CANDRIAM and New York Life Investments Alternatives Announce Strategic Partnership with Kartesia Management SA

London/Paris/New York, 9 December, 2020 – CANDRIAM, and its sister affiliate New York Life Investments Alternatives (“NYLIA”), announced today a strategic partnership with Kartesia Management SA (“Kartesia”), a European specialist provider of private capital solutions for small and mid-sized companies, and the related acquisition of a minority stake in the firm. Terms of the transaction, which are subject to certain customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, were not disclosed. The transaction is anticipated to close by year end.

Kartesia is a leading European private markets investor with more than EUR 2.8 billion of assets under management and expertise across the full spectrum of the European secondary and primary leveraged loan market including senior debt, mezzanine, minority equity interest and CLO liabilities.

Under this partnership, Kartesia will retain its existing management and investment autonomy, while benefiting from the operating and financial resources, distribution network and scale of both CANDRIAM and NYLIA to enter a new phase of development. In Europe, the partnership will add European private credit to CANDRIAM’s multi-specialist offerings and in the U.S. complement the strong U.S. private credit capabilities of NYLIA.

Naïm Abou-Jaoudé, CEO of CANDRIAM and Chairman of New York Life Investment Management International, commented:

“We are excited to partner with Kartesia to add European private credit to our multi-specialist offerings. Kartesia has built an impressive track record across Europe’s lower mid-market over the last decade and has core values that are highly aligned with those of CANDRIAM and our affiliate, New York Life Investments Alternatives. Under this partnership, I am confident that the combination of our strengths will benefit our clients, as we navigate the dynamics of the current global market environment.”

Christopher Taylor, CEO of Madison Capital Funding and Head of New York Life Investments Alternatives, added:

“We are thrilled to welcome Kartesia. As one of Europe’s leading private credit investors, Kartesia brings extensive experience financing small and middle-market companies that complements our expanding global alternatives capabilities. We look forward to leveraging the partnership with Kartesia as we continue to grow and diversify our businesses to meet the needs of our clients in all market environments, over the years to come.”

Jaime Prieto and Damien Scaillierez, Managing Partners of Kartesia Management SA, concluded:

“We are enthusiastic to create a partnership that will strengthen the Kartesia platform and bring further growth opportunities to our team and our clients. CANDRIAM’s distinction in ESG investing and strong European distribution platform combined with New York Life Investments Alternatives’ reputation in the US and Asia as a focused player in the middle market make this an ideal partnership for us as we continue to strategically grow and evolve our business.”

About CANDRIAM

CANDRIAM is a global multi-asset manager and a recognized pioneer and leader in sustainable investing. CANDRIAM has approximately $144 billion of assets under supervision¹ with a team of more than 600 professionals. It operates management offices in, Brussels, Paris, Luxembourg and London, serving clients in more than 20 countries on 4 continents. CANDRIAM offers innovative and diversified investment solutions in bonds, equities, absolute performance strategies and asset allocation.

For more information see: www.CANDRIAM.com

About New York Life Investments Alternatives

New York Life Investments Alternatives LLC (“NYLIA”) is a registered investment adviser that provides comprehensive capital solutions and other alternative strategies to a broad range of institutional clients. NYLIA is comprised of three highly specialized alternative investing boutiques: GoldPoint Partners, Madison Capital Funding, and PA Capital, collectively managing over $30 billion in assets under management (AUM)².

For more information, visit: https://www.morethaninvesting.com/alternatives

About Kartesia

Kartesia is a leading European private markets investor with more than EUR 2.8 billion of assets under management and expertise across the full spectrum of the European secondary and primary leveraged loan market including senior debt, mezzanine, minority equity interest and CLO liabilities. Kartesia is a pan-European platform with offices in Brussels, Frankfurt, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Munich and Paris.

For more information, visit: www.kartesia.com

Press contacts:

CANDRIAM: Jennifer Spivey / +44 (0)7852 585 168 / jennifer.spivey@candriam.com

NYLIA: Allison Scott / + 1 (212) 576 4517 / allison_scott@nylim.com

Kartesia: Maitland/AMO - Finlay Donaldson or Vikki Kosmalska / +44 (0) 7341 788 066 or +44 (0) 7754 943 601 / Fdonaldson@maitland.co.uk or vkosmalska@maitland.co.uk

1 As of June 30, 2020. AUM is converted from Euro at the spot rate as of this date. Assets under supervision include approximately $125 billion which fall within the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's definition of 'regulatory AUM' in Form ADV, Part 1A. The remainder consists of other non-discretionary advisory or related services. Not all of CANDRIAM's products and services are available to all investors nor in all regions.

2 AUM as of June 30, 2020.