Apollo to Launch Seven Funds in Hot Market for Private Capital

(Bloomberg) -- Apollo Global Management LLC is starting a spate of new funds and aims to attract a total of about $9 billion for them, signaling a strong year for raising money in the industry.

The $280 billion firm, led by Leon Black, plans to launch seven funds in 2019 across a range of strategies, from insurance to real estate to India, according to documents seen by Bloomberg. Apollo's biggest fundraising target among the new vehicles is $4 billion for a program that lets investors participate in private deals alongside its insurance company Athene Holding Ltd.

Apollo also seeks to attract $1.5 billion for the fourth iteration of its financial credit pool, which invests in senior-life settlements and insurance-linked securities.

Private equity firms have been capitalizing on a robust fundraising environment as institutional investors seek the mid-teen returns that have come with their long-term strategies. Firms raised $240 billion in private capital in the first quarter, the biggest haul since the second quarter of last year, according to data collected by Bloomberg. Blackstone Group LP alone aims to gather $100 billion this year.

Apollo has also started talking to investors about a second version of its private equity fund that's focused on Indian companies. It's targeting a gross return of as much as 22 percent, the documents show.

The financial credit fund charges a 0.5 percent management fee on committed capital and 10 percent of profits. The India-focused private equity vehicle offers fee breaks to legacy investors and those in the first close.

Read more about Apollo's new aviation fund

Charles Zehren, a spokesman for New York-based Apollo, declined to comment.

Here are details on the new funds:

To contact the reporter on this story: Hema Parmar in New York at hparmar6@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Margaret Collins at mcollins45@bloomberg.net, Vincent Bielski, Steve Dickson

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