Sun Life Financial Inc. announced several transactions Monday that will expand its presence in private assets — a long-held goal, according to the company.
First, it bought the remaining shares of real estate investment management advisor BGO and alternative credit investment manager Crescent Capital. It previously held majority stakes in both entities.
Sun Life paid $1.59 billion for the remaining 44% of BGO and $829 million for the remaining 49% of Crescent, which is based in the U.S. The buyout was funded through debt issued in 2025.
Steve Peacher, executive chair of the firm’s asset management business, Sun Life Capital (SLC) Management, said the transactions will bring what was previously a collection of businesses under one umbrella.
Sun Life now wholly owns the SLC Management platform, except for U.S. retail distribution business Advisors Asset Management, where it has a 51% stake, Peacher said.
It also announced a US$350-million deal to purchase U.S. multifamily real estate investment manager Bell Partners, which will become part of BDO. Post-acquisition, BGO will have over US$100 billion of assets under management.
Sun Life’s board decided in 2013 to expand its presence in private assets like real estate, private credit and infrastructure investment, Peacher said.
“We had some of those capabilities internally, but we knew we were going to have to make acquisitions.”
At the time, interest in private assets was growing among wealthy investors. Insurance companies like Sun Life have been in private assets for decades, Peacher added.
“Packaged the right way, ultra-high-net-worth individuals should be thinking about how this fits into their portfolio.”
Peacher said the U.S. acquisitions will help the insurance giant develop offerings in the U.S. that can also feed the Canadian enterprise. “Canada is a great market for us institutionally. It can be a great market for us in wealth, and it’s a key focus of ours.”
Focus on continuity
BGO was formed by Sun Life in 2019 through the merger of real estate investment firms Bentall Kennedy and GreenOak. The insurer contributed its Bentall Kennedy interest and $195 million to get a 56% stake. Then, Sun life bought 51% of Crescent for $450 million in 2021.
Sun Life only acquired partial stakes at the time in order to maintain operational continuity, Peacher said.
“Continuity of employees in the asset management business is everything. Clients are betting on a team of people to manage their money, … so we have focused almost everything on retaining our employees,” he said.
The potential of buying the remaining stakes at a higher valuation in the future also gave management incentive to grow the business, Peacher said. And as the founders of those businesses left, new leadership came from within each company, not from Sun Life.
Sonny Kalsi, most recently the co-founder and co-CEO of BGO, has been appointed president and CEO of SLC Management, reporting to Peacher. John Carrafiell, the other co-founder and co-CEO of BGO, is now BGO’s sole CEO.
Sun Life expects the Bell Partners transaction, which will see it become part of its U.S. multifamily arm under BGO, to close in the second half of this year. At least 75% of the US$350-million price tag will be payable in Sun Life common shares.
A four-legged stool
There are now four brands under SLC Management: SLC Fixed Income manages public and private investment-grade fixed income; Crescent is for below investment-grade credit and high yield loans; BGO is mainly real estate equity; and InfraRed Capital Partners manages the infrastructure investment business.
But having five different names presents a branding challenge. Each arm has unique brand identities that they didn’t want to lose, Peacher said. “They wanted to be left alone to run their business, and we agreed with that philosophy.”
While these names are well-known among institutional investors like pension funds and sovereign wealth funds, the same can’t be said for individual investors, Peacher said. And it’s not a good use of time for advisors to spend 15 minutes just explaining to clients how SLC Management works.
“Everyone knows Blackstone’s name, and I’m envious of that,” Peacher said. “We’re thinking hard about brand. … Should we go to one brand? And that’s a big question, so we have to figure that out.”