Riverside-led investor group to acquire Townsend Group from Aon, no terms

The Riverside Company announced that its affiliate has signed a definitive agreement to acquire The Townsend Group from Aon plc. “Townsend has always been an innovator and we have grown our business through thoughtful collaboration with our clients and an integrated team approach, with a senior team averaging 20 years of working together,” said Anthony Frammartino, president of Townsend who will be named chairman and CEO of the firm upon the closing of the transaction. “This new partnership ensures continuity and exciting growth opportunities for our clients and further development opportunities for our colleagues. We are grateful for the continued support of our clients globally and the next initiatives for growth supported by our partners at Riverside, and we appreciate and look forward to maintaining our long-standing relationship with Aon.” A group of leading institutions are co-investing alongside Riverside in the transaction, including Bluerock, MLC Private Equity and Ten Capital Management, which also acted as an advisor to Riverside in the transaction. In addition to its investment in the transaction, Bluerock, a leading institutional alternative asset manager with more than $18 billion in acquired and managed assets, will enter into a strategic partnership with Townsend to expand Townsend’s institutional investment capabilities to high-net-worth investors. “Townsend’s leadership in the institutional real assets space is a natural fit with Bluerock’s pioneering role in delivering institutional-quality alternative investments to individual investors over the last 22 years,” said Ramin Kamfar, Bluerock’s CEO. “We look forward to partnering with Townsend to develop innovative new investment solutions to serve the growing needs of retail investors.” Following the close of the transaction, which is subject to final regulatory approvals, Aon will maintain a team dedicated to serving its clients’ real estate investment programs, while collaborating with specialists like Townsend to support specific client needs. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.