Mercury Capital Advisors Group, L.P. (“Mercury”), one of the world’s elite institutional capital raising and investment advisory firms specializing in alternative investments, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Investcorp, a leading global provider and manager of alternative investment products. As part of the transaction, Mercury will remain an independent business operating under its current leadership team. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed, and subject to receipt of relevant external approvals the transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2019.

Founded in 2009 by Michael Ricciardi, Alan Pardee and Enrique Cuan, Mercury has closed over $170 billion in fund commitments since 2003, when the Mercury team was at Merrill Lynch, and maintains relationships with over 2,500 institutional investors across the globe. The firm has extensive experience in providing advisory services on direct deals and co-investments, joint ventures and secondary transactions, as well as consulting services for general partners. Today Mercury, its affiliates and distribution partners have over 50 employees in 14 offices across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

“This partnership is a powerful endorsement of Mercury’s unrelenting commitment both to excellence and to our clients,” said Michael Ricciardi, CEO, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Mercury. “We have known the Investcorp team for many years and believe they are the right partners with whom we can expand our capabilities. We are particularly excited about what this partnership means for Mercury’s outsourced CIO platform and partnership with other asset managers and family offices.”

“We are delighted to be partnering with Investcorp while continuing to maintain our independence and ability to work with the world’s leading investors and allocators,” added Alan Pardee and Enrique Cuan, Managing Partners and Co-Founders of Mercury. ”We look forward to working closely with Investcorp’s businesses that partner with third party managers through seeding and acquisition of minority stakes as a fascinating enhancement to our already strong, independent global placement agency activities,” they said.

“Our partnership with Mercury is completely in line with Investcorp’s long-term strategy and our mission to serve investors worldwide with an array of attractive opportunities in alternative investments,” said Mohammed Alardhi, Executive Chairman of Investcorp. “Mercury is well positioned to deliver unique solutions to clients across the globe through its traditional placement capabilities.”

Mercury has deep relationships with a broad range of the world’s preeminent institutional investors, including sovereign wealth funds, corporate and public pension plans, insurance companies, endowments, family offices, foundations, funds of funds and consultants. In addition, Mercury provides the registered investment advisor (“RIA”) community, family offices, and other wealth advisors transparent institutional pricing and exclusive access to leading-edge alternatives.

The Mercury team will continue to operate from their offices in New York, London, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Dubai, New Delhi, Singapore and Tokyo under the direction of co-founders and managing partners Michael Ricciardi, CEO, Alan Pardee and Enrique Cuan.

Mercury Capital Advisors offers exclusive access to curated, leading-edge alternative investments to nearly 2,500 institutional investors globally, including around 200 investors based in Asia. To date, the firm has raised 14 oversubscribed funds in Asia, consecutively, as of the end of 2018. Mercury has been ranked the #1 placement agent for private equity by Thompson Reuters Equity and Equity-Related U.S. Private Placement League Table for the last three consecutive years.

Mercury was advised by Freeman & Co. and was represented for legal counsel by Clifford Chance US LLP. Investcorp was represented by Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP.

About Mercury Capital Advisors

Since 2003, professionals at Mercury Capital Advisors Group, LP have executed more than 100 mandates, raising in excess of $170 billion from pre-eminent institutional investors spanning the globe. The firm has 14 offices through its affiliates and distribution partners in the United States, Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.

About Investcorp

Investcorp is a leading global manager of alternative investments. Led by a new vision, Investcorp has embarked on an ambitious, albeit prudent, growth strategy. The Firm continues to focus on generating value through a disciplined investment approach in four lines of business: private equity, real estate, absolute return investments and credit management.

As of December 31, 2018, Investcorp had US$22.5 billion in total AUM, including assets managed by third party managers and assets subject to a non-discretionary advisory mandate where Investcorp receives fees calculated on the basis of AUM.

Since its inception in 1982, Investcorp has made over 185 Private Equity deals in the U.S., Europe, the Middle East and North Africa region and Asia, across a range of sectors including retail and consumer products, technology, business services and industrials, and more than 600 commercial and residential real estate investments in the US and Europe, for in excess of US $59 billion in transaction value.

Investcorp employs approximately 400 people across its offices in Bahrain, New York, London, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Doha, Mumbai and Singapore. For further information, including our most recent periodic financial statements, which details our assets under management, please refer to:

Website: www.investcorp.com

Twitter: www.twitter.com/Investcorp @investcorp

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/Investcorp

Contact:

Mercury
Phil Denning
ICR, Inc.
646-277-1258/ phil.denning@icrinc.com

Investcorp
Firas El Amine
+973 3998 7838
felamine@investcorp.com

Prosek Partners
Catherine Johnson
+1 212 279 3115
cjohnson@prosek.com