyouts.

The transaction, which is near closing, represents the first time competitors Dyal, which is backed by Neuberger Berman, has teamed up Goldman’s Petershill Group on a minority-stake deal, the sources said.

Clearlake will use the investment for GP commitments in future funds, as well as to expand the firm’s credit business.

It’s not clear how much the investors paid for the stake. Representatives for Clearlake, Landmark and Dyal declined to comment.

Clearlake closed its largest fund, Clearlake Capital Partners V, on more than $3.6 billion earlier this year. It raised $550 million for its debut non-control fund, and Fund II is expected to hit the market this year, sources said.

The firm was formed by José FelicianoBehdad Eghbali and Steve Chang in 2006 to invest in sectors such as industrials, energy, software, tech-enabled services and consumer. Chang left in 2015 on amicable terms.

Dyal and Goldman’s Petershill Group usually compete for stakes in GP management companies. Dyal acquired a minority stake in Vector Capital earlier this year, while Petershill last year bought a stake in Riverstone Holdings.

Dyal is in market targeting at least $5 billion for its fourth fund to buy stakes in GP management companies, Buyouts previously reported. The firm closed Fund III on $5.3 billion last year. Petershill raised $2.5 billion for its GP stakes business earlier this year.

Landmark is a name well known in the private investment secondaries market. However, several sources said Landmark has been very active in financing GP growth and transition, having completed several billion dollars worth of transactions over the years.

Landmark last year helped finance a deal for Clearlake to buy back a minority stake in its own management company from Reservoir Capital. Clearlake originally formed in partnership with Reservoir, which was the sole limited partner in its first fund.

Action Item: Check out Clearlake’s Form ADV here: https://bit.ly/2jRGoxF