ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Overview
We are a leading global investment firm that offers alternative asset management and capital markets and insurance solutions. We aim to generate attractive investment returns by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and supporting growth in our portfolio companies and communities. We sponsor investment funds that invest in private equity, credit and real assets and have strategic partners that manage hedge funds. Our insurance subsidiaries offer retirement, life and reinsurance products under the management of Global Atlantic.
Our asset management business offers a broad range of investment management services to our fund investors and provides capital markets services to our firm, our portfolio companies and third parties. Throughout our history, we have consistently been a leader in the private equity industry, having completed more than 375 private equity investments in portfolio companies with a total transaction value in excess of $650 billion as of December 31, 2020. We have grown our firm by expanding our geographical presence and building businesses in areas such as leveraged credit, alternative credit, capital markets, infrastructure, energy, real estate, growth equity, core and impact investments. Our balance sheet has provided a significant source of capital in the growth and expansion of our business, and has allowed us to further align our interests with those of our fund investors. Building on these efforts and leveraging our industry expertise and intellectual capital have allowed us to capitalize on a broader range of the opportunities we source. Additionally, we have increased our focus on meeting the needs of our existing fund investors and in developing relationships with new investors in our funds.
We seek to work proactively and collaboratively as one firm across business lines, departments, and geographies, as appropriate, to achieve what we believe are the best results for our funds and the firm. Through our offices around the world, we have a pre-eminent global integrated platform for sourcing transactions, raising capital and carrying out capital markets activities. Our growth has been driven by value that we have created through our operationally focused investment approach, the expansion of our existing businesses, our entry into new lines of business, innovation in the products that we offer investors in our funds, an increased focus on providing tailored solutions to our clients and the integration of capital markets distribution activities.
As a global investment firm, we earn management, monitoring, transaction and incentive fees and carried interest for providing investment management, monitoring and other services to our funds, vehicles, CLOs, managed accounts and portfolio companies, and we generate transaction-specific income from capital markets transactions. We earn additional investment income by investing our own capital alongside that of our fund investors, from other assets on our balance sheet and from the carried interest we receive from our funds and certain of our other investment vehicles. A carried interest entitles the sponsor of a fund to a specified percentage of investment gains that are generated on third-party capital that is invested. Beginning in the first quarter of 2021, we will also earn our share of income generated by Global Atlantic as a result of the Global Atlantic acquisition.
Our investment teams have deep industry knowledge and are supported by a substantial and diversified capital base; an integrated global investment platform; the expertise of operating professionals, senior advisors and other advisors; and a worldwide network of business relationships that provide a significant source of investment opportunities, specialized knowledge during due diligence and substantial resources for creating and realizing value for stakeholders. These teams invest capital, a substantial portion of which is of a long duration and not subject to redemption. As of December 31, 2020, approximately 80% of our capital is not subject to redemption for at least 8 years from inception, providing us with significant flexibility to grow investments and select exit opportunities. We believe that these aspects of our business will help us continue to expand and grow our business and deliver strong investment performance in a variety of economic and financial conditions.
Our insurance business is operated by Global Atlantic, in which we acquired a majority controlling interest on February 1, 2021. Global Atlantic is a leading U.S. annuity and life insurance company that provides a broad suite of protection, legacy and savings products and reinsurance solutions to clients across individual and institutional markets. Global Atlantic primarily offers individuals fixed-rate annuities, fixed-indexed annuities and targeted life products through a network of banks, broker-dealers and independent marketing organizations. Global Atlantic provides its institutional clients customized reinsurance solutions, including block, flow and pension risk transfer reinsurance, as well as funding agreements. Global Atlantic primarily generates income by earning a spread between its investment income and the cost of policyholder benefits. As of December 31, 2020, Global Atlantic served over two million policyholders.
Our Firm
With offices around the world, we have established ourselves as a leading global investment firm. We have multilingual and multicultural investment teams with local market knowledge and significant business, investment and operational experience in the countries in which we invest. We believe that our global capabilities and one-firm philosophy have helped us to raise capital, capture a greater number of investment opportunities, and assist our portfolio companies in their increasing reliance on global markets and sourcing, while enabling us to diversify our operations.
Though our operations span multiple continents and asset classes, our investment professionals are supported by an integrated infrastructure and operate under a common set of principles and business practices that are monitored by a variety of committees. The firm operates with a single culture that rewards investment discipline, creativity, determination and patience and emphasizes the sharing of information, resources, expertise and best practices across offices and asset classes. When appropriate, we staff transactions across multiple offices and businesses in order to take advantage of the industry-specific expertise of our investment professionals, and we hold regular meetings in which investment professionals throughout our offices share their knowledge and experiences. We believe that the ability to draw on the local cultural fluency of our investment professionals while maintaining a centralized and integrated global infrastructure distinguishes us from other investment firms and has been a substantial contributing factor to our ability to raise funds, invest internationally and expand our businesses.
Since our inception, one of our fundamental philosophies has been to align the interests of the firm and our principals with the interests of our fund investors, portfolio companies and other stakeholders. We achieve this by putting our own capital behind our ideas. As of December 31, 2020, we and our employees and other personnel have approximately $20.0 billion invested in or committed to our own funds and portfolio companies, including $10.6 billion funded from our balance sheet, $6.3 billion of additional commitments from our balance sheet to investment funds, $2.4 billion funded from personal investments and $0.7 billion of additional commitments from personal investments.
Our Business
Our Business Lines
We operate our asset management business in four business lines: (1) Private Markets, (2) Public Markets, (3) Capital Markets, and (4) Principal Activities. Information about our business lines below should be read together with "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this report.
Private Markets
Through our Private Markets business line, we manage and sponsor a group of private equity funds that invest capital for long-term appreciation, either through controlling ownership of a company or strategic minority positions. In addition to our traditional private equity funds, we sponsor investment funds that invest in growth equity, core and impact investments. We also manage and sponsor investment funds that invest capital in real assets, such as infrastructure, energy and real estate. Our Private Markets business line includes separately managed accounts that invest in multiple strategies, which may include our credit strategies as well as our private equity and real assets strategies. These funds and accounts are managed by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P., an SEC-registered investment adviser. As of December 31, 2020, our Private Markets business line had $148.7 billion of AUM, consisting of $99.1 billion in private equity (including growth equity, core and impact investments), $35.2 billion in real assets (including infrastructure, energy and real estate) and $14.4 billion in other related strategies.
Private Markets
Assets Under Management (1)
($ in billions)
(1) For the years 2006 through 2008, AUM are presented pro forma for the acquisition of the assets and liabilities of KKR & Co. (Guernsey) L.P. (formerly known as KKR Private Equity Investors, L.P.) ("KPE") on October 1, 2009 (the "KPE Transaction"), and therefore exclude the net asset value of KPE and its former commitments to our investment funds. In 2015, our definition of AUM was amended to include capital commitments for which we are eligible to receive fees or carried interest upon deployment of capital and our pro rata portion of the AUM managed by strategic partners in which we hold an ownership interest. AUM for all prior periods have been adjusted to include such changes.
The table below presents information as of December 31, 2020, relating to our current private equity, growth equity, core investment, impact and real asset funds and other investment vehicles in our Private Markets business line for which we have the ability to earn carried interest. This data does not reflect acquisitions or disposals of investments, changes in investment values, or distributions occurring after December 31, 2020.
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Investment Period (1)
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Amount ($ in millions)
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Start
Date
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End
Date
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Commitment (2)
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Uncalled
Commitments
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Percentage
Committed
by General
Partner
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Invested
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Realized
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Remaining
Cost (3)
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Remaining
Fair Value
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Gross Accrued Carried Interest
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Private Equity Funds
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Americas Fund XII
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1/2017
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1/2023
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$
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13,500.0
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$
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5,462.1
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5.8%
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$
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8,332.5
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$
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379.6
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$
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8,221.5
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$
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13,506.1
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$
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836.2
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North America Fund XI
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9/2012
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1/2017
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8,718.4
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429.8
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2.9%
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9,733.0
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12,717.1
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4,499.7
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8,851.6
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818.9
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2006 Fund (4)
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9/2006
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9/2012
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17,642.2
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247.4
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2.1%
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17,309.3
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32,435.1
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2,546.3
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4,794.0
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461.2
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Millennium Fund (4)
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12/2002
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12/2008
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6,000.0
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—
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2.5%
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6,000.0
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14,123.1
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—
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6.1
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1.3
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European Fund V
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3/2019
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7/2025
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6,415.0
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3,810.0
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1.8%
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2,605.0
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—
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2,605.0
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3,130.9
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56.4
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European Fund IV
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12/2014
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3/2019
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3,511.0
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59.4
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5.7%
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3,578.1
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3,092.2
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2,351.3
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3,953.8
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286.7
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European Fund III (4)
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3/2008
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3/2014
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5,513.9
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154.1
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5.2%
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5,359.8
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10,524.4
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336.7
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300.3
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(14.9)
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European Fund II (4)
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11/2005
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10/2008
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5,750.8
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—
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2.1%
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5,750.8
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8,507.4
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—
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34.3
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(0.2)
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Asian Fund IV
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7/2020
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7/2026
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13,818.5
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13,818.5
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7.2%
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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Asian Fund III
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4/2017
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7/2020
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9,000.0
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3,168.7
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5.6%
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6,190.7
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1,261.1
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5,795.6
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8,773.5
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552.2
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Asian Fund II
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4/2013
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4/2017
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5,825.0
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—
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1.3%
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6,842.4
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4,903.4
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4,023.2
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5,416.4
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280.3
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Asian Fund (4)
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7/2007
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4/2013
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3,983.3
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—
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2.5%
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3,974.3
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8,723.3
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17.1
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25.7
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3.6
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China Growth Fund (4)
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11/2010
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11/2016
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1,010.0
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—
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1.0%
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1,010.0
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867.9
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466.2
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409.0
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(7.4)
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Next Generation Technology Growth Fund II
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12/2019
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12/2025
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2,088.3
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1,225.5
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7.2%
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863.6
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0.9
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859.0
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1,009.5
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19.9
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Next Generation Technology Growth Fund
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3/2016
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12/2019
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658.9
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2.3
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22.5%
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663.3
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326.8
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527.6
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1,096.4
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62.3
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Health Care Strategic Growth Fund
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12/2016
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12/2021
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1,331.0
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844.7
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11.3%
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577.0
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116.1
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482.8
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1,042.0
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73.2
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Global Impact Fund
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2/2019
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2/2025
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1,242.2
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694.6
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8.1%
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547.6
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—
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547.6
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645.8
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12.1
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Private Equity Funds
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106,008.5
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29,917.1
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79,337.4
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97,978.4
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33,279.6
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52,995.4
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3,441.8
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Co-Investment Vehicles and Other
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Various
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Various
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12,069.8
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4,285.7
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Various
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8,073.6
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5,683.3
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5,312.1
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7,614.1
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833.1
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Total Private Equity Funds
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118,078.3
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34,202.8
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87,411.0
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103,661.7
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38,591.7
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60,609.5
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4,274.9
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Core Investment Vehicles
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Various
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Various
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10,693.6
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3,326.3
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33.0%
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7,367.3
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—
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7,367.3
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10,481.9
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131.4
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Real Assets
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Energy Income and Growth Fund II
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6/2018
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6/2021
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994.2
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515.0
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20.1%
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488.9
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9.6
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479.7
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487.7
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—
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Energy Income and Growth Fund
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9/2013
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6/2018
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1,974.2
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—
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12.9%
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1,967.9
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834.8
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1,239.4
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975.9
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—
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Natural Resources Fund (4)
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Various
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Various
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887.4
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—
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Various
|
887.4
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123.2
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194.2
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|
71.8
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|
—
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Global Energy Opportunities
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Various
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Various
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914.1
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63.4
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Various
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518.4
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|
143.5
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|
346.7
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|
206.5
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—
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Global Infrastructure Investors III
|
6/2018
|
6/2024
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7,193.3
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4,019.1
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3.8%
|
3,390.1
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|
216.0
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|
3,328.7
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|
3,294.9
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—
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Global Infrastructure Investors II
|
10/2014
|
6/2018
|
3,040.8
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|
161.3
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4.1%
|
3,119.4
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|
2,752.5
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|
2,038.4
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2,650.5
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66.6
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Global Infrastructure Investors
|
9/2011
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10/2014
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1,040.2
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25.1
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4.8%
|
1,046.8
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|
2,098.4
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|
127.5
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107.6
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1.3
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Asia Pacific Infrastructure Investors
|
1/2020
|
1/2026
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3,791.6
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|
3,791.6
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6.6%
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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Real Estate Partners Americas II
|
5/2017
|
12/2020
|
1,921.2
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|
494.4
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7.8%
|
1,662.9
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|
519.3
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|
1,399.4
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|
1,556.5
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44.1
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Real Estate Partners Americas
|
5/2013
|
5/2017
|
1,229.1
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|
147.8
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16.3%
|
1,011.1
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|
1,357.9
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|
186.6
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|
84.4
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(1.6)
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Real Estate Partners Europe
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9/2015
|
12/2019
|
713.7
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|
190.0
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9.1%
|
599.5
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|
172.1
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|
510.7
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|
656.0
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21.1
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Asia Real Estate Partners
|
6/2019
|
6/2023
|
1,682.4
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|
1,682.4
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14.9%
|
—
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|
—
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|
—
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|
—
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|
—
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Real Estate Credit Opportunity Partners II
|
4/2019
|
6/2022
|
950.0
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|
606.6
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|
5.3%
|
343.4
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|
12.0
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|
343.4
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|
353.9
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|
—
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Real Estate Credit Opportunity Partners
|
2/2017
|
4/2019
|
1,130.0
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|
122.2
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|
4.4%
|
1,007.8
|
|
232.2
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|
1,007.8
|
|
942.6
|
|
—
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Property Partners Americas
|
12/2019
|
(5)
|
2,012.5
|
|
1,446.7
|
|
24.8%
|
565.8
|
|
11.5
|
|
565.8
|
|
618.1
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|
2.3
|
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Co-Investment Vehicles and Other
|
Various
|
Various
|
7,594.3
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|
4,478.8
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|
Various
|
3,115.5
|
|
923.5
|
|
3,111.8
|
|
3,644.3
|
|
13.2
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Real Assets
|
|
|
37,069.0
|
|
17,744.4
|
|
|
19,724.9
|
|
9,406.5
|
|
14,880.1
|
|
15,650.7
|
|
147.0
|
|
|
|
|
|
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|
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Other
|
|
|
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|
|
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Unallocated Commitments (6)
|
|
|
903.1
|
|
903.1
|
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Various
|
—
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|
—
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—
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—
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—
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Private Markets Total
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|
$
|
166,744.0
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$
|
56,176.6
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|
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$
|
114,503.2
|
|
$
|
113,068.2
|
|
$
|
60,839.1
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|
$
|
86,742.1
|
|
$
|
4,553.3
|
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(1)The start date represents the date on which the general partner of the applicable fund commenced investment of the fund's capital or the date of the first closing. The end date represents the earlier of (i) the date on which the general partner of the applicable fund was or will be required by the fund's governing agreement to cease making new investments on behalf of the fund, unless extended by a vote of the fund investors and (ii) the date on which the last new investment was made.
(2)The commitment represents the aggregate capital commitments to the fund, including capital commitments by third-party fund investors and the general partner. Foreign currency commitments have been converted into U.S. dollars based on (i) the foreign exchange rate at the date of purchase for each investment and (ii) the exchange rate that prevailed on December 31, 2020, in the case of uncalled commitments.
(3)The remaining cost represents the initial investment of the general partner and limited partners, reduced for returns of capital, with the limited partners' investment further reduced for any return of capital and realized gains from which the general partner did not receive a carried interest.
(4)The "Invested" and "Realized" columns do not include the amounts of any realized investments that restored the unused capital commitments of the fund investors, if any.
(5)Open-ended fund.
(6)"Unallocated Commitments" represent unallocated commitments from our strategic investor partnerships.
Performance
We take a long-term approach to Private Markets investing and measure the success of our investments over a period of years rather than months. Given the duration of these investments, the firm focuses on realized multiples of invested capital and internal rates of return ("IRRs") when deploying capital in these transactions. We have nearly doubled the value of capital that we have invested in our Private Markets investment funds, turning $122.0 billion of capital into $240.2 billion of value from our inception in 1976 to December 31, 2020.
Amount Invested and Total Value for
Private Markets Investment Funds
As of December 31, 2020
From our inception in 1976 through December 31, 2020, our investment funds with at least 24 months of investment activity generated a cumulative gross IRR of 25.6%, compared to the 11.9% and 9.2% gross IRR achieved by the S&P 500 Index and MSCI World Index, respectively, over the same period, despite the cyclical and sometimes challenging environments in which we have operated. The S&P 500 Index and MSCI World Index are unmanaged indices and such returns assume reinvestment of distributions and do not reflect any fees or expenses. Our past performance, however, may not be representative of performance in any period other than the period discussed above and is not a guarantee of future results. For example, as of March 31, 2009, the date of the lowest aggregate valuation of our private equity funds during the 2008 and 2009 market downturn, the investments in certain of our private equity funds at the time were marked down to 67% of original cost. For additional information regarding impact of market conditions on the value and performance of our investments, see "Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business—Difficult market and economic conditions can adversely affect our business in many ways, including by reducing the value or performance of the investments that we manage or by reducing the ability of our funds to raise or deploy capital, each of which could negatively impact our net income and cash flow and adversely affect our financial prospects and condition" and "Risk Factors—Risks Related to the Assets We Manage—The historical returns attributable to our funds, including those presented in this report, should not be considered as indicative of the future results of our funds, our insurance subsidiaries or our balance sheet investments, of our future results or the performance of our common stock."
The tables below present information as of December 31, 2020, relating to the historical performance of certain of our Private Markets investment vehicles since inception, which we believe illustrates the benefits of our investment approach. This data does not reflect additional capital raised since December 31, 2020, or acquisitions or disposals of investments, changes in investment values, or distributions occurring after that date. The information presented below is not intended to be representative of any past or future performance for any particular period other than the period presented below. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Amount
|
|
Fair Value of Investments
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Private Markets Investment Funds
|
|
Commitment
|
Invested
|
|
Realized (4)
|
Unrealized
|
|
Total Value
|
|
Gross
IRR (5)
|
Net
IRR (5)
|
|
Gross Multiple of Invested
Capital (5)
|
|
|
($ in millions)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total Investments
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Legacy Funds (1)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1976 Fund
|
|
$
|
31.4
|
|
$
|
31.4
|
|
|
$
|
537.2
|
|
$
|
—
|
|
|
$
|
537.2
|
|
|
39.5
|
%
|
35.5
|
%
|
|
17.1
|
|
1980 Fund
|
|
356.8
|
|
356.8
|
|
|
1,827.8
|
|
—
|
|
|
1,827.8
|
|
|
29.0
|
%
|
25.8
|
%
|
|
5.1
|
|
1982 Fund
|
|
327.6
|
|
327.6
|
|
|
1,290.7
|
|
—
|
|
|
1,290.7
|
|
|
48.1
|
%
|
39.2
|
%
|
|
3.9
|
|
1984 Fund
|
|
1,000.0
|
|
1,000.0
|
|
|
5,963.5
|
|
—
|
|
|
5,963.5
|
|
|
34.5
|
%
|
28.9
|
%
|
|
6.0
|
|
1986 Fund
|
|
671.8
|
|
671.8
|
|
|
9,080.7
|
|
—
|
|
|
9,080.7
|
|
|
34.4
|
%
|
28.9
|
%
|
|
13.5
|
|
1987 Fund
|
|
6,129.6
|
|
6,129.6
|
|
|
14,949.2
|
|
—
|
|
|
14,949.2
|
|
|
12.1
|
%
|
8.9
|
%
|
|
2.4
|
|
1993 Fund
|
|
1,945.7
|
|
1,945.7
|
|
|
4,143.3
|
|
—
|
|
|
4,143.3
|
|
|
23.6
|
%
|
16.8
|
%
|
|
2.1
|
|
1996 Fund
|
|
6,011.6
|
|
6,011.6
|
|
|
12,476.9
|
|
—
|
|
|
12,476.9
|
|
|
18.0
|
%
|
13.3
|
%
|
|
2.1
|
|
Subtotal - Legacy Funds
|
|
16,474.5
|
|
16,474.5
|
|
|
50,269.3
|
|
—
|
|
|
50,269.3
|
|
|
26.1
|
%
|
19.9
|
%
|
|
3.1
|
|
Included Funds
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
European Fund (1999) (2)
|
|
3,085.4
|
|
3,085.4
|
|
|
8,757.7
|
|
—
|
|
|
8,757.7
|
|
|
26.9
|
%
|
20.2
|
%
|
|
2.8
|
|
Millennium Fund (2002)
|
|
6,000.0
|
|
6,000.0
|
|
|
14,123.1
|
|
6.1
|
|
|
14,129.2
|
|
|
22.0
|
%
|
16.1
|
%
|
|
2.4
|
|
European Fund II (2005) (2)
|
|
5,750.8
|
|
5,750.8
|
|
|
8,507.4
|
|
34.3
|
|
|
8,541.7
|
|
|
6.1
|
%
|
4.5
|
%
|
|
1.5
|
|
2006 Fund (2006)
|
|
17,642.2
|
|
17,309.3
|
|
|
32,435.1
|
|
4,794.0
|
|
|
37,229.1
|
|
|
12.0
|
%
|
9.4
|
%
|
|
2.2
|
|
Asian Fund (2007)
|
|
3,983.3
|
|
3,974.3
|
|
|
8,723.3
|
|
25.7
|
|
|
8,749.0
|
|
|
18.9
|
%
|
13.7
|
%
|
|
2.2
|
|
European Fund III (2008) (2)
|
|
5,513.9
|
|
5,359.8
|
|
|
10,524.4
|
|
300.3
|
|
|
10,824.7
|
|
|
16.6
|
%
|
11.5
|
%
|
|
2.0
|
|
E2 Investors (Annex Fund) (2009) (2)
|
|
195.8
|
|
195.8
|
|
|
199.6
|
|
—
|
|
|
199.6
|
|
|
0.6
|
%
|
0.5
|
%
|
|
1.0
|
|
China Growth Fund (2010)
|
|
1,010.0
|
|
1,010.0
|
|
|
867.9
|
|
409.0
|
|
|
1,276.9
|
|
|
6.2
|
%
|
1.9
|
%
|
|
1.3
|
|
Natural Resources Fund (2010)
|
|
887.4
|
|
887.4
|
|
|
123.2
|
|
71.8
|
|
|
195.0
|
|
|
(26.1)
|
%
|
(28.1)
|
%
|
|
0.2
|
|
Global Infrastructure Investors (2011) (2)
|
|
1,040.2
|
|
1,046.8
|
|
|
2,098.4
|
|
107.6
|
|
|
2,206.0
|
|
|
17.5
|
%
|
15.5
|
%
|
|
2.1
|
|
North America Fund XI (2012)
|
|
8,718.4
|
|
9,733.0
|
|
|
12,717.1
|
|
8,851.6
|
|
|
21,568.7
|
|
|
23.2
|
%
|
18.5
|
%
|
|
2.2
|
|
Asian Fund II (2013)
|
|
5,825.0
|
|
6,842.4
|
|
|
4,903.4
|
|
5,416.4
|
|
|
10,319.8
|
|
|
13.1
|
%
|
9.5
|
%
|
|
1.5
|
|
Real Estate Partners Americas (2013)
|
|
1,229.1
|
|
1,011.1
|
|
|
1,357.9
|
|
84.4
|
|
|
1,442.3
|
|
|
16.4
|
%
|
11.6
|
%
|
|
1.4
|
|
Energy Income and Growth Fund (2013)
|
|
1,974.2
|
|
1,967.9
|
|
|
834.8
|
|
975.9
|
|
|
1,810.7
|
|
|
(2.4)
|
%
|
(4.9)
|
%
|
|
0.9
|
|
Global Infrastructure Investors II (2014) (2)
|
|
3,040.8
|
|
3,119.4
|
|
|
2,752.5
|
|
2,650.5
|
|
|
5,403.0
|
|
|
19.7
|
%
|
17.0
|
%
|
|
1.7
|
|
European Fund IV (2015) (2)
|
|
3,511.0
|
|
3,578.1
|
|
|
3,092.2
|
|
3,953.8
|
|
|
7,046.0
|
|
|
27.0
|
%
|
21.3
|
%
|
|
2.0
|
|
Real Estate Partners Europe (2015) (2)
|
|
713.7
|
|
599.5
|
|
|
172.1
|
|
656.0
|
|
|
828.1
|
|
|
15.4
|
%
|
10.7
|
%
|
|
1.4
|
|
Next Generation Technology Growth Fund (2016)
|
|
658.9
|
|
663.3
|
|
|
326.8
|
|
1,096.4
|
|
|
1,423.2
|
|
|
34.1
|
%
|
28.2
|
%
|
|
2.1
|
|
Health Care Strategic Growth Fund (2016)
|
|
1,331.0
|
|
577.0
|
|
|
116.1
|
|
1,042.0
|
|
|
1,158.1
|
|
|
64.2
|
%
|
41.2
|
%
|
|
2.0
|
|
Americas Fund XII (2017)
|
|
13,500.0
|
|
8,332.5
|
|
|
379.6
|
|
13,506.1
|
|
|
13,885.7
|
|
|
31.4
|
%
|
24.1
|
%
|
|
1.7
|
|
Real Estate Credit Opportunity Partners (2017)
|
|
1,130.0
|
|
1,007.8
|
|
|
232.2
|
|
942.6
|
|
|
1,174.8
|
|
|
6.6
|
%
|
5.4
|
%
|
|
1.2
|
|
Core Investment Vehicles (2017)
|
|
10,693.6
|
|
7,367.3
|
|
|
—
|
|
10,481.9
|
|
|
10,481.9
|
|
|
21.4
|
%
|
19.8
|
%
|
|
1.4
|
|
Asian Fund III (2017)
|
|
9,000.0
|
|
6,190.7
|
|
|
1,261.1
|
|
8,773.5
|
|
|
10,034.6
|
|
|
40.2
|
%
|
30.1
|
%
|
|
1.6
|
|
Real Estate Partners Americas II (2017)
|
|
1,921.2
|
|
1,662.9
|
|
|
519.3
|
|
1,556.5
|
|
|
2,075.8
|
|
|
20.8
|
%
|
15.7
|
%
|
|
1.2
|
|
Global Infrastructure Investors III (2018)
|
|
7,193.3
|
|
3,390.1
|
|
|
216.0
|
|
3,294.9
|
|
|
3,510.9
|
|
|
3.3
|
%
|
(0.6)
|
%
|
|
1.0
|
|
European Fund V (2019) (2) (3)
|
|
6,415.0
|
|
2,605.0
|
|
|
—
|
|
3,130.9
|
|
|
3,130.9
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
Energy Income and Growth Fund II (2019) (3)
|
|
994.2
|
|
488.9
|
|
|
9.6
|
|
487.7
|
|
|
497.3
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
Next Generation Technology Growth Fund II (2019) (3)
|
|
2,088.3
|
|
863.6
|
|
|
0.9
|
|
1,009.5
|
|
|
1,010.4
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
Global Impact Fund (2019) (3)
|
|
1,242.2
|
|
547.6
|
|
|
—
|
|
645.8
|
|
|
645.8
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
Asia Pacific Infrastructure Investors (2019) (3)
|
|
3,791.6
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
Real Estate Credit Opportunity Partners II (2019) (3)
|
|
950.0
|
|
343.4
|
|
|
12.0
|
|
353.9
|
|
|
365.9
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
Asian Fund IV (2020) (3)
|
|
13,818.5
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
Asia Real Estate Partners (2020) (3)
|
|
1,682.4
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
Subtotal - Included Funds
|
|
146,531.4
|
|
105,511.1
|
|
|
115,263.7
|
|
74,659.1
|
|
|
189,922.8
|
|
|
16.1
|
%
|
12.2
|
%
|
|
1.8
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
All Funds
|
|
$
|
163,005.9
|
|
$
|
121,985.6
|
|
|
$
|
165,533.0
|
|
$
|
74,659.1
|
|
|
$
|
240,192.1
|
|
|
25.6
|
%
|
18.8
|
%
|
|
2.0
|
|
(1)These funds were not contributed to KKR as part of the KPE Transaction.
(2)The following table presents information regarding investment funds with euro-denominated commitments. Such amounts have been converted into U.S. dollars based on (i) the foreign exchange rate at the date of purchase for each investment and (ii) the exchange rate prevailing on December 31, 2020, in the case of unfunded commitments.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Private Markets Investment Funds
|
Commitment (€ in millions)
|
European Fund
|
|
€
|
196.5
|
|
European Fund II
|
|
€
|
2,597.5
|
|
European Fund III
|
|
€
|
2,882.8
|
|
E2 Investors (Annex Fund)
|
|
€
|
55.5
|
|
Global Infrastructure Investors
|
|
€
|
30.0
|
|
Global Infrastructure Investors II
|
|
€
|
243.8
|
|
European Fund IV
|
|
€
|
1,626.1
|
|
Real Estate Partners Europe
|
|
€
|
276.6
|
|
Global Infrastructure Investors III
|
|
€
|
987.0
|
|
European Fund V
|
|
€
|
2,144.2
|
|
(3)The gross IRR, net IRR and gross multiple of invested capital are calculated for our investment funds that made their first investment at least 24 months prior to December 31, 2020. None of the European Fund V, Energy Income and Growth Fund II, Next Generation Technology Growth Fund II, Global Impact Fund, Asia Pacific Infrastructure Investors, Real Estate Credit Opportunity Partners II, Asian Fund IV, Asia Real Estate Partners or Property Partners Americas has invested for at least 24 months as of December 31, 2020. We therefore have not calculated gross IRRs, net IRRs and gross multiples of invested capital with respect to those funds.
(4)An investment is considered realized when it has been disposed of or has otherwise generated disposition proceeds or current income that has been distributed by the relevant fund. In periods prior to the three months ended September 30, 2015, realized proceeds excluded current income such as dividends and interest.
(5)IRRs measure the aggregate annual compounded returns generated by a fund's investments over a holding period. Net IRRs are calculated after giving effect to the allocation of realized and unrealized carried interest and the payment of any applicable management fees and organizational expenses. Gross IRRs are calculated before giving effect to the allocation of realized and unrealized carried interest and the payment of any applicable management fees and organizational expenses.
The gross multiples of invested capital measure the aggregate value generated by a fund's investments in absolute terms. Each multiple of invested capital is calculated by adding together the total realized and unrealized values of a fund's investments and dividing by the total amount of capital invested by the fund. Such amounts do not give effect to the allocation of realized and unrealized carried interest or the payment of any applicable management fees or organizational expenses.
KKR's Private Markets funds may utilize third-party financing facilities to provide liquidity to such funds. The above net and gross IRRs are calculated from the time capital contributions are due from fund investors to the time fund investors receive a related distribution from the fund, and the use of such financing facilities generally decreases the amount of time that would otherwise be used to calculate IRRs, which tends to increase IRRs when fair value grows over time and decrease IRRs when fair value decreases over time. KKR's Private Markets funds also generally provide in certain circumstances, which vary depending on the relevant fund documents, for a portion of capital returned to investors to be restored to unused commitments as recycled capital. For KKR's Private Markets funds that have a preferred return, we take into account recycled capital in the calculation of IRRs and multiples of invested capital because the calculation of the preferred return includes the effect of recycled capital. For KKR's Private Markets funds that do not have a preferred return, we do not take recycled capital into account in the calculation of IRRs and multiples of invested capital. The inclusion of recycled capital generally causes invested and realized amounts to be higher and IRRs and multiples of invested capital to be lower than had recycled capital not been included. The inclusion of recycled capital would reduce the composite net IRR of all Included Funds by 0.1% and the composite net IRR of all Legacy Funds by 0.5% and would reduce the composite multiple of invested capital of Included Funds by less than 0.1 and the composite multiple of invested capital of Legacy Funds by 0.4.
For more information, see "Risk Factors—Risks Related to the Assets We Manage—The historical returns attributable to our funds, including those presented in this report, should not be considered as indicative of the future results of our funds, our insurance subsidiaries or our balance sheet investments, of our future results or the performance of our common stock."
Private Equity
We are a world leader in private equity, having raised over 25 private equity funds (including growth equity). We invest in industry-leading franchises and attract world-class management teams. Our investment approach leverages our capital base, sourcing advantage, global network and industry knowledge. It also leverages a sizable team of operating professionals, as well as senior advisors and other advisors, many of whom are former chief executive officers and leaders of the business community.
Traditional Private Equity. Our traditional private equity investment strategy typically seeks to engage primarily in management buyouts, build-ups, or other investments with a view to acquire a controlling or significant influence. We believe that the combination of our industry knowledge, investment experience and operational expertise provides KKR with the ability to identify and create value in investment opportunities. Through our portfolio company board oversight, we work closely and cooperatively with the management of our portfolio companies, which are assisted by having access to the resources of our global platform.
Growth Equity. Building upon our four decades of private equity investing experience, we have sourced a number of smaller growth equity investment opportunities, and we expanded our business by launching dedicated growth equity funds in 2016 and 2018 that pursue growth equity investment opportunities in the technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) sector, primarily in the United States, Canada, Europe and Israel. Through this strategy, we focus on emerging, high-growth companies and invest across a variety of sub-segments including software, security, semiconductors, consumer electronics, internet of things (IoT), information services, business services, internet, digital media, content and communications. In 2016, we launched another dedicated growth equity fund to pursue growth equity investment opportunities in the health care sector, primarily in the United States and Europe. Our health care growth strategy targets opportunities across various health care sub-sectors, including biopharmaceuticals, medical devices, diagnostics ⁄ life science tools, providers, healthcare information technology ⁄ informatics and other services.
Core Investments. We have separately managed vehicles in our core investments strategy. This strategy targets investments with a longer holding period and a lower risk profile, which we determined are not suitable for our traditional private equity or real asset strategies. The holding periods in these core investment accounts are generally longer than 15 years.
Global Impact Strategy. We launched our global impact strategy in 2018, which is focused on identifying and investing behind opportunities across the Americas, Europe and Asia where financial performance and societal impact are intrinsically aligned. Our Global Impact Fund aims to generate private equity risk-adjusted returns by investing in small to medium-sized companies that contribute toward one or more of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Portfolio
The following chart presents information concerning the remaining value of traditional private equity funds by geography through December 31, 2020. We believe that this data illustrates the benefits of our business approach and our ability to source and invest in deals in multiple geographies.
As of December 31, 2020, our traditional private equity portfolio consisted of 107 companies with approximately $238 billion of annual revenues. These companies are headquartered in 20 countries and operate in 20 general industries, which take advantage of our broad and deep industry and operating expertise. Many of these companies are leading franchises with global operations, strong management teams and attractive growth prospects, which we believe will provide benefits through a broad range of business conditions.
Investment Approach
Our approach to making private equity investments focuses on achieving multiples of invested capital and attractive risk-adjusted IRRs by selecting high-quality investments that may be made at attractive prices, applying rigorous standards of due diligence when making investment decisions, implementing strategic and operational changes that drive growth and value creation in acquired businesses, carefully monitoring investments, and making informed decisions when developing investment exit strategies.
We believe that we have achieved a leading position in the private equity industry by applying a disciplined investment approach and by building strong partnerships with highly motivated management teams who put their own capital at risk. When making private equity investments, we seek out strong business franchises, attractive growth prospects, leading market positions and the ability to generate attractive returns. In our private equity funds, we do not effect transactions that are "hostile," meaning a target company's board of directors makes an unfavorable recommendation with respect to the transaction or publicly opposes the consummation of the transaction.
Sourcing and Selecting Investments
We have access to significant opportunities for making private equity investments as a result of our sizable capital base, global platform, and relationships with leading executives from major companies, commercial and investment banks, and other investment and advisory institutions. Members of our global network contact us with new investment opportunities, including a substantial number of exclusive investment opportunities and opportunities that are made available to only a limited number of other firms. We also proactively pursue business development strategies that are designed to generate deals internally based on the depth of our industry knowledge and our reputation as a leading financial sponsor.
Due Diligence and the Investment Decision
When an investment team determines that an investment proposal is worth consideration, the proposal is formally presented to the applicable regional investment committee and the due diligence process commences, if appropriate. The objective of the due diligence process is to identify attractive investment opportunities based on the facts and circumstances surrounding an investment and to prepare a framework that may be used from the date of an acquisition to drive operational improvement and value creation. When conducting due diligence, investment teams evaluate a number of important business, financial, tax, accounting, environmental, social, governance, legal and regulatory issues in order to determine whether an investment is suitable. While the due diligence process differs depending on the type of investment we make, generally, in connection with the private equity due diligence process, investment professionals spend significant amounts of time meeting with a company's management and operating personnel, visiting plants and facilities, and where appropriate, speaking with other stakeholders interested in and impacted by the investment in order to understand the opportunities and risks associated with the proposed investment. Our investment professionals may also use the services of outside accountants, consultants, lawyers, investment banks and industry experts as appropriate to assist them in this process. Investment committees or portfolio managers, as applicable, monitor our due diligence practices and approve an investment before it is made.
Building Successful and Competitive Businesses
Portfolio management committees are responsible for working with our investment professionals from the date on which a private equity investment is made until the time it is exited in order to ensure that strategic and operational objectives are accomplished and that the performance of the investment is closely monitored. When investing in a private equity portfolio company, we partner with management teams to execute on our investment thesis, and we rigorously track performance through regular monitoring of detailed operational and financial metrics as well as appropriate environmental, social and governance issues. We have developed a global network of experienced managers and operating professionals who assist the private equity portfolio companies in making operational improvements and achieving growth. We augment these resources with operational guidance from operating professionals at KKR Capstone, senior advisors, other advisors and investment teams, and with "100-Day Plans" that focus the firm's efforts and drive our strategies. We seek to emphasize efficient capital management, top-line growth, R&D spending, geographical expansion, cost optimization and investment for the long-term.
Realizing Investments
We have developed substantial expertise for realizing private equity investments. From our inception through December 31, 2020, the firm has generated approximately $157.2 billion of cash proceeds from the sale of our private equity portfolio companies in initial public offerings and secondary offerings, dividends, and sales to strategic and financial buyers. When exiting private equity investments, our objective is to structure the exit in a manner that optimizes returns for fund investors and, in the case of publicly traded companies, minimizes the impact that the exit has on the trading price of the company's securities. We believe that our ability to successfully realize investments is attributable in part to the strength and discipline of our portfolio management committees and capital markets business, as well as the firm's longstanding relationships with corporate buyers and members of the investment banking and investing communities.
Private Equity Fund Structures
The private equity funds that we sponsor and manage have finite lives and investment periods. Each fund is organized as one or more partnerships, and each partnership is controlled by a general partner. Private equity fund investors are limited partners who agree to contribute a specified amount of capital to the fund from time to time for use in qualifying investments during the investment period, which generally lasts up to six years depending on how quickly capital is deployed. The investment period for certain funds may be terminated upon supermajority vote (based on capital commitment) of the fund's limited partners or by the fund's advisory committee. The term of our private equity funds generally last for 10 to 12 years and may last up to 15 years from the date of the fund's first or last investment, subject to a limited number of extensions with the consent of the limited partners or the applicable advisory committee. Given the length of the investment periods and terms of
our private equity funds and the limited conditions under which such periods can be terminated and commitments may be withdrawn, the AUM of our private equity funds provide a long-term stable capital base.
Each private equity fund's general partner is generally entitled to a carried interest that allocates to it 20% of the net profits realized by the limited partners from the fund's investments. Our private equity funds since 2012 generally have a performance hurdle which requires that we return 7%, compounded annually, to limited partners in the fund prior to receiving our 20% share of net profits realized by limited partners. Such performance hurdles are subject to a catch-up allocation to the general partner after the hurdle has been reached. Our earlier private equity funds do not include a performance hurdle. The timing of receipt of carried interest in respect of investments of our private equity funds is dictated by the terms of the partnership agreements that govern such funds, and is distributed to the general partner of a private equity fund only after all of the following are met: (i) a realization event has occurred (e.g., sale of a portfolio company, dividend, etc.); (ii) the vehicle has achieved positive overall investment returns since its inception, in excess of performance hurdles where applicable, and is accruing carried interest; and (iii) with respect to investments with a fair value below cost, cost has been returned to fund investors in an amount sufficient to reduce remaining cost to the investments' fair value. For a fund that has a fair value above cost, overall, and is otherwise accruing carried interest, but has one or more investments where fair value is below cost, the shortfall between cost and fair value for such investments is referred to as a "netting hole." See "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity—Sources of Liquidity" for a discussion of netting holes. Net realized profit or loss is not netted between or among funds. In addition, the agreements governing our private equity funds generally include a "clawback" provision that, if triggered, may give rise to a contingent obligation that may require the general partner to return or contribute amounts to the fund for distribution to fund investors at the end of the life of the fund. See "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Critical Accounting Policies—Recognition of Carried Interest in the Statement of Operations" and "Risk Factors—The 'clawback' provisions in our governing agreements may give rise to a contingent obligation that may require us to return or contribute amounts to our funds and fund investors."
We enter into management agreements with our private equity funds pursuant to which we receive management fees in exchange for providing the funds with management and other services. Gross management fees for our private equity funds generally range from 1% to 2% of committed capital during the fund's investment period and are generally 0.75% to 1.25% of invested capital after the expiration of the fund's investment period with subsequent reductions over time, which causes the fees to be reduced as investments are liquidated. In addition, in connection with the expiration of the investment period, a private equity fund may establish a reserve on its fund investors' capital commitments on which no fee is paid unless such capital is invested. These management fees are paid by private equity fund investors, who generally contribute capital to the fund in order to allow the fund to pay the fees to us. Our private equity funds generally require that management fees be returned to fund investors before a carried interest may be paid.
We also enter into monitoring agreements with our portfolio companies pursuant to which we receive periodic monitoring fees in exchange for providing them with management, consulting and other services, and we typically receive transaction fees for providing portfolio companies with financial, advisory and other services in connection with specific transactions. Monitoring agreements may provide for a termination payment following an initial public offering or change of control, if certain criteria are satisfied. In some cases, we may be entitled to other fees that are paid by an investment target upon closing a transaction or when a potential investment is not consummated. Since 2014, our private equity fund agreements typically require us to share 100% of any monitoring, transaction and other fees that are allocable to a fund (after reduction for expenses incurred allocable to a fund from unconsummated transactions) with fund investors.
In addition, the agreements governing our private equity funds enable investors in those funds to reduce their capital commitments available for further investments, on an investor-by-investor basis, in the event one or more "key persons" (for example, investment professionals who are named as "key executives" for certain geographically or product focused funds) cease to be actively involved in the management of the fund. While these provisions do not allow investors in our funds to withdraw capital that has been invested or cause a fund to terminate, the occurrence of a "key person" event could cause disruption in our business, reduce the amount of capital that we have available for future investments, and make it more challenging to raise additional capital in the future.
Because private equity fund investors typically are unwilling to invest their capital in a fund unless the fund's manager also invests its own capital in the fund's investments, our private equity fund documents generally require the general partners of the funds to make minimum capital commitments to the funds. The amounts of these commitments, which are negotiated by fund investors, generally range from 2% to 8% of a fund's total capital commitments at final closing, but may be greater for certain funds (i) where we are pursuing newer strategies, (ii) where third party investor demand is limited, and (iii) where a larger commitment is consistent with the asset allocation strategy our balance sheet is pursuing. When investments are made, the general partner contributes capital to the fund based on its fund commitment percentage and acquires a capital interest in the investment that is not subject to a carried interest or management fees.
Real Assets
Infrastructure
Our infrastructure platform seeks to achieve returns including current income through the acquisition and operational improvement of assets important to the functioning of the economy. We believe that the global infrastructure market provides an opportunity for the firm's private investment, operational improvement capabilities and stakeholder engagement. Through this platform we have made investments in power and utilities, midstream, alternative energy, transportation, asset leasing, water and wastewater, and telecommunications infrastructure. Our traditional infrastructure funds pursue infrastructure investment opportunities with an emphasis on investments in existing assets and businesses located in North America, Western Europe and Asia. Our core infrastructure strategy seeks core infrastructure and infrastructure-related investment opportunities with a focus on investments with predominantly contracted or regulated cash flows in existing securities, properties and other assets principally located in North America and Western Europe.
Real Estate
Our real estate equity platform targets real estate investment opportunities globally, across the United States, Western Europe and Asia-Pacific. Our opportunistic equity investments include direct investments in real property, debt, special situations transactions and businesses with significant real estate holdings that can benefit from KKR's involvement and expertise. We seek to partner with real estate owners, lenders, operators, and developers to provide flexible capital to respond to transaction-specific needs, including the outright purchase or financing of existing assets or companies and the funding of future development or acquisition opportunities. Through this strategy, we have made real estate equity investments in residential and commercial assets. In addition, we have a core plus real estate strategy that seeks to pursue real estate primarily in the United States, primarily with the intent of influencing the real estate assets or companies in which it invests. Our strategic real estate partner, Drawbridge Realty ("Drawbridge"), also pursues a U.S. open-ended triple net lease office strategy and makes equity and credit investments in real estate properties.
Our real estate credit platform also provides capital solutions for real estate transactions with a focus on commercial mortgage-backed securities, whole loans and subordinated debt. Our real estate credit strategy includes KKR Real Estate Finance Trust Inc. (NYSE: KREF), a listed real estate investment trust ("REIT"), and our real estate credit funds which focus on the risk retention tranches of CMBS transactions.
Energy
Our energy platform aims to provide fund investors with exposure to commodity prices and optionality associated with producing and selling oil and natural gas reserves and capital appreciation. Our energy platform targets real asset investment opportunities located primarily in the United States across the upstream and midstream segments of the oil and gas industry. We seek to generate value through optimizing production, reducing operating costs, and optimizing commercial and marketing arrangements. We work closely with external teams of technical and operational experts to assist in the selection, evaluation and operation of investments. We invest in these energy strategies primarily through KKR's energy funds and vehicles.
Real Asset Investment Process
Our energy, infrastructure and real estate funds have a similar investment process as that described under "—Private Equity." Investment teams for a particular real asset strategy formally present potential investments to the applicable strategy oriented investment committee or the portfolio manager, as applicable, which monitors our due diligence practices and approves an investment before it is made. Most of our real asset strategies also have a portfolio management team that works with our investment professionals from the date on which an investment is made until the time it is exited in order to ensure that strategic and operational objectives are accomplished and that the performance of the investment is closely monitored. In addition to leveraging the resources of the firm, our energy, infrastructure and real estate investment teams typically partner with technical experts and operators to manage our real asset investments.
Real Asset Fund Structures
Our traditional energy, infrastructure and real estate funds generally have investment periods of up to 6 years and generally have a fund term of up to 13 years. Management fees for such funds generally range from 0.75% to 1.5% on committed capital, invested capital or net asset value during the investment period and on invested capital or net asset value for investments thereafter, subject to certain adjustments. These funds generally have performance hurdles of 8% to 10% subject to a catch-up
allocation to the general partner after the hurdle has been reached. Thereafter the general partners of such funds generally share in 10% to 20% of net profits realized by limited partners.
Our core real estate and infrastructure funds are open-ended and do not have a fixed termination date. They also do not have a specified termination date for making investments. Management fees for such funds generally range from 0.5% to 1.1% of net asset value, subject to certain adjustments. The general partners of such funds are also entitled to incentive fees ranging generally from 5% to 10% of cash flow or net asset value appreciation, subject to performance hurdles.
Public Markets
Through our Public Markets business line, we report our credit and hedge funds platforms on a combined basis. Our credit business invests capital in (i) leveraged credit strategies, including leveraged loans, high-yield bonds, opportunistic credit and revolving credit strategies, and (ii) alternative credit strategies, including special situations and private credit strategies such as direct lending and private opportunistic credit (including mezzanine and asset-based finance) investment strategies. The funds, CLOs, separately managed accounts, investment companies registered under the Investment Company Act and alternative investment funds ("AIFs") in our leveraged credit and alternative credit strategies are managed by KKR Credit Advisors (US) LLC, which is an SEC-registered investment adviser, KKR Credit Advisors (Ireland) Unlimited Company, which is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland ("CBI"), and KKR Credit Advisors (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., which is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore and also registered with the SEC. Our business development company ("BDC") platform consists of BDCs advised by FS/KKR Advisor, LLC ("FS/KKR Advisor"), which is an investment adviser jointly owned by KKR and Franklin Square Holdings, L.P. ("FS Investments") following the completion of our strategic partnership with FS Investments on April 9, 2018. Our Public Markets business line also includes our hedge funds platform, which consists of strategic partnerships with third-party hedge fund managers in which KKR owns a minority stake (which we refer to as "hedge fund partnerships"). Our hedge fund partnerships offer a variety of investment strategies, including equity hedge funds, hedge fund-of-funds and credit hedge funds.
We intend to continue to grow the Public Markets business line by leveraging our global investment platform, experienced investment professionals and the ability to adapt our investment strategies to different market conditions to capitalize on investment opportunities that may arise at various levels of the capital structure and across market cycles.
The following chart presents the growth in the AUM of our Public Markets business line from the commencement of its operations in August 2004 through December 31, 2020.
Public Markets
Assets Under Management (1) (2)
($ in billions)
(1) For years 2006 through 2008, AUM are presented pro forma for the KPE Transaction and, therefore, exclude the net asset value of KPE and its former commitments to our investment funds. AUM of acquired businesses and pro rata AUM of hedge fund partnerships in which KKR has made an investment are included in the years on and after the completion of the respective acquisitions or transactions, as applicable.
(2) In 2015 our definition of AUM was amended to include (i) KKR's pro rata portion of AUM managed by third-party hedge fund managers in which KKR holds a minority stake and (ii) capital commitments for which we are eligible to receive fees or carried interest upon deployment of capital. AUM for all prior periods has been adjusted to include such changes.
Credit
Performance
We generally review our performance in our credit business by investment strategy.
Our leveraged credit strategies principally invest through separately managed accounts, BDCs, CLOs and investment funds. In certain cases, these strategies have meaningful track records and may be compared to widely-known indices. The following table presents information regarding larger leveraged credit strategies managed by KKR from inception to December 31, 2020. The information presented below is not intended to be representative of any past or future performance for any particular period other than the period presented below. Past performance is no guarantee of any future result.
Leveraged Credit Strategies: Inception-to-Date Annualized Gross Performance vs. Benchmark by Strategy
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($ in millions)
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Inception Date
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Gross
Returns
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Net
Returns
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Benchmark (1)
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Benchmark
Gross
Returns
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Bank Loans Plus High Yield
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Jul 2008
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7.57
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%
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6.95
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%
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65% S&P/LSTA Loan Index, 35% BoAML HY Master II Index (2)
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5.98
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%
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Opportunistic Credit (3)
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May 2008
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11.60
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%
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9.77
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%
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50% S&P/LSTA Loan Index, 50% BoAML HY Master II Index (3)
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6.28
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%
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Bank Loans
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Apr 2011
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5.23
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%
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4.65
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%
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S&P/LSTA Loan Index (4)
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4.18
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%
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High-Yield
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Apr 2011
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7.21
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%
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6.63
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%
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BoAML HY Master II Index (5)
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6.38
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%
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Bank Loans Conservative
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Apr 2011
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4.51
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%
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3.93
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%
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S&P/LSTA BB-B Loan Index (6)
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4.21
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%
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European Leveraged Loans (7)
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Sep 2009
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4.71
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%
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4.19
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%
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CS Inst West European Leveraged Loan Index (8)
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3.59
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%
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High-Yield Conservative
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Apr 2011
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6.52
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%
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5.94
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%
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BoAML HY BB-B Constrained (9)
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6.41
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%
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European Credit Opportunities (7)
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Sept 2007
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5.43
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%
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4.49
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%
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S&P European Leveraged Loans (All Loans) (10)
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4.09
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%
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Revolving Credit (11)
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May 2015
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N/A
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N/A
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N/A
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N/A
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(1)The benchmarks referred to herein include the S&P/LSTA Leveraged Loan Index (the "S&P/LSTA Loan Index"), S&P/LSTA U.S. B/BB Ratings Loan Index (the "S&P/LSTA BB-B Loan Index"), the Bank of America Merrill Lynch High Yield Master II Index (the "BoAML HY Master II Index"), the BofA Merrill Lynch BB-B US High Yield Index (the "BoAML HY BB-B Constrained"), the Credit Suisse Institutional Western European Leveraged Loan Index (the "CS Inst West European Leveraged Loan Index"), and S&P European Leveraged Loans (All Loans). The S&P/LSTA Loan Index is a daily tradable index for the U.S. loan market that seeks to mirror the market-weighted performance of the largest institutional loans that meet certain criteria. The S&P/ LSTA BB-B Loan Index is comprised of loans in the S&P/LSTA Loan Index, whose rating is BB+, BB, BB-, B+, B or B-. The BoAML HY Master II Index is an index for high-yield corporate bonds. It is designed to measure the broad high-yield market, including lower-rated securities. The BoAML HY BB-B Constrained is a subset of the BoAML HY Master II Index including all securities rated BB1 through B3, inclusive. The CS Inst West European Leveraged Loan Index contains only institutional loan facilities priced above 90, excluding TL and TLa facilities and loans rated CC, C or are in default. The S&P European Leveraged Loan Index reflects the market-weighted performance of institutional leveraged loan portfolios investing in European credits. While the returns of our leveraged credit strategies reflect the reinvestment of income and dividends, none of the indices presented in the chart above reflect such reinvestment, which has the effect of increasing the reported relative performance of these strategies as compared to the indices. Furthermore, these indices are not subject to management fees, incentive allocations, or expenses.
(2)Performance is based on a blended composite of Bank Loans Plus High Yield strategy accounts. The benchmark used for purposes of comparison for the Bank Loans Plus High Yield strategy is based on 65% S&P/LSTA Loan Index and 35% BoAML HY Master II Index.
(3)The Opportunistic Credit strategy invests in high-yield securities and corporate loans with no preset allocation. The benchmark used for purposes of comparison for the Opportunistic Credit strategy presented herein is based on 50% S&P/LSTA Loan Index and 50% BoAML HY Master II Index. Funds within this strategy may utilize third-party financing facilities to enhance investment returns. In cases where financing facilities are used, the amounts drawn on the facility are deducted from the assets of the fund in the calculation of net asset value, which tends to increase returns when net asset value grows over time and decrease returns when net asset value decreases over time.
(4)Performance is based on a composite of portfolios that primarily invest in leveraged loans. The benchmark used for purposes of comparison for the Bank Loans strategy is based on the S&P/LSTA Loan Index.
(5)Performance is based on a composite of portfolios that primarily invest in high-yield securities. The benchmark used for purposes of comparison for the High Yield strategy is based on the BoAML HY Master II Index.
(6)Performance is based on a composite of portfolios that primarily invest in leveraged loans rated B-/Baa3 or higher. The benchmark used for purposes of comparison for the Bank Loans Conservative strategy is based on the S&P/LSTA BB-B Loan Index.
(7)The returns presented are calculated based on local currency.
(8)Performance is based on a composite of portfolios that primarily invest in higher quality leveraged loans. The benchmark used for purposes of comparison for the European Leveraged Loans strategy is based on the CS Inst West European Leveraged Loan Index.
(9)Performance is based on a composite of portfolios that primarily invest in high-yield securities rated B or higher. The benchmark used for purposes of comparison for the High-Yield Conservative strategy is based on the BoAML HY BB-B Constrained Index.
(10)Performance is based on a composite of portfolios that primarily invest in European institutional leveraged loans. The benchmark used for purposes of comparison for the European Credit Opportunities strategy is based on the S&P European Leveraged Loans (All Loans) Index.
(11)This strategy has not called any capital as of December 31, 2020. As a result, the gross and net return performance measures are not meaningful and are not included above.
Our alternative credit strategies primarily invest in more illiquid instruments through private investment funds, BDCs and separately managed accounts. The following table presents information regarding our Public Markets alternative credit commingled funds where investors are subject to capital commitments from inception to December 31, 2020. Some of these funds have been investing for less than 24 months, and thus their performance is less meaningful and not included below. In addition, the information presented below is not intended to be representative of any past or future performance for any particular period other than the period presented below. Past performance is no guarantee of any future result.
Alternative Credit Strategies: Fund Performance
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Amount
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Fair Value
of Investments
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Public Markets
Investment Funds
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Inception
Date
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Commitment
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Invested (1)
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Realized (1)
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Unrealized
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Total
Value
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Gross
IRR (2)
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Net
IRR (2)
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Multiple of
Invested
Capital (3)
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Gross Accrued Carried Interest
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($ in Millions)
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Dislocation Opportunities Fund
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May 2020
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$
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2,813.9
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$
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651.6
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$
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23.8
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$
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802.9
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$
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826.7
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N/A
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N/A
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N/A
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$
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20.6
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Special Situations Fund II
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Dec 2014
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3,524.7
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3,225.2
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1,054.8
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2,373.1
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3,427.9
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2.4
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%
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0.3
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%
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1.1
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—
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Special Situations Fund
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Dec 2012
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2,274.3
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2,273.0
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1,552.4
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560.7
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2,113.1
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(1.8)
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%
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(3.9)
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%
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0.9
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—
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Mezzanine Partners
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Mar 2010
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1,022.8
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989.5
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1,092.1
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224.2
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1,316.3
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9.9
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%
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6.7
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%
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1.3
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(20.0)
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Private Credit Opportunities Partners II
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Dec 2015
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2,245.1
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1,442.1
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178.7
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1,462.0
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1,640.7
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6.1
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%
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4.5
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%
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1.1
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—
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Lending Partners III
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Apr 2017
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1,497.8
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740.7
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187.9
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774.3
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962.2
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17.0
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%
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13.9
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%
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1.3
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16.8
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Lending Partners II
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Jun 2014
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1,335.9
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1,179.1
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1,100.7
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215.8
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1,316.5
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4.4
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%
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3.1
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%
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1.1
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—
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Lending Partners
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Dec 2011
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460.2
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407.2
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450.7
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16.1
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466.8
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4.1
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%
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2.4
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%
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1.1
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—
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Lending Partners Europe II
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Jun 2019
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836.6
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181.4
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10.1
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211.0
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221.1
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N/A
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N/A
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N/A
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1.0
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Lending Partners Europe
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Mar 2015
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847.6
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635.3
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240.7
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378.7
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619.4
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(1.6)
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%
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(4.4)
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%
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1.0
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—
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Other Alternative Credit Vehicles
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Various
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11,144.0
|
|
|
6,170.1
|
|
|
3,706.7
|
|
|
4,206.4
|
|
|
7,913.1
|
|
|
N/A
|
|
N/A
|
|
N/A
|
|
93.8
|
|
Unallocated Commitments (4)
|
|
Various
|
|
124.3
|
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
|
—
|
|
|
N/A
|
|
N/A
|
|
N/A
|
|
—
|
|
All Funds
|
|
|
|
$
|
28,127.2
|
|
|
$
|
17,895.2
|
|
|
$
|
9,598.6
|
|
|
$
|
11,225.2
|
|
|
$
|
20,823.8
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$
|
112.2
|
|
(1) Recycled capital is excluded from the amounts invested and realized.
(2) These credit funds utilize third-party financing facilities to provide liquidity to such funds, and in such event IRRs are calculated from the time capital contributions are due from fund investors to the time fund investors receive a related distribution from the fund. The use of such financing facilities generally decreases the amount of invested capital that would otherwise be used to calculate IRRs, which tends to increase IRRs when fair value grows over time and decrease IRRs when fair value decreases over time. IRRs measure the aggregate annual compounded returns generated by a fund's investments over a holding period and are calculated taking into account recycled capital. Net IRRs presented are calculated after giving effect to the allocation of realized and unrealized carried interest and the payment of any applicable management fees. Gross IRRs are calculated before giving effect to the allocation of carried interest and the payment of any applicable management fees.
(3) The multiples of invested capital measure the aggregate value generated by a fund's investments in absolute terms. Each multiple of invested capital is calculated by adding together the total realized and unrealized values of a fund's investments and dividing by the total amount of capital invested by the investors. The use of financing facilities generally decreases the amount of invested capital that would otherwise be used to calculate multiples of invested capital, which tends to increase multiples when fair value grows over time and decrease multiples when fair value decreases over time. Such amounts do not give effect to the allocation of any realized and unrealized returns on a fund's investments to the fund's general partner pursuant to a carried interest or the payment of any applicable management fees and are calculated without taking into account recycled capital.
(4)"Unallocated Commitments" represent unallocated commitments from our strategic investor partnerships.
For additional information regarding impact of market conditions on the value and performance of our investments, see "Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business—Difficult market and economic conditions can adversely affect our business in many ways, including by reducing the value or performance of the investments that we manage or by reducing the ability of our funds to raise or deploy capital, each of which could negatively impact our net income and cash flow and adversely affect our financial prospects and condition" and "Risk Factors—Risks Related to the Assets We Manage—The historical returns attributable to our funds, including those presented in this report, should not be considered as indicative of the future results of our funds, our insurance subsidiaries or our balance sheet investments, of our future results or the performance of our common stock."
Investment Approach
Our approach to making investments focuses on creating investment portfolios that seek to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns by selecting investments that may be made at attractive prices, subjecting investments to regular monitoring and oversight, and, for more liquid investments, making buy and sell decisions based on relative value parameters. The firm employs both "top-down" and "bottom-up" analyses when making investments. Our top-down analysis involves, as appropriate, a macro analysis of relative asset valuations, long-term industry trends, business cycles, regulatory trends, interest rate
expectations, credit fundamentals and technical factors to target specific industry sectors and asset classes in which to invest. From a bottom-up perspective, our investment decision is predicated on an investment thesis that is developed using our proprietary resources and knowledge and due diligence.
Sourcing and Selecting Investments
We source investment opportunities through a variety of channels, including internal deal generation strategies and the firm's global network of contacts at major companies, corporate executives, commercial and investment banks, financial intermediaries, other private equity sponsors and other investment and advisory institutions. We are also provided with opportunities to invest, in certain strategies where appropriate, in the securities of KKR's private equity portfolio companies, though there are limitations across the platform on the availability and maximum size of such KKR-affiliated investments.
Due Diligence and the Investment Decision
Once a potential investment has been identified, our investment professionals screen the opportunity and make a preliminary determination concerning whether we should proceed with further diligence. When evaluating the suitability of an investment for our funds, we typically employ a relative value framework and subject the investment to due diligence. This review considers many factors including, as appropriate, expected returns, capital structure, credit ratings, historical and projected financial data, the issuer's competitive position, the quality and track record of the issuer's management team, margin stability, and industry and company trends. Investment professionals use the services of outside advisors and industry experts as appropriate to assist them in the due diligence process and, when relevant and permitted, leverage the knowledge and experience of our Private Markets investment professionals. Strategy-specific investment committees monitor our due diligence practices.
Monitoring Investments
We monitor our portfolios of investments using, as applicable, daily, quarterly and annual analyses. Daily analyses include morning market meetings, industry and company pricing runs, industry and company reports and discussions with the firm's Private Markets investment professionals on an as-needed basis. Quarterly analyses include the preparation of quarterly operating results, reconciliations of actual results to projections and updates to financial models (baseline and stress cases). Annual analyses involve conducting internal audits, and testing compliance with monitoring and documentation requirements.
Credit Strategies
Our credit business pursues investments in leveraged credit strategies, such as leveraged loans, high-yield bonds, opportunistic credit and revolving credit strategies, and alternative credit strategies, such as special situations, direct lending and private opportunistic credit (including mezzanine and asset-based finance) strategies. We pursue these investments across a range of vehicles, including investment funds and separately managed accounts, for which we receive a fee and in certain cases an incentive fee or carried interest.
We also manage structured credit vehicles in the form of CLOs that hold leveraged loans, high-yield bonds or a combination of both. CLOs are typically structured as special purpose investment vehicles that acquire, monitor and, to varying degrees, manage a pool of credit assets. CLOs generally serve as long-term financing for leveraged credit investments and as a way to reduce refinancing risk, reduce maturity risk and secure a fixed cost of funds over an underlying market interest rate. We typically receive a fee for managing CLOs.
We also serve as the registered investment adviser to registered investment companies. The management fees we are paid for managing registered investment companies are generally subject to contractual rights that require their board of directors to provide prior notice in order to terminate our investment management services. Our BDCs are advised by FS/KKR Advisor, which is an investment adviser jointly owned by KKR and FS Investments.
Leveraged Credit. Our leveraged credit strategies are principally directed at investing in leveraged loans, high-yield bonds or a combination of both. Our opportunistic credit strategy seeks to deploy capital across investment themes that take advantage of credit market dislocations, spanning asset types and liquidity profiles. Our revolving credit strategy invests in senior secured revolving credit facilities.
Alternative Credit. Our alternative credit strategies consist of special situations and private credit strategies.
•Private Credit. Our private credit strategies seek to leverage the knowledge and relationships developed in the leveraged credit business. These strategies include direct lending and private opportunistic credit strategies. Through our direct lending strategy, we seek to make investments in proprietarily sourced primarily senior debt financings for middle-market companies. Through our private opportunistic credit strategy, we seek to make investments in directly sourced third-party mezzanine and mezzanine-like transactions and also seek asset-based credit and structured credit opportunities across financial and hard assets. These investments often consist of mezzanine debt, which generates a current yield, coupled with marginal equity exposure with additional upside potential.
•Special Situations. Special situations includes our dislocation strategy, in which we seek to pursue investments in corporate credit and asset-backed/real estate credit where market volatility has created the opportunity to generate outsized returns via high-quality companies and downside-protected securities. We have also made opportunistic investments in stressed or distressed companies through our special situations investment strategy. These investments have included distressed investments (including post-restructuring equity), control-oriented opportunities, rescue financing (debt or equity investments made to address covenant, maturity or liquidity issues), debtor-in-possession or exit financing, and other event-driven investments in debt or equity.
Hedge Funds
Our hedge fund platform consists of strategic partnerships with third-party hedge fund managers in which KKR owns a minority stake. This includes a 39.6% interest in Marshall Wace LLP (together with its affiliates, "Marshall Wace"), a global alternative investment manager specializing in long/short equity products, and a 24.9% interest in BlackGold Capital Management L.P. ("BlackGold"), a credit-oriented investment manager focused on energy and hard asset investments. We also own a 39.9% interest in, and are entitled to receive certain other payments from, PAAMCO Prisma Holdings, LLC ("PAAMCO Prisma"), an investment manager focused on liquid alternative investment solutions, including hedge fund-of-fund portfolios.
Public Markets AUM and Vehicle Structures
As of December 31, 2020, our Public Markets business line had $103.0 billion of AUM, comprised of $45.2 billion of assets managed in our leveraged credit strategies (which include $6.8 billion of assets managed in our opportunistic credit strategy and $2.0 billion of assets managed in our revolving credit strategy), $32.1 billion of assets managed in our alternative credit strategies (which includes $17.1 billion of assets managed in our direct lending strategy and $7.5 billion of assets managed in our private opportunistic credit strategy), $24.5 billion of assets managed through our hedge fund platform, and $1.2 billion of assets managed in other strategies. Our BDC platform has approximately $15.8 billion in assets under management, which are reflected in the AUM of our leveraged credit strategies and alternative credit strategies above. We report all of the assets under management of the BDCs in our BDC platform in our AUM. We report only a pro rata portion of the assets under management of our strategic partnerships with third-party hedge fund managers based on KKR's percentage ownership in them.
The table below presents information as of December 31, 2020, based on the investment funds, vehicles or accounts offered by our Public Markets business line. Our funds, vehicles and accounts have been sorted based upon their primary investment strategies. However, the AUM and FPAUM presented for each line in the table includes certain investments from non-primary investment strategies, which are permitted by their investment mandates, for purposes of presenting the fees and other terms for such funds, vehicles and accounts.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
($ in millions)
|
|
AUM
|
|
FPAUM
|
|
Typical
Management
Fee Rate
|
|
Incentive Fee /
Carried
Interest
|
|
Preferred
Return
|
|
Duration
of Capital
|
Leveraged Credit:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Leveraged Credit SMAs/Funds
|
|
$
|
25,281
|
|
|
$
|
23,738
|
|
|
0.15%-1.10%
|
|
Various (1)
|
|
Various (1)
|
|
Subject to redemptions
|
CLOs
|
|
18,005
|
|
|
18,005
|
|
|
0.40%-0.50%
|
|
Various (1)
|
|
Various (1)
|
|
10-14 Years (2)
|
Total Leveraged Credit
|
|
43,286
|
|
|
41,743
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Alternative Credit: (3)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Special Situations
|
|
7,444
|
|
|
4,249
|
|
|
0.50%-1.75% (4)
|
|
10.00-20.00%
|
|
7.00-12.00%
|
|
7-15 Years (2)
|
Private Credit
|
|
11,928
|
|
|
7,293
|
|
|
0.50%-1.50%
|
|
10.00-20.00%
|
|
5.00-8.00%
|
|
8-15 Years (2)
|
Total Alternative Credit
|
|
19,372
|
|
|
11,542
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hedge Funds (5)
|
|
24,504
|
|
|
22,908
|
|
|
0.50%-2.00%
|
|
Various (1)
|
|
Various (1)
|
|
Subject to redemptions
|
BDCs (6)
|
|
15,828
|
|
|
15,828
|
|
|
0.60%
|
|
8.00%
|
|
7.00%
|
|
Indefinite
|
Total
|
|
$
|
102,990
|
|
|
$
|
92,021
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(1)Certain funds and CLOs are subject to a performance fee in which the manager or general partner of the funds share up to 20% of the net profits earned by investors in excess of performance hurdles (generally tied to a benchmark or index) and subject to a provision requiring the funds and vehicles to regain prior losses before any performance fee is earned.
(2)Duration of capital is measured from inception. Inception dates for CLOs were between 2013 and 2020 and for separately managed accounts and funds investing in alternative credit strategies from 2009 through 2020.
(3)Our alternative credit funds generally have investment periods of two to five years and our newer alternative credit funds generally earn fees on invested capital during the investment period.
(4)Lower fees on uninvested capital in certain vehicles.
(5)Hedge Funds represent KKR's pro rata portion of AUM and FPAUM of our hedge fund partnerships.
(6)Consists of our BDC platform advised by FS/KKR Advisor. We report all of the assets under management of the BDCs in our AUM and FPAUM.
Fundraising and Composition of Fund Investors
We have a Client & Partner Group that is responsible for raising capital for us globally across all products, expanding our client relationships across asset classes and across types of fund investors, developing products to meet our fund investors' needs, and servicing existing fund investors and products. We also provide fundraising services to certain third-party fund managers in our hedge fund partnerships. As of December 31, 2020, we had over 100 executives and professionals dedicated to our Client & Partner Group.
As of December 31, 2020, we had approximately 1,175 investors in funds across all our strategies, which reflect the addition of approximately 135 investors during the year. On average, a fund investor is invested in approximately two of our strategies as of December 31, 2020. The following charts detail our investor base by type and geography as of December 31, 2020.
Fund Investor Base by Type (1) Fund Investor Base by Geography (1)
(1) Based on the AUM of our Private Markets investment funds, Private Markets co-investment vehicles, and Public Markets separately managed accounts and Public Markets investment funds. These charts exclude general partner commitments, assets managed through CLOs, and assets managed by other asset managers with which KKR has formed strategic partnerships where KKR does not hold more than a 50% ownership interest. Allocations are assigned to a type or geographic region according to subscriptions received from a limited partner.
Capital Markets
Our Capital Markets business line is comprised of our global capital markets business, which is integrated with KKR’s asset management business lines, and serves our firm, our portfolio companies and third-party clients by developing and implementing both traditional and non-traditional capital solutions for investments or companies seeking financing. These services include arranging debt and equity financing, placing and underwriting securities offerings, and providing other types of capital markets services that result in the firm receiving fees, including underwriting, placement, transaction and syndication fees, commissions, underwriting discounts, interest payments and other compensation, which may be payable in cash or securities, in respect of the activities described above.
Our capital markets business underwrites credit facilities and arranges loan syndications and participations. When we are sole arrangers of a credit facility, we may advance amounts to the borrower on behalf of other lenders, subject to repayment. When we underwrite an offering of securities on a firm commitment basis, we commit to buy and sell an issue of securities and generate revenue by purchasing the securities at a discount or for a fee. When we act in an agency capacity or best efforts basis, we generate revenue for arranging financing or placing securities with capital markets investors. We may also provide issuers with capital markets advice on security selection, access to markets, marketing considerations, securities pricing, and other aspects of capital markets transactions in exchange for a fee. Our capital markets business also provides syndication services in
respect of co-investments in transactions participated in by KKR funds or third-party clients, which may entitle the firm to receive syndication fees, management fees and/or a carried interest.
The capital markets business has a global footprint, with local presence and licenses to carry out certain broker-dealer activities in various countries in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. Our flagship capital markets subsidiary is KKR Capital Markets LLC, an SEC-registered broker-dealer and a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA").
Principal Activities
Through our Principal Activities business line, we manage the firm's own assets on our balance sheet and deploy capital to support and grow our Private Markets and Public Markets business lines. Typically, the funds in our Private Markets and Public Markets business lines contractually require us, as general partner of the funds, to make sizable capital commitments from time to time. We believe making general partner commitments assists us in raising new funds from limited partners by demonstrating our conviction in a given fund's strategy. We also use our balance sheet to bridge investment activity during fundraising by seeding investments for new funds and also to acquire investments in order to help establish a track record for fundraising in new strategies. We also use our own capital to bridge capital selectively for our funds' investments or finance strategic acquisitions and partnerships, although the financial results of an acquired business or hedge fund partnership may be reported in our other business lines.
Our Principal Activities business line also provides the required capital to fund the various commitments of our Capital Markets business line when underwriting or syndicating securities, or when providing term loan commitments for transactions involving our portfolio companies and for third parties. Our Principal Activities business line also holds assets that are utilized to satisfy regulatory requirements for our Capital Markets business line and risk retention requirements for our CLOs.
We also make opportunistic investments through our Principal Activities business line, which include co-investments alongside our Private Markets and Public Markets funds as well as Principal Activities investments that do not involve our Private Markets or Public Markets funds.
We endeavor to use our balance sheet strategically and opportunistically to generate an attractive risk-adjusted return on equity in a manner that is consistent with our fiduciary duties, in compliance with applicable laws, and consistent with our one-firm approach.
The chart below presents the holdings of our Principal Activities business line by asset class as of December 31, 2020.
Holdings by Asset Class (1)
(1)General partner commitments in our funds are included in the various asset classes shown above. Assets and revenues of other asset managers with which KKR has formed strategic partnerships where KKR does not hold more than 50% ownership interest are not included in our Principal Activities business line but are reported in the financial results of our other business lines. Private Equity includes KKR private equity funds, co-investments alongside such KKR-sponsored private equity funds, certain core equity investments, and other opportunistic investments. Equity investments in other asset classes, such as real estate, special situations and energy appear in these other asset classes. Other Credit consists of certain leveraged credit and specialty finance strategies.
Global Atlantic
Our insurance business is operated by Global Atlantic, which we acquired on February 1, 2021. KKR owns a 61.1% interest in Global Atlantic as of the closing, which is subject to change based on post-closing purchase price adjustments. The balance of Global Atlantic is owned by third-party investors and Global Atlantic employees. Following the Global Atlantic acquisition, Global Atlantic continues to operate as a separate business with its existing brands and management team. Beginning with the first quarter of 2021, we intend to present Global Atlantic's financial results as a separate reportable segment.
Global Atlantic is a leading U.S. annuity and life insurance company that provides a broad suite of protection, legacy and savings products and reinsurance solutions to clients across individual and institutional markets. Global Atlantic has made the strategic decision to focus on target markets that it believes supports issuing products that have attractive risk and return characteristics. These markets allow Global Atlantic to leverage its strength in distribution and to deploy shareholder capital opportunistically across market conditions.
Global Atlantic primarily offers individuals fixed-rate annuities, fixed-indexed annuities, and targeted life products through a network of banks, broker-dealers, and insurance agencies. Global Atlantic provides its institutional clients customized reinsurance solutions, including block, flow and pension risk transfer, as well as funding agreements. Global Atlantic primarily generates income by earning a spread between its investment income and the cost of policyholder benefits. As of December 31, 2020, Global Atlantic served over two million policyholders.
Global Atlantic focuses exclusively on two businesses in the United States: individual and institutional. Global Atlantic believes these businesses are complementary, providing favorable opportunities to deploy capital across various market environments.
•Individual Markets. Global Atlantic primarily seeks to reach individuals in the United States who are planning for, or are already in, retirement. Global Atlantic's annuity products are distributed primarily through a network of
distribution partners, including over 210 banks, broker-dealers and independent marketing organizations. Global Atlantic generated $6.7 billion of sales for the year ended December 31, 2020. Global Atlantic believes that focusing on banks and broker-dealers within individual markets provides attractive returns and helps maintain a competitive advantage. Global Atlantic's targeted life products are distributed primarily through 83 independent marketing organizations and approximately 1,300 funeral homes.
•Institutional Markets. Global Atlantic provides customized reinsurance solutions to assist companies in meeting their strategic, risk management and capital goals. These solutions include capabilities across flow, pension risk transfer and block reinsurance. To generate reinsurance opportunities, Global Atlantic targets over 50 retirement and life insurance companies that it believes may seek to transact in the reinsurance market. Since Global Atlantic's founding in 2004, it has executed 28 reinsurance transactions and three strategic transactions with 21 clients, through which Global Atlantic received a total of $74.3 billion of assets as of February 1, 2021. Global Atlantic also provides flow and pension risk transfer reinsurance to its clients. Global Atlantic offers funding agreements to Federal Home Loan Banks and to an unaffiliated trust that in turn issues funding agreement backed notes to institutional investors in connection with its funding agreement backed notes program launched in January 2021.
Competition
Our asset management business competes with other investment managers for both fund investors and investment opportunities. The firm's competitors consist primarily of sponsors of public and private investment funds, real estate development companies, BDCs, investment banks, commercial finance companies and operating companies acting as strategic buyers. We believe that competition for fund investors is based primarily on investment performance, investor liquidity and willingness to invest, investor perception of investment managers' drive, focus and alignment of interest, business reputation, duration of relationships, quality of services, pricing, fund terms including fees, and the relative attractiveness of the types of investments that have been or are to be made. We believe that competition for investment opportunities is based primarily on the pricing, terms and structure of a proposed investment and certainty of execution. In addition to these traditional competitors within the global investment management industry, we also face competition from local and regional firms, financial institutions and sovereign wealth funds in the various countries in which we invest. In certain emerging markets, local firms may have more established relationships with the companies in which we are attempting to invest. These competitors often fall into one of the aforementioned categories but in some cases may represent new types of fund investors, including high net worth individuals, family offices and state-sponsored entities.
There are numerous funds focused on private equity, real assets, growth equity, credit and hedge fund strategies that compete for investor capital. Fund managers have also increasingly adopted investment strategies outside of their traditional focus. For example, funds focused on credit and equity strategies have become active in taking control positions in companies, while private equity funds have acquired minority equity or debt positions in publicly listed companies. This convergence could heighten competition for investments. Furthermore, as institutional fund investors increasingly consolidate their relationships for multiple investment products with a few investment firms, competition for capital from such institutional fund investors may become more acute. However, such consolidation may also lead institutional fund investors to prefer more established investment firms, which could help us to compete against newer entrants or investment firms that are smaller in size or offer more limited types of investment strategies.
Some of the entities that we compete with as an investment firm may have greater financial, technical, marketing and other resources and more personnel than us and, in the case of some asset classes, longer operating histories, more established relationships or greater experience. Several of our competitors also have raised, or may raise, significant amounts of capital and have investment objectives that are similar to the investment objectives of our funds, which may create additional competition for investment opportunities. Some of these competitors may also have lower costs of capital and access to funding sources that are not available to us, which may create competitive advantages for them. In addition, some of these competitors may have higher risk tolerances, different risk assessments or lower return thresholds, which could allow them to consider a wider range of investments and to bid more aggressively than us for investments. Strategic buyers may also be able to achieve synergistic cost savings or revenue enhancements with respect to a targeted portfolio company, which may provide them with a competitive advantage in bidding for such investments.
Our capital markets business competes primarily with investment banks and independent broker-dealers in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. We principally focus our capital markets activities on the firm, our portfolio companies and fund investors, but we also seek to service other third parties. While we generally target customers with whom we have existing relationships, those customers may have similar relationships with the firm's competitors, many of whom will have access to competing securities transactions, greater financial, technical or marketing resources or more established reputations than us.
Global Atlantic operates in highly competitive markets. Within the individual markets business, Global Atlantic faces a variety of large and small industry participants. Large, established insurers often operate with the benefit of well-known brands, entrenched distribution relationships or proprietary distribution. The insurance industry has also seen an influx of smaller new entrants, particularly in the retirement market, who may be able to price new business aggressively, with a higher investment risk tolerance, seeking to gain market share. All of these companies compete for individual markets sales. Global Atlantic's flow reinsurance business may also be impacted by competition among insurers in the individual channel. The competitiveness of Global Atlantic's product offerings will depend on the actions of its competitors and Global Atlantic's ability to actively manage its product offerings. In the institutional markets business, there has been an increase in block reinsurance as many insurers continue to reevaluate their commitment to business lines and seek reinsurance solutions as a way to deemphasize or divest non-core businesses, reduce risk, seek capital relief or improve profitability. The block reinsurance market is also experiencing increased competition due to new entrants, including entrants backed by private equity firms and entrants based outside of the United States. Increased competition may make it more difficult for Global Atlantic to identify transactions with terms that are commercially acceptable based on its risk tolerance and target return objectives.
Competition is also intense for the attraction and retention of qualified employees and consultants. Our ability to continue to compete effectively in our businesses will depend upon our ability to attract new employees and consultants and retain and motivate our existing employees and consultants.
Human Capital
We believe our people are the key to our success and are what sets our firm apart. We strive to create a workplace environment where employees thrive both professionally and personally. At KKR, our philosophy is to ensure we manage our investments in people – our human capital – as rigorously and effectively as we do our financial capital. Our key focuses include driving exceptional performance and enhancing our firm culture.
Our primary goal in human capital management is to develop and retain talent at KKR by providing meaningful and well-understood careers for our people. We therefore focus on employee training and professional development. We offer workshops, mentoring and executive coaching to supplement on-the-job experiences and ongoing feedback and coaching to maximize performances. In addition, fostering a culture of physical, mental, and emotional health and wellness is a priority for KKR, and we offer tools and resources to our employees so they can make informed health care decisions themselves and their families.
We seek to have a well-rounded, inclusive workplace — one that is reflective of our shareholders, fund investors, Global Atlantic's policyholders, the clients and other stakeholders with whom we collaborate, and the communities in which we live and conduct our business. In 2014, KKR established the Inclusion & Diversity Council (the "IDC"), a committee led by senior leaders to seek to ensure that KKR is an entrepreneurial, vibrant, and innovative organization that values diverse teams and varied lifestyles and backgrounds. The IDC’s goal is to attract, develop, and retain the best possible talent, actively work to make KKR a more diverse and inclusive workplace with increased representation among women and underrepresented demographic groups, and improve mentoring programs firm-wide.
Consistent with KKR's global, integrated culture, compensation is based on the performance of the firm as a whole, as well as on an individual's contributions to the firm. We designed this structure to give everyone a direct financial incentive to ensure that the firm uses its resources, knowledge, and relationships around the world toward maximizing risk-adjusted returns for each strategy. KKR believes that this compensation structure promotes teamwork, resource sharing, shared accountability and alignment of interests, all of which reflect and reinforce our core culture and values as a firm.
As of December 31, 2020, we employed 1,583 people worldwide:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Investment Professionals
|
530
|
|
Other Professionals
|
763
|
|
Support Staff
|
290
|
|
Total Employees(1)
|
1,583
|
|
|
|
(1) Does not include employees of Global Atlantic. KKR acquired Global Atlantic on February 1, 2021.
Investment Professionals
Our 530 investment professionals come from diverse backgrounds in private equity, real assets, credit and other asset classes and include executives with operations, strategic consulting, risk management, liability management and finance
experience. As a group, these professionals provide us with a strong global team for identifying attractive investment opportunities, creating value and generating superior returns.
Other Professionals
Our 763 other professionals come from diverse backgrounds in capital markets, operational, economics, capital raising, client services, public affairs, finance, tax, legal, compliance, human capital, and information technology. As a group, these professionals provide us with a strong team for overseeing investments and performing capital markets activities, servicing our existing fund investors and creating relationships with new fund investors globally. Additionally, a majority of these other professionals are responsible for supporting the global infrastructure of KKR. Following our acquisition of Global Atlantic, we will also be impacted by Global Atlantic's ability to attract and retain insurance professionals in the United States and Bermuda, including wholesalers, actuaries, risk management professionals, agents and others with insurance expertise.
KKR Capstone
We have developed an institutionalized process for creating value in investments. As part of our effort, we utilize a team of 81 operating professionals at KKR Capstone, who work exclusively with our investment professionals and portfolio company management teams or our designees. With professionals in North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific, KKR Capstone provides additional expertise for assessing investment opportunities and assisting managers of portfolio companies in defining strategic priorities and implementing operational changes. During the initial phases of an investment, KKR Capstone's work seeks to implement our thesis for value creation. These operating professionals may assist portfolio companies in addressing top-line growth, cost optimization and efficient capital allocation and in developing operating and financial metrics. Over time, this work shifts to identifying challenges and taking advantage of business opportunities that arise during the life of an investment. Following KKR's acquisition of KKR Capstone on January 1, 2020, KKR Capstone's operating professionals became employees of KKR.
Senior Advisors and Other Advisors
To complement the expertise of our investment professionals, we have a team of senior advisors and other advisors. While not KKR employees, they provide us with additional operational and strategic insights. The responsibilities of senior advisors and other advisors include serving on the boards of our portfolio companies, helping us source and evaluate individual investment opportunities and assisting portfolio companies with operational matters. These individuals include current and former chief executive officers, chief financial officers and chairpersons of major corporations and others holding leading positions of public agencies worldwide.
Organizational Structure
The following simplified diagram illustrates our organizational structure as of February 17, 2021, unless otherwise noted. Certain entities depicted below may be held through intervening entities not shown in the diagram.
(1) KKR Management LLP is the sole holder of Series I preferred stock of KKR & Co. Inc. KKR Management LLP is owned by senior KKR employees.
(2) KKR Holdings is the holding vehicle through which certain of our current and former employees and other persons indirectly own their interest in KKR. KKR Group Partnership Units that are held by KKR Holdings are exchangeable for shares of our common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to customary conversion rate adjustments for stock splits, stock dividends and reclassifications and compliance with applicable vesting and transfer restrictions. As limited partner interests, these KKR Group Partnership Units are non-voting and do not entitle KKR Holdings to participate in the management of our business and affairs. As of December 31, 2020, KKR Holdings had approximately a 32.5% interest in our business indirectly through its limited partner interests in KKR Group Partnership. KKR Holdings also holds Series II preferred stock that entitles it to cast a number of votes equal to the number of KKR Group Partnership Units that it holds, with respect to the matters upon which our common stockholders are entitled to vote.
(3) On January 1, 2020, KKR completed the Reorganization, in which KKR Management Holdings L.P. and KKR International Holdings L.P., which were formerly intermediate holding companies for KKR's business, were combined with another intermediate holding company, KKR Fund Holdings L.P., which changed its name to KKR Group Partnership L.P. and became the sole intermediate holding company for KKR's business.
(4) Depending on the fund's vintage, 40% or 43% of the carried interest earned from our investment funds are allocated to a carry pool, from which carried interest is allocable to our current and former employees and other persons associated with KKR. In February 2021, upon receipt of the approval of a committee representing a majority of our independent directors, we amended the percentage of carried interest that is allocable to the carry pool to 65% for recently formed funds and future funds, while for older funds, it remains 40% or 43%, as applicable. See "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Key Financial Measures Under GAAP—Expenses—Compensation and Benefits." The carry pool is not reflected in the organizational structure chart.
(5) Includes Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P., the SEC-registered investment adviser, which in turn is the parent company of KKR's other management and capital markets subsidiaries, including KKR Credit Advisors (US) LLC, KKR Credit Advisors (Ireland) Unlimited Company, KKR Credit Advisors (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., KKR Alternative Investment Management Unlimited Company and KKR Capital Markets Holdings L.P., the holding company for KKR Capital Markets LLC. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. is also the parent company of KKR Capstone Holdings LLC, the holding company for KKR Capstone entities.
(6) Includes KKR Financial Holdings LLC and KKR Group Finance Co. Holdings Limited, which in turn owns the issuers of KKR's outstanding senior notes.
(7) KKR holds the sole voting rights in and owns a 61.1% economic interest in Global Atlantic, which is subject to change based on post-closing purchase price adjustments.
Regulation
Our operations are subject to regulation and supervision in a number of jurisdictions. The level of regulation and supervision to which we are subject varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and is based on the type of business activity involved. We, in conjunction with our outside advisors and counsel, seek to manage our business and operations in compliance with such regulation and supervision. The regulatory and legal requirements that apply to our activities are subject to change from time to time and may become more restrictive, which may make compliance with applicable requirements more difficult or expensive or otherwise restrict our ability to conduct our business activities in the manner in which they are now conducted. Changes in applicable regulatory and legal requirements, including changes in their enforcement, could materially and adversely affect our business and our financial condition and results of operations. As a matter of public policy, the regulatory bodies that regulate our business activities are generally responsible for safeguarding the integrity of the securities and financial markets and protecting fund investors who participate in those markets rather than protecting the interests of our stockholders.
United States
Regulation as an Investment Adviser
We conduct our advisory business through our investment adviser subsidiaries, including Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries KKR Credit Advisors (US) LLC and KKR Registered Advisor LLC, each of which is registered as an investment adviser with the SEC under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the "Investment Advisers Act"). We also own half of FS/KKR Advisor and a majority of Global Atlantic's investment adviser, Global Atlantic Investment Advisors, LLC, each of which is registered with the SEC. The investment advisers are subject to the anti-fraud provisions of the Investment Advisers Act and to fiduciary duties derived from these provisions, which apply to our relationships with our advisory clients globally, including funds that we manage. These provisions and duties impose restrictions and obligations on us with respect to our dealings with our fund investors and our investments, including for example restrictions on agency cross and principal transactions. Our registered investment advisers are subject to periodic SEC examinations and other requirements under the Investment Advisers Act and related regulations primarily intended to benefit advisory clients. These additional requirements relate, among other things, to maintaining an effective and comprehensive compliance program, record-keeping and reporting requirements and disclosure requirements. The Investment Advisers Act generally grants the SEC broad administrative powers, including the power to limit or restrict an investment adviser from conducting advisory activities in the event it fails to comply with federal securities laws. Additional sanctions that may be imposed for failure to comply with applicable requirements include the prohibition of individuals from associating with an investment adviser, the revocation of registrations and other censures and fines.
KKR Credit Advisors (US) LLC and KKR Registered Advisor LLC are also subject to regulation under the Investment Company Act as an investment adviser to a registered investment company. Each of KKR Income Opportunities Fund and KKR Credit Opportunities Portfolio is a closed-end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act. The closed-end management investment companies, KKR Credit Advisors (US) LLC and KKR Registered Advisor LLC are subject to the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder, which among other things regulate the relationship between a registered investment company and its investment adviser and prohibit or restrict principal transactions and joint transactions. FS/KKR Advisor serves as investment adviser to FS KKR Capital Corp. and FS KKR Capital Corp. II, which are BDCs subject to the applicable regulations under the Investment Company Act, including portfolio construction requirements and limitations on transactions with affiliates.
Regulation as a Broker-Dealer
KKR Capital Markets LLC, one of our subsidiaries, is registered as a broker-dealer with the SEC under the Exchange Act and in all 50 U.S. States and U.S. territories, and is a member of the FINRA. Global Atlantic's distribution of insurance products that are regulated as securities is conducted by Global Atlantic Distributors, LLC, which is also registered as a broker-dealer with the SEC under the Exchange Act and in all 50 U.S. States and U.S. territories, and is a member of the FINRA. As
registered broker-dealers, KKR Capital Markets LLC and Global Atlantic Distributors, LLC are subject to periodic SEC and FINRA examinations and reviews. A broker-dealer is subject to legal requirements covering all aspects of its securities business, including sales and trading practices, public and private securities offerings, the suitability of investments, use and safekeeping of customers' funds and securities, capital structure, record-keeping and retention and the conduct and qualifications of directors, officers, employees and other associated persons. These requirements include the SEC's "uniform net capital rule," which specifies the minimum level of net capital that a broker-dealer must maintain, requires a significant part of the broker-dealer's assets to be kept in relatively liquid form, imposes certain requirements that may have the effect of prohibiting a broker-dealer from distributing or withdrawing its capital and subjects any distributions or withdrawals of capital by a broker-dealer to notice requirements. These and other requirements also include rules that limit a broker-dealer's ratio of subordinated debt to equity in its regulatory capital composition, constrain a broker-dealer's ability to expand its business under certain circumstances and impose additional requirements when the broker-dealer participates in securities offerings of affiliated entities. Violations of these requirements may result in censures, fines, the issuance of cease-and-desist orders, revocation of licenses or registrations, the suspension or expulsion from the securities industry of the broker-dealer or its officers or employees or other similar consequences by regulatory bodies.
Insurance Regulations
Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries are subject to regulation and supervision under U.S. federal and state laws. Each U.S. state, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories and possessions have insurance laws that apply to companies licensed to carry on an insurance business in the applicable jurisdiction. The primary regulator of an insurance company, however, is located in the insurance company's state of domicile. Both Commonwealth Annuity and Life Insurance Company ("CwA") and First Allmerica Financial Life Insurance Company ("FAFLIC") are organized and domiciled in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; Accordia Life and Annuity Company ("Accordia") is organized and domiciled in the State of Iowa; and Forethought Life Insurance Company ("FLIC") is organized and domiciled in the State of Indiana (together, these four companies constitute Global Atlantic's "U.S. insurance subsidiaries"). Additionally, Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries are licensed to transact insurance business in, and are subject to regulation and supervision by, all 50 states of the United States and the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
State insurance authorities have broad administrative powers over each of Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries with respect to all aspects of the insurance business. As part of their routine regulatory oversight process, state insurance departments conduct periodic detailed examinations of the books, records, accounts and operations of insurance companies that are domiciled in their states. Examinations are generally carried out in cooperation with the insurance departments of other, non-domiciliary states under guidelines promulgated by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (the "NAIC"). State insurance departments also regularly conduct regulatory inquiries of the insurance companies licensed in their states.
Global Atlantic also has special purpose financial captive insurance company subsidiaries domiciled in Vermont and Iowa that provide reinsurance to Accordia in order to facilitate the financing of redundant reserve requirements associated with the application of the NAIC Model Regulation entitled "Valuation of Life Insurance Policies Model Regulation" ("Regulation XXX") and NAIC Actuarial Guideline XXXVIII ("AG38"). The application of both Regulation XXX and AG38 requires Global Atlantic to maintain statutory reserves which may be in excess of reserves required under GAAP.
The rates, policy terms, and conditions of reinsurance agreements generally are not subject to regulation by any regulatory authority. However, the ability of a primary insurer to take credit for the reinsurance purchased from reinsurance companies is a significant component of reinsurance regulation. Typically, a primary insurer will only enter into a reinsurance agreement if it can obtain credit against its reserves on its statutory basis financial statements for the reinsurance ceded to the reinsurer.
Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries are subject to restrictions on the payment of dividends. Any proposed dividend in excess of the amount permitted by law is considered an "extraordinary dividend or distribution" and may not be paid until it has been approved, or a 30-day waiting period has passed during which it has not been disapproved, by the commissioner of the applicable domiciliary state of the U.S. insurance subsidiary. Due to losses incurred during the years before FAFLIC was a part of Global Atlantic, FAFLIC currently has a negative unassigned surplus. While the negative unassigned surplus is outstanding, FAFLIC must obtain written approval from the Massachusetts Division of Insurance prior to the payment of any dividend or distribution. None of Global Atlantic’s special purpose financial captive insurance company subsidiaries may declare or pay dividends or distributions in any form to us other than in accordance with its transaction agreements and governing licensing order.
State insurance holding company laws and regulations generally provide that no person, corporation or other entity may acquire control of an insurance company, or a controlling interest in any parent company of an insurance company, without the prior approval of such insurance company's domiciliary state insurance regulator. Under the laws of each of Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries' domiciliary states, acquiring, directly or indirectly, 10% or more of the voting securities of an insurance company or its parent company is presumptively considered to have acquired control of the insurer, although such presumption may be rebutted by a showing that control does not in fact exist.
Finally, while the United States federal government in most contexts currently does not directly regulate the insurance business, the Federal Insurance Office (the "FIO") established by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the "Dodd-Frank Act") now has an oversight role in respect to insurance regulation.
Ireland
We have a number of subsidiaries which are authorized and regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland, or CBI. The CBI is responsible for, among other things, regulating and supervising firms that provide financial services in Ireland, including broker-dealers and investment firms. The CBI also develops and maintains regulatory policies for Ireland's financial services sector. The CBI has the authority to approve applications from financial services providers in Ireland, monitor compliance with its standards, and take enforcement action for non-compliance. Violation of the CBI's requirements may result in administrative sanctions; investigations; refusal, revocation or cancellation of authorization or registrations; criminal prosecution; and/or reports to other agencies.
KKR Alternative Investment Management Unlimited Company, KKR Credit Advisors (Ireland) Unlimited Company and KKR Capital Markets (Ireland) Limited Company are regulated by the CBI. KKR Alternative Investment Management Unlimited Company is an authorized EU alternative investment manager permitted to conduct portfolio management, risk management and certain administrative activities. KKR Credit Advisors (Ireland) Unlimited Company is authorized to carry out a number of regulated activities including receiving and transmitting orders, portfolio management and providing investment advice. KKR Capital Markets (Ireland) Limited Company is authorized to engage in a number of regulated activities regulated under Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, known as MiFID, including dealing as principal or agent, making arrangements in relation to certain types of specified investments, and arranging the safeguarding and administration of assets. KKR Capital Markets (Ireland) Limited also benefits from a passport under the single market directives to offer services cross border into all countries in the European Economic Area.
United Kingdom
We have several subsidiaries which are authorized and regulated by the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority (the "FCA") under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 ("FSMA"). FSMA and related rules govern most aspects of investment business, including investment management, sales, research and trading practices, provision of investment advice, corporate finance, use and safekeeping of client funds and securities, regulatory capital, record-keeping, margin practices and procedures, approval standards for individuals, anti-money laundering, periodic reporting and settlement procedures. The FCA is responsible for administering these requirements and our compliance with the FSMA and related rules. Violations of these requirements may result in censures, fines, imposition of additional requirements, injunctions, restitution orders, revocation or modification of permissions or registrations, the suspension or expulsion from certain "controlled functions" within the financial services industry of officers or employees performing such functions or other similar consequences.
KKR Capital Markets Partners LLP has permission to engage in a number of regulated activities regulated under FSMA, including dealing as principal or agent and arranging deals in relation to certain types of specified investments and arranging the safeguarding and administration of assets. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. Partners LLP has permission to engage in a number of regulated activities including advising on and arranging deals relating to corporate finance business in relation to certain types of specified investments. KKR Credit Advisors (EMEA) LLP has permission to engage in a number of regulated activities including managing, advising on and arranging deals in relation to certain types of specified investments.
Bermuda
Global Atlantic's wholly-owned subsidiaries organized in Bermuda, Global Atlantic Re and Global Atlantic Assurance, are subject to regulation and supervision by the Bermuda Monetary Authority ("BMA") and compliance with all applicable Bermuda laws and Bermuda insurance statutes and regulations, including but not limited to the Bermuda Insurance Act. The Bermuda Insurance Act grants to the BMA powers to supervise, investigate and intervene in the affairs of insurance companies and to approve any change or controllers. The Bermuda Insurance Act imposes solvency and liquidity standards and auditing and reporting requirements on Bermuda insurance companies. The Bermuda Insurance Act prohibits our Bermuda insurance
subsidiaries from declaring or paying any dividends during any financial year unless certain financial conditions are met or prior approval from the BMA is received. A Bermuda licensed insurer is required to maintain a sufficiently staffed principal office in Bermuda.
Other Jurisdictions
Certain other subsidiaries or funds that we advise are registered with, have been licensed by or have obtained authorizations to operate in their respective jurisdictions outside of the United States. These registrations, licenses or authorizations relate to providing investment advice, broker-dealer activities, marketing of securities and other regulated activities. Failure to comply with the laws and regulations governing these subsidiaries and funds that have been registered, licensed or authorized could expose us to liability and/or damage our reputation.
In Canada, KKR Capital Markets LLC is also registered as an international dealer under the Securities Act (Ontario). This registration permits us to trade in non-Canadian equity and debt securities with certain types of investors located in Ontario, Canada.
In Japan, KKR Capital Markets Japan Ltd. is registered as a Type I and Type II Financial Instruments Business Operator (broker-dealer) under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act of Japan, and a money lender under the Money Lending Business Act of Japan.
In the United Arab Emirates, KKR MENA Limited, a Dubai International Financial Centre company, is licensed to arrange deals in investments, advise on financial products and arrange custody, and is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority.
In Saudi Arabia, KKR Saudi Limited is licensed by the Capital Market Authority of Saudi Arabia and is authorized for the activity of arranging in the securities business.
In Australia, KKR Australia Pty Limited and KKR Australia Investment Management Pty Limited are Australian financial services licensed and are authorized to provide advice on and deal in financial products for wholesale clients, and are regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
In Hong Kong, KKR Capital Markets Asia Limited is licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission in Hong Kong to carry on dealing in securities and advising on securities regulated activities.
In Singapore, KKR Singapore Pte. Ltd. and KKR Credit Advisors (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. each holds a capital markets services license to conduct fund management for qualified investors only and is regulated by Monetary Authority of Singapore.
In Mauritius, KKR Holdings Mauritius, Ltd. and KKR Account Adviser (Mauritius), Ltd. are unrestricted investment advisers authorized to manage portfolios of securities and give advice on securities transactions, and are regulated by the Financial Services Commission, Mauritius.
In India, KKR India Financial Services Limited and KKR India Asset Finance Limited are registered with the Reserve Bank of India as non-deposit taking non-banking financial companies and are authorized to undertake lending and financing activities. KKR Capital Markets India Private Limited is registered with the Securities Exchange Board of India ("SEBI") (i) as a merchant bank to execute capital market mandates, underwrite issues, offer investment advisory and other consultancy services in connection with securities, and (ii) as an investment manager and sponsor of alternative investment funds. In addition, certain of our funds are registered with SEBI as a foreign portfolio investor or a foreign venture capital investor to make investments in Indian securities.
From time to time, one or more of our investment funds or their related investment vehicles may be regulated as a mutual fund by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority, regulated as an investment limited partnership by CBI, listed on the Irish Stock Exchange, notified with the Financial Services Agency of Japan for sale pursuant to certain private placement exemptions and/or for investment pursuant to certain exemption, registered with the Financial Supervisory Service of the Republic of Korea, licensed by or granted in principal approval from SEBI, subject to the regulatory supervision of the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier of Luxembourg, notified with the Netherlands Authority for Financial Markets for sale pursuant to certain private placement exemptions, or registered under the Investment Company Act.
There are a number of legislative and regulatory initiatives in the United States and in Europe that could significantly affect our business. See "Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business—Extensive regulation of our businesses affects our activities and creates the potential for significant liabilities and penalties. The possibility of increased regulatory focus or legislative or regulatory changes could materially and adversely affect our business."
Website and Availability of SEC Filings
Our website address is www.kkr.com. Information on our website is not incorporated by reference herein and is not a part of this report. We make available free of charge on our website or provide a link on our website to our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K, and any amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, as soon as reasonably practicable after those reports are electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. To access these filings, go to the "Stockholder (KKR & Co. Inc.)" section of our "Investor Center" page on our website, then click on "SEC Filings." In addition, these reports and the other documents we file with the SEC are available at a website maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov.
From time to time, we may use our website as a channel of distribution of material information. Financial and other material information regarding our company is routinely posted on and accessible at www.kkr.com. Financial and other material information regarding Global Atlantic is routinely posted on and accessible at www.globalatlantic.com. In addition, you may automatically receive e-mail alerts and other information about our company by enrolling your e-mail address by visiting the "Investor Email Alerts" section under the "Stockholder (KKR & Co. Inc.)" section of the "Investor Center" page at www.kkr.com.
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Investing in our securities involves risk. Persons investing in our securities should carefully consider the risks described below and the other information contained in this report and other filings that we make from time to time with the SEC, including our consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. Any of the following risks could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. Our business, financial condition or results of operations could also be materially and adversely affected by additional factors that apply to all companies generally, as well as other risks that are not currently known to us or that we currently view to be immaterial. In any such case, the trading price of our securities could decline and you may lose all or part of your original investment. While we attempt to mitigate known risks to the extent we believe to be practicable and reasonable, we can provide no assurance, and we make no representation, that our mitigation efforts will be successful.
Risks Related to Our Business
Difficult market and economic conditions can adversely affect our business in many ways, including by reducing the value or performance of the investments that we manage or by reducing the ability of our funds to raise or deploy capital, each of which could negatively impact our net income and cash flow and adversely affect our financial prospects and condition.
Our business and the businesses of the companies in which we invest are materially affected by financial markets and economic conditions or events throughout the world, such as interest rates, availability of credit, inflation rates, economic uncertainty, changes in laws (including laws relating to taxation), trade barriers, commodity prices, currency exchange rates and controls and national and international political circumstances (including wars, terrorist acts or security operations). For example, the global outbreak of a novel strain of coronavirus ("COVID-19") in 2020 caused severe economic contractions around the world and adversely impacted businesses in many industries. See "—COVID-19 continues to impact the United States and other countries throughout the world, and it has caused and may further cause disruptions to our business and adversely affect our financial results." In addition, our businesses and the businesses of the companies in which we invest also suffered during the global financial crisis during 2008 and 2009, which provoked significant volatility of securities prices, contraction in the availability of credit and the failure of a number of companies, including leading financial institutions. See "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Business Environment" for a discussion of recent developments in market and business conditions that may affect our business.
Such financial markets and economic conditions are outside our control and may affect the level and volatility of securities prices and liquidity and as a result, the value of our investments and our financial results. In addition, we may not be able to or may choose not to manage our exposure to these conditions and/or events. If not otherwise offset, declines in the equity, debt and commodity markets would likely cause us to write down our investments and the investments of our funds. For example, following the outbreak of COVID-19 in the United States and Europe in the first quarter of 2020, valuations of many of our investments as of March 31, 2020 were lower compared to December 31, 2019, driven primarily by actual and expected revenue declines and decreases in value of our publicly traded portfolio companies and of comparable companies in the case of our privately held portfolio companies. Similarly, during the global financial crisis in 2008 and 2009, valuations of our private equity funds declined across all geographies, with investments in private equity funds marked down to as low as 67% of original cost and multiples of invested capital reaching as low as 0.5x, 0.6x, 0.7x and 0.8x for the European Fund II, European Fund III, 2006 Fund and Asian Fund, respectively, as of March 31, 2009. Our profitability may also be materially and adversely affected by our fixed costs and the possibility that we would be unable to scale back other costs within a time frame sufficient to match any decreases in net income relating to a downturn in market and economic conditions.
Unfavorable market and economic conditions may reduce opportunities for our funds to make, exit and realize value from their investments. Challenging market and economic conditions, including those caused by changes in tax laws and other regulatory restrictions, may make it difficult for us to find suitable investments for our funds or secure financing for investments on attractive terms. Such conditions may also result in reduced opportunities for our funds to exit and realize value from their existing investments and lower-than-expected returns on existing investments. Although the equity markets are not the only means by which we exit investments, in challenging equity markets, our funds may experience greater difficulty in realizing value from investments. In addition, when financing is not available or becomes too costly, it is difficult for potential buyers to raise sufficient capital to purchase our funds' investments. Consequently, we may earn lower-than-expected returns on investments, which could cause us to realize diminished or no carried interest.
We generally raise capital for a successor fund following the substantial and successful deployment of capital from the existing fund. In the event of poor performance by existing funds, our ability to raise new funds is impaired. Our fundraising may also be negatively impacted by any change in or rebalancing of fund investors' asset allocation policies. During periods of unfavorable fundraising conditions, fund investors may negotiate for lower fees, different fee sharing arrangements for
transaction or other fees, and other concessions. The outcome of such negotiations could result in our agreement to terms that are materially less favorable to us than for prior funds we have managed. Our current funds, including all our recent private equity funds, have performance hurdles, which require us to generate a specified return on investment prior to our right to receive carried interest. This requirement will likely be in all our future funds, and the hurdle rate could increase for our future funds. In addition, successor funds raised by us when such unfavorable circumstances described above exist would also likely result in smaller funds than our comparable predecessor funds. Fund investors may also seek to redeploy capital away from certain of our credit or other non-private equity investment vehicles, which permit redemptions on relatively short notice, in order to meet liquidity needs or invest in other asset classes or with other managers. Any of these developments could materially and adversely affect our future revenues, net income, cash flow, financial condition or ability to retain our employees. See "—Our inability to raise additional or successor funds (or raise successor funds of a comparable size as our predecessor funds) could have a material adverse impact on our business" and "—Our investors in future funds may negotiate to pay us lower management fees, reimburse us for fewer expenses or change the economic terms of our future funds, including with respect to transaction fees, management fees or monitoring fees, to be less favorable to us than those of our existing funds, which could materially and adversely affect our revenues or profitability."
During periods of difficult market or economic conditions or slowdowns (which may occur across one or more industries, sectors or geographies), companies or assets in which we have invested may experience decreased revenues, financial losses, credit rating downgrades, difficulty in obtaining access to financing and increased funding costs. These companies may also have difficulty in expanding their businesses and operations or be unable to meet their debt service obligations or pay other expenses as they become due, including amounts payable to us. Negative financial results in our funds' portfolio companies may result in lower investment returns for our investment funds, which could materially and adversely affect our operating results and cash flow. To the extent the operating performance of such portfolio companies (as well as valuation multiples) deteriorate or do not improve, our funds may sell those assets at values that are less than we projected or even at a loss, thereby significantly affecting those funds' performance and consequently our operating results and cash flow and resulting in lower or no carried interest being paid to us. Adverse conditions may also increase the risk of default with respect to private equity, credit and other investments that we manage or the abandonment or foreclosure of our real asset investments. Even if economic and market conditions do improve broadly, adverse conditions in particular sectors may also cause our performance to suffer. Finally, low interest rates related to monetary stimulus, economic stagnation or deflation may negatively impact expected returns on all types of investments as the demand for relatively higher return assets increases and the supply decreases.
In addition, our capital markets business generates fees through a variety of activities in connection with the issuance and placement of equity and debt securities and credit facilities, with the size of fees generally correlated to overall transaction sizes. As a result, adverse conditions in financial markets as described above, as well as lower level of transaction activities involving our funds' investments, which can be unpredictable and outside our control, may negatively impact both the frequency and size of fees generated by our capital markets business.
Moreover, our insurance business is materially affected by conditions in the capital markets and the U.S. economy generally, as well as by the global economy to the extent it affects the U.S. economy. Actual or perceived stressed conditions, volatility and disruptions in financial asset classes or various capital markets can have an adverse effect on Global Atlantic, both because such conditions may decrease the returns on, and value of, its investment portfolio and because Global Atlantic's benefit and claim liabilities are sensitive to changing market factors, in particular Global Atlantic's fixed-indexed annuity and indexed universal life products and products with guaranteed minimum withdrawal or surrender or secondary guarantee features. In times of economic hardship, Global Atlantic's policyholders may choose to defer paying insurance premiums, stop paying insurance premiums altogether or surrender their policies. In addition, actual or perceived difficult conditions in the capital markets may discourage individuals from making investment decisions and purchasing Global Atlantic's products. Global Atlantic has in the past experienced an elevated incidence of life insurance claims as a result of increased unemployment, which impacts policyholder health and life expectancy and has adversely impacted utilization of benefits relative to Global Atlantic’s assumptions. The estimated cost of providing guaranteed minimum withdrawal and death benefits of certain insurance products requires various assumptions about the overall performance of equity markets over the life of the product. Therefore, significant declines in equity markets could cause Global Atlantic to incur significant operating losses and capital increases due to, among other reasons, the impact of such decline on guarantees related to Global Atlantic's annuity products, including from increases in liabilities, increased capital requirements and/or collateral requirements associated with certain of Global Atlantic's agreements.
For discussions of interest rate risks on our insurance business, see "—Risks Related to Global Atlantic–Interest rate fluctuations and sustained periods of low or high interest rates could adversely affect Global Atlantic’s business, financial condition, liquidity, results of operations, cash flows and prospects."
COVID-19 continues to impact the United States and other countries throughout the world, and it has caused and may further cause disruptions to our business and adversely affect our financial results.
COVID-19 has caused, and continues to cause, severe disruptions to the U.S. and global economics. In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 to be a pandemic and the United States declared a national emergency due to the outbreak. In connection with these declarations, various governments around the world have instituted measures to slow the transmissions of COVID-19, which substantially restrict individual and business activities. These measures have included, for example, closures of non-essential businesses, limitations of crowd size, stay-at-home orders, quarantines, heightened border controls and limitations on travel. Governments in the United States and around the world have responded with fiscal and monetary stimuli that aim to provide emergency assistance to individuals and businesses negatively impacted by COVID-19. The outbreak of COVID-19 and the actions taken in response have had far reaching impact on the U.S. and global economies, contributing to significant volatility in the financial markets, resulting in increased volatility in equity prices (including our common stock) and lower interest rates, and causing furloughs and layoffs in the labor market. In recent months, the number of COVID-19 cases rebounded in many countries around the world, including the United States, especially after more infectious strains of the virus started to spread globally. Although a number of vaccines for COVID-19 have been developed or are in the process of development, the timing of widespread vaccination is uncertain and these vaccines may be less effective against any new mutated strains of the virus.
We are monitoring developments relating to the global spread of COVID-19 and continuing to assess the potential for adverse impact on our business, including the investment funds we manage and the portfolio companies owned by us and our funds. In addition, we have implemented various initiatives intended to reduce the impact of COVID-19, such as employees working remotely from home, while also seeking to maintain business continuity.
The scale and scope of the COVID-19 pandemic may heighten the potential adverse effects on our business, financial performance and operating results, which may be material and affect us in ways that we cannot foresee at this time. Many of the adverse ways in which COVID-19 may impact us have already materialized and adversely affected (or may in the future materialize and adversely affect) our stock price, our portfolio valuations, and the operations of our businesses and the businesses of our portfolio companies, as well as the businesses of entities of which we or our funds are creditors, and our and their other counterparties, including suppliers and customers. These risks may, in the future, become even more significant than is currently the case or than is currently anticipated. Although it is impossible to predict with certainty the potential full magnitude of the business and economic ramifications, COVID-19 has impacted, and may further impact, our business in various ways, including but not limited to:
•Difficult market and economic conditions may adversely impact the valuations of our and our funds' investments, particularly if the value of an investment is determined in whole or in part by reference to public equity markets. Valuations of our and our funds' investments are generally correlated to the performance of the relevant equity and debt markets. Although valuations across our investments generally improved after the first quarter of 2020, driven by a strong rebound in equity and fixed income markets, the continuing existence and resurgence of COVID-19 cases, which among other things could result in further shutdown of or limitation on businesses, may negatively affect the value of our investment portfolio in the future and thereby adversely impact our book value per share, accrued carried interest and assets under management;
•COVID-19 significantly increases the challenges associated with business planning, strategy, execution, portfolio management, fundraising, and other aspects of our business operations, the operation of our portfolio companies' businesses, and the operation of entities to whom we or our funds have loaned money or otherwise do business through supply or customer relationships. None of us, our portfolio companies or our and their respective counterparties, vendors, or advisors have previously faced a situation that we view as comparable to the current COVID-19 crisis, which, among other factors, involves a major simultaneous supply and demand shock to global, regional and national economies and significant outsize effects on particular business sectors. The future trajectory of the COVID-19 crisis is subject to a complex interplay of epidemiological, technological, social, psychological, economic and political factors that are generally beyond our ability to forecast or control. In this environment, historical comparisons may be of little or no value, while the risk and uncertainty associated with a large number of business decisions are materially increased;
•Limitation on travel and social distancing requirements implemented in response to COVID-19 challenge our ability to market new or successor funds or new insurance policies as anticipated prior to COVID-19, potentially resulting in reduced or delayed revenues. In addition, fund investors may become restricted by their asset allocation policies to invest in new or successor funds that we provide, because these policies often restrict the amount that they are permitted to invest in alternative assets like the strategies of our investment funds when there is a decline in public
equity markets. Further, the COVID-19 crisis may cause fund investors or policyholders to change their investment strategies in manners that we cannot now foresee, and that may additionally and negatively affect our ability to raise funds or write new insurance policies from traditional or other sources;
•While the market dislocation caused by COVID-19 would expect to present attractive investment opportunities, due to increased volatility in the financial markets, we may not be able to complete those investments;
•If the impact of COVID-19 continues, we and our funds may have more limited opportunities to successfully exit existing investments, due to, among other reasons, lower valuations, decreased revenues and earnings, lack of potential buyers with financial resources to pursue an acquisition, or limited or no ability to conduct initial public offerings in equity capital markets, resulting in a reduced ability to realize value from such investments;
•Our portfolio companies are facing or may face in the future increased credit and liquidity risk due to volatility in financial markets, reduced revenue streams, and limited or higher cost of access to preferred sources of funding, which may result in potential impairment of our or our funds’ equity investments. Changes in the debt financing markets are impacting, or, if the volatility in financial market continues, may in the future impact, the ability of our portfolio companies to meet their respective financial obligations. We and our funds may experience similar difficulties, and certain funds have been subject to margin calls when the value of securities that collateralize their margin loan decreased substantially;
•Borrowers of loans, notes and other credit instruments in our credit funds’ portfolio are more likely to be unable to meet their principal or interest payment obligations or satisfy financial covenants, and tenants leasing real estate properties owned by our funds are more likely not to be able to pay rents in a timely manner or at all, resulting in a decrease in value of our funds' credit and real estate investments and lower than expected return. In addition, for variable interest instruments, lower reference rates resulting from government stimulus programs in response to COVID-19 could lead to lower interest income for our credit funds;
•While the impact of COVID-19 on our portfolio companies has varied depending on the location and industry in which they operate, many of our portfolio companies operate in industries that have been, and continue to be, materially affected by COVID-19, including but not limited to healthcare, travel, entertainment, hospitality, senior living, energy and retail industries. Many of these companies are facing operational and financial hardships resulting from the spread of COVID-19 and related governmental measures, such as the closure of stores, limitations on business operations, restrictions on travel, quarantines or stay-at-home orders. If the disruptions caused by COVID-19 continue and the restrictions put in place are not lifted or reinstated, the businesses of these portfolio companies could suffer materially or become insolvent, which would decrease the value of our funds’ investments;
•COVID-19 may generate workplace, consumer, insurance, contract and other forms of litigation that exposes us, our portfolio companies, suppliers, customers, debtors and other counterparties to risks and claims of a magnitude and nature that we cannot now anticipate;
•COVID-19 has impacted and may continue to impact mortality, morbidity and insurance policyholder behavior in unexpected ways. An increase in mortality and, in certain cases, morbidity rates could have a material adverse impact on Global Atlantic's liquidity, financial condition and operating results;
•As a result of the pandemic, Global Atlantic's customers may seek sources of liquidity and withdraw at rates greater than previously expected. In 2020, in response to certain state insurance department requirements, Global Atlantic offered all policyholders a 90-day moratorium on lapsing policies and a waiver of withdrawal fees, subject to a cap. If customer lapse and surrender rates significantly exceed Global Atlantic's expectations, or customers stop lapsing or withdrawing all together and the cost of providing benefits exceed Global Atlantic's expectations, Global Atlantic's business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could suffer materially;
•An extended period of remote working by our employees could strain our technology resources and introduce operational risks, including heightened cybersecurity risk. Remote working environments are less secure and more susceptible to hacking attacks, including phishing and social engineering attempts that seek to exploit the COVID-19 pandemic; and
•COVID-19 presents a significant threat to our employees' well-being and morale. While we have implemented a business continuity plan to protect the health of our employees and have contingency plans in place for key employees or executive officers who may become sick or otherwise unable to perform their duties for an extended period of time,
such plans cannot anticipate all scenarios, and we may experience potential loss of productivity or a delay in the roll out of certain strategic plans.
Given the ongoing nature of the outbreak, at this time we cannot reasonably predict the magnitude of the ultimate impact that COVID-19 will have on our business, financial performance and operating results. Economic downturn caused by COVID-19 may be prolonged and extend beyond the timeframe of the pandemic itself. We believe COVID-19's adverse impact on our business, financial performance and operating results will be significantly driven by a number of factors that we are unable to predict or control, including, for example: the severity and duration of the pandemic; the pandemic's impact on the U.S. and global economies; the timing, scope and effectiveness of additional governmental responses to the pandemic; the timing and speed of economic recovery, including widespread availability and effectiveness of a treatment or vaccination for COVID-19; and the negative impact on our fund investors, vendors and other business partners that may indirectly adversely affect us. The impact of COVID-19 may also exacerbate the other risks discussed in this report.
Changes in the debt financing markets may negatively impact the ability of our investment funds, their portfolio companies and strategies pursued with our balance sheet assets to obtain attractive financing for their investments or to refinance existing debt and may increase the cost of such financing or refinancing if it is obtained, which could lead to lower-yielding investments and potentially decrease our net income.
In the event that our funds are unable to obtain committed debt financing for potential acquisitions or can only obtain debt at an increased interest rate or on unfavorable terms, our funds may have difficulty completing otherwise profitable acquisitions or may generate profits that are lower than would otherwise be the case, either of which could lead to a decrease in the investment income earned by us. Any failure by lenders to provide previously committed financing can also expose us to potential claims by sellers of businesses that we may have contracted to purchase. Similarly, certain of the strategies pursued with our balance sheet assets rely on the use of leverage, including the issuance of CLOs, and other secured and unsecured borrowings. Our ability to generate returns on these assets would be reduced to the extent that changes in market conditions, including an increase by the U.S. Federal Reserve of its benchmark interest rate, cause the cost of our financing to increase relative to the income that can be derived from the assets acquired and financed. Global Atlantic relies on access to lending and debt markets to provide capital and liquidity for its business. Changes in debt financing markets may impact Global Atlantic's access to capital and liquidity, in particular during times where Global Atlantic requires increased access to such financing. For example, calculations of required insurance capital may move with market movements and result in greater capital needs during economic downturns. Global Atlantic may also need additional liquidity to pay insurance liabilities in excess of its assumptions due to market impacts on policyholder behavior. Similarly, our portfolio companies regularly utilize the corporate debt markets in order to obtain financing for their operations. To the extent that credit markets render such financing difficult to obtain or more expensive, this may negatively impact the operating performance of those portfolio companies and our insurance subsidiaries and, therefore, the investment returns on our funds and our insurance subsidiaries. In addition, to the extent that conditions in the credit markets impair the ability of our portfolio companies to refinance or extend maturities on their outstanding debt, either on favorable terms or at all, the operating performance of those portfolio companies may be negatively impacted, which could impair the value of our investment in those portfolio companies and lead to a decrease in the investment income earned by us. In some cases, the inability of our portfolio companies to refinance or extend maturities may result in the inability of those companies to repay debt at maturity or pay interests when due, and may cause the companies to sell assets, undergo a recapitalization or seek bankruptcy protection, any of which would also likely impair the value of our investment and lead to a decrease in investment income earned by us.
Transition away from LIBOR as a benchmark reference for interest rates may affect the cost of capital and requires amending or restructuring existing debt instruments and related hedging arrangements for us, our investment funds and our portfolio companies, and may impact the value of floating rate securities or loans based on LIBOR that we or our investment funds hold or may hold in the future, all of which may result in additional costs or adversely affect our or our funds' liquidity, results of operations and financial condition.
A substantial portion of credit assets held by our investment funds and our insurance subsidiaries and long-term indebtedness incurred by us, our investment funds, our insurance subsidiaries and our portfolio companies bears interest at variable interest rates, primarily based on LIBOR. In July 2017, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (the authority that regulates LIBOR) announced that it intends to stop compelling banks to submit rates for the calculation of LIBOR after 2021. Such announcement indicates that LIBOR in its current form will cease to exist after 2021, and instead, an alternative reference rate will be established. For example, the Alternative Reference Rates Committee, a steering committee of large U.S. financial institutions convened by the Federal Reserve Board and the New York Fed, identified the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR") as its recommended alternative reference rate, which measures the cost of borrowing cash overnight collateralized by U.S. Treasury securities. In January 2021, International Swaps and Derivatives Association also amended the definitions used in derivative contracts to incorporate SOFR as the successor rate to LIBOR. However, it is unclear whether SOFR will attain
broad market acceptance as a replacement for LIBOR, and various industry organizations are developing other alternative reference rates. As such, it is not possible to predict all potential effects of these changes on U.S. and global credit markets.
In November 2020, the administrator of LIBOR announced its intention to extend the publication of U.S. dollar LIBOR (except for the one-week and two-month tenors) until June 30, 2023, subject to a consultation process, and the Federal Reserve Board, the Alternative Reference Rates Committee and the International Swaps and Derivatives Association also issued concurrent statements agreeing with such announcement. While agreements governing our corporate revolving credit facility and our capital markets revolving credit facilities either mature before June 30, 2023 or contain a "fallback" amendment provision providing for alternative rate calculations in the event LIBOR is unavailable, we, our investment funds and our portfolio companies have other LIBOR-based debt instruments and related hedging arrangements that are likely to require amending or restructuring, which may be difficult, costly and time consuming. In addition, our credit funds extend loans based on LIBOR and invest in floating rate loans and investment securities whose interest rates are indexed to LIBOR. Replacing LIBOR with an alternative reference rate in the underlying agreements may require repricing of these loans and securities, which may have an adverse impact on our funds and us.
Transition from LIBOR to SOFR or to another reference rate may result in an increase or a decrease of the overall borrowing cost for us, our investment funds, our insurance subsidiaries and our portfolio companies. Even if the overall borrowing cost decreases, any savings that we realize from such decrease could be offset partially or entirely by lower overall interest income we receive from our credit assets. In addition, we and certain consolidated funds hold credit investments that generate interest income based on variable interest rates, and if we receive lower interest income, such funds may be adversely affected. If the transition from LIBOR results in an overall increase to the borrowing cost, higher interest expense could negatively affect the financial results and valuations of our portfolio companies. Transition to a new reference rate also requires an upgrade to the software and systems we and our third-party vendors use to properly record and process loans and other instruments based on the new rate. Such upgrade may not become available in time or its implementation could be delayed because of the uncertainty regarding the transition. Any failure to timely implement the necessary software or systems upgrade could adversely affect our business operation. Significant uncertainty still exists as to, for example, the successor reference rate, emergence of credit sensitive rates, interpretation of agreements without a clear LIBOR transition provision or at all, and potential legislative solution to address tough legacy contracts. Such uncertainty could give rise to widespread disputes, including litigation, which can adversely affect us, and result in a sudden or prolonged increase or decrease in the value of LIBOR-based loans and securities, including those of other issuers we or our funds currently own or may in the future own. These changes in value may impact the availability and cost of hedging instruments and borrowings, potentially resulting in an increase to our and our funds' interest expense and cost of capital. Any increased costs, lower interest income or reduced profits as a result of the foregoing may adversely affect our liquidity, results of operations and financial condition.
We have significant liquidity requirements, and adverse market and economic conditions may adversely affect our sources of liquidity, which could adversely affect our business operations in the future.
We expect that our primary liquidity needs, including those of Global Atlantic following the Global Atlantic acquisition, will consist of cash required to:
•continue to grow our businesses, including seeding new strategies, funding our capital commitments made to existing and future funds, co-investments and any net capital requirements of our capital markets companies and otherwise supporting investment vehicles that we sponsor;
•warehouse investments in portfolio companies or other investments for the benefit of one or more of our funds, accounts or CLOs pending the contribution of committed capital by the investors in such vehicles, and advancing capital to them for operational or other needs;
•service debt obligations including the payment of obligations at maturity, on interest payment dates or upon redemption, as well as any contingent liabilities that may give rise to future cash payments;
•fund cash operating expenses and contingencies, including for litigation matters;
•pay amounts that may become due under our tax receivable agreement with KKR Holdings;
•pay cash dividends in accordance with our dividend policy for our common stock or the terms of our preferred stock;
•underwrite commitments, advance loan proceeds and fund syndication commitments within our capital markets business;
•acquire other assets for our Principal Activities business line, including other businesses, investments and assets, some of which may be required to satisfy regulatory requirements for our capital markets business or risk retention requirements for CLOs (to the extent it continues to apply);
•address capital needs of regulated and other subsidiaries; and
•repurchase shares of our common stock pursuant to the share repurchase program or repurchase or redeem other securities issued by us.
These liquidity requirements are significant and, in some cases, involve capital that will remain invested for extended periods of time. As of December 31, 2020, we have approximately $6.3 billion of remaining unfunded capital commitments to our investment funds. Our commitments to our funds will require significant cash outlays over time, and there can be no assurance that we will be able to generate sufficient cash flows from realizations of investments to fund them. We have also used our balance sheet to provide credit support to our general partner's obligations to our funds, to provide certain guarantees in commercial real estate financing transactions and to support certain transactions by our funds.
In addition, as of December 31, 2020, we had $33.4 billion of indebtedness outstanding under our credit facilities and debt securities on a GAAP basis and $5.6 billion of indebtedness outstanding under our credit facilities and debt securities on a non-GAAP basis, and $5.4 billion of cash and cash equivalents on a GAAP basis and $6.0 billion of cash and short-term investments on a non-GAAP basis. The non-GAAP based measures exclude the assets and liabilities of our investment funds, CLOs and CMBS, and other consolidated entities that are not subsidiaries of KKR & Co. Inc., but include debt obligations of KKR Financial Holdings LLC ("KFN"), which as of December 31, 2020, consisted of $948.5 million, which do not provide for recourse to KKR beyond the assets of KFN. Our $1.0 billion corporate revolving credit facility is scheduled to mature in 2023. Global Atlantic also has outstanding indebtedness of $1.4 billion as of December 31, 2020. Depending on market conditions, we may not be able to refinance or renew all or part of these senior notes or our corporate revolving credit facility, or find alternate sources of financing (including issuing equity), on commercially reasonable terms or at all. Furthermore, the incurrence of additional debt by us or our subsidiaries in the future could result in downgrades of our existing corporate credit ratings, which could limit the availability of future financing and increase our costs of borrowing.
In addition, the underwriting commitments for our capital markets business may require significant cash obligations, and these commitments may also put pressure on our liquidity. The holding company for our capital markets business has entered into a credit agreement that provides for revolving borrowings of up to $750 million, which can only be used in connection with our capital markets business, including placing and underwriting securities offerings, and a 364-day revolving credit agreement that provides for revolving borrowings of up to $750 million, which can only be used to facilitate the settlement of debt transaction syndicated by our capital markets business. To the extent we commit to buy and sell an issue of securities in firm commitment underwritings or otherwise, we may be required to borrow under these revolving credit facilities to fund such obligations, which, depending on the size and timing of the obligations, may limit our ability to enter into other underwriting arrangements or similar activities, service existing debt obligations or otherwise grow our business. Further, these facilities are scheduled to mature in 2025 and 2021, respectively, and depending on the market conditions, we may not be able to refinance or renew them on commercially reasonable terms or at all. Regulatory net capital requirements may also limit the ability of our broker-dealer subsidiaries to participate in underwriting or other transactions or to allocate our capital more efficiently across our businesses.
In the event that our liquidity requirements were to exceed available liquid assets for the reasons specified above or for any other reasons, we could be forced to sell assets or seek to raise debt or equity capital on unfavorable terms. For further discussion of our liquidity needs, see "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity."
The "clawback" provisions in our governing agreements may give rise to a contingent obligation that may require us to return or contribute amounts to our funds and fund investors.
Carry distributions may give rise to clawback obligations. The partnership documents governing our carry-paying funds, including funds relating to private equity, growth equity, infrastructure, energy, real estate, impact, special situations, private credit opportunities, direct lending, revolving credit and core investments, generally include a "clawback" provision that, if triggered, may give rise to a contingent obligation requiring the general partner to return amounts to the fund for distribution to the fund investors at the end of the life of the fund. Under a clawback obligation, upon the liquidation of a fund, the general partner is required to return, typically on an after-tax basis, previously distributed carry to the extent that, due to the diminished performance of later investments, the aggregate amount of carry distributions received by the general partner during the term of the fund exceed the amount to which the general partner was ultimately entitled, including the effects of any performance
thresholds. We would continue to be subject to the clawback obligation even if carry has been distributed to current or former employees or other persons through our carry pool, and we would be required to seek other sources of liquidity to fund such an obligation if such carry is not returned to us by them. Not all carry may be recoverable from current or former employees and other persons once it has been distributed by us. As of December 31, 2020, $88.0 million of carried interest was subject to this clawback obligation, assuming that all applicable carry-paying funds were liquidated at their December 31, 2020 fair values. Had the investments in such carry-paying funds been liquidated at zero value, the clawback obligation would have been approximately $2.3 billion. See – “Strategic investor partnerships have longer investment periods and invest in multiple strategies, which may increase the possibility of a "netting hole," which will result in less carried interest for us, as well as clawback liabilities.”
Strategic investor partnerships have longer investment periods and invest in multiple strategies, which may increase the possibility of a "netting hole," which will result in less carried interest for us, as well as clawback liabilities.
We have entered into strategic partnerships with certain investors, generally through separately managed accounts, which have longer investment periods, often of 20 years or more, and provide for investments across different investment strategies (which we refer to as "strategic investor partnerships"). Compared to our traditional private equity fund structure, these partnerships may offer reduced fees for fund investors and may require netting across various funds in which they invest. For example, these strategic partnerships may net the returns across the various funds in which they invest, in effect potentially creating a "netting hole" across funds, which must be "filled" before any realized gains can be distributed to the general partner as carried interest. The longer investment period and cross-fund netting feature of the strategic investor partnerships increase the possibility of netting holes compared to our traditional private equity fund structure, which, if present, will reduce the carried interest we otherwise would earn. Similarly, the longer duration of these partnerships can increase the risk of clawback, because over a longer investment period, a period of reduced performance following periods of performance adequate to realize carried interest is more likely to occur. See "—The 'clawback' provisions in our governing agreements may give rise to a contingent obligation that may require us to return or contribute amounts to our funds and fund investors."
Many parts of our earnings and cash flow are highly variable due to the nature of our business and we generally do not intend to provide earnings guidance, each of which may cause the value of interests in our business to be volatile.
Many parts of our earnings are highly variable from quarter to quarter due to the volatility of investment returns of most of our funds, other investment vehicles and our balance sheet assets and the transaction and other fees earned from our businesses. We recognize earnings on investments in our funds based on our allocable share of realized and unrealized gains (or losses) reported by such funds and for certain of our recent funds, when a performance hurdle is achieved. During times of market volatility the fair value of our funds and our balance sheet assets are more variable, and as publicly traded equity securities currently represent a significant proportion of the assets of many of our funds and balance sheet assets, volatility in the equity markets may have a significant impact on our reported results. See "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Critical Accounting Policies—Fair Value Measurements" for a discussion of the impact of equity markets on the value of private equity investments. A decline in realized or unrealized gains, a failure to achieve a performance hurdle or an increase in realized or unrealized losses, would adversely affect our net income.
Fee income, which we recognize when contractually earned, can vary due to fluctuations in AUM, the number of investment transactions made by our funds, the number of portfolio companies we manage, the fee provisions contained in our funds and other investment products and transactions by our capital markets business. In any particular quarter, fee income may vary significantly due to the variances in size and frequency of monitoring fees (including termination payments), transaction fees or fees received by our capital markets business. Our total management, monitoring and transaction fees (net of fee credits) for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018 were $1,744.4 million, $1,504.6 million and $1,569.1 million, respectively, on a GAAP basis, and $2,121.0 million, $1,861.5 million and $1,853.9 million, respectively, on a non-GAAP basis. We may create new funds or investment products or vary the terms of our funds or investment products (for example our funds now include performance hurdles), which may alter the composition or mix of our income from time to time. In particular, in our private equity and other funds raised since 2014, we credit all monitoring and transaction fees generated by the fund's investments against fund management fees, which resulted in a decrease of our monitoring and transaction fee income. We may also experience fluctuations in our results from quarter to quarter, including our revenue and net income, due to a number of other factors, including changes in the values of our funds' investments, changes in the amount of distributions or interest earned in respect of investments, changes in our operating expenses, the degree to which we encounter competition and general market and economic conditions. In addition, our earnings and cash flows are dependent in part on the performance of KFN, a specialty finance company that we acquired in 2014, and Global Atlantic, a retirement and life insurance company that we acquired in 2021, and are subject to the risks to these businesses as described elsewhere in the report. Although KFN and Global Atlantic are subsidiaries of KKR, KFN and Global Atlantic each has its own indebtedness outstanding. The terms of their respective indebtedness impose limitations on these companies' current and future operations and may restrict its ability to make distributions to KKR. In addition, Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries are also subject to regulatory restrictions that
may restrict their ability to make distributions to KKR. For the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, our net income attributable to KKR & Co. Inc. Common Stockholders was $1,946.0 million, $1,971.7 million and $1,097.7 million, respectively, and our after-tax distributable earnings was $1,522.4 million, $1,405.3 million and $1,597.2 million, respectively. Such fluctuations may lead to variability in the value of interests in our business and cause our results for a particular period not to be indicative of our performance in future periods. It may be difficult for us to achieve steady growth in net income and cash flow on a quarterly basis, which could in turn lead to large adverse movements in the value of interests in our business.
The timing and receipt of carried interest from our investment funds are unpredictable and will contribute to the volatility of our cash flows. For example, with respect to our private equity funds, carried interest is distributed to the general partner of a private equity fund with a clawback provision only after all of the following are met: (i) a realization event has occurred (e.g., sale of a portfolio company, dividend, etc.); (ii) the fund has achieved positive overall investment returns since its inception, in excess of performance hurdles where applicable, and is accruing carried interest; and (iii) with respect to investments with a fair value below cost (which we refer to as a netting hole), cost has been returned to fund investors in an amount sufficient to reduce remaining cost to the investments' fair value. Carried interest payments from investments depend on our funds' performance and opportunities for realizing gains, which may be limited. It takes a substantial period of time to identify attractive investment opportunities, to raise all the funds needed to make an investment and then to realize the cash value (or other proceeds) of an investment through a sale, public offering or other exit. To the extent an investment is not profitable, no carried interest will be received from our funds with respect to that investment and, to the extent such investment remains unprofitable, we will only be entitled to a management fee on that investment. Furthermore, certain vehicles and separately managed accounts may not provide for the payment of any carried interest at all. Even if an investment proves to be profitable, it may be several years before any profits can be realized in cash. We cannot predict when, or if, any realization of investments will occur. In addition, if finance providers, such as commercial and investment banks, make it difficult for potential purchasers to secure financing to purchase companies in our investment funds' portfolio, it may decrease potential realization events and the potential to earn carried interest. A downturn in the equity markets would also make it more difficult to exit investments by selling equity securities. If we were to have a realization event in a particular quarter, the event may have a significant impact on our cash flows during the quarter that may not be replicated in subsequent quarters. A decline in realized or unrealized gains, or an increase in realized or unrealized losses, would adversely affect our investment income, which could further increase the volatility of our quarterly results.
The timing and receipt of carried interest also vary with the life cycle of certain of our funds. Our carry-paying funds that have completed their investment periods and are able to realize mature investments, sometimes referred to as being in a "harvesting period," are more likely to make larger distributions than our carry-paying funds that are in their fund raising or investment periods that precede the harvesting period. During times when a significant portion of our AUM is attributable to carry-paying funds that are not in their harvesting periods, we may receive substantially lower carried interest distributions.
In addition, we have formed strategic partnerships with third-party hedge fund managers in which KKR owns a minority stake (which we refer to as "hedge fund partnerships"). These third-party hedge fund managers offer a variety of investment strategies, including hedge fund-of-funds, equity hedge funds and credit hedge funds. As a result, we are indirectly exposed to the volatility and fluctuations in financial results of these hedge fund managers. For example, certain funds managed by the hedge fund managers have "high-water mark" provisions whereby if the funds have experienced losses in prior periods, the fund managers will not be able to earn incentive fees with respect to a fund investor's account until the net asset value of the fund investor's account exceeds the highest period end value on which incentive fees were previously paid. The incentive fees the hedge fund managers earn are therefore dependent on the net asset value of these funds, which could add to volatility in our quarterly results and cash flow.
A decline in the pace or size of investment by our funds would result in our receiving less revenue from fees.
The transaction and management or monitoring fees that we earn are driven in part by the pace at which our funds make investments and the size of those investments. Any decline in that pace or the size of investments would reduce our revenue from transaction and management or monitoring fees. Likewise, during an attractive selling environment, our funds may capitalize on increased opportunities to exit investments. Any increase in the pace at which our funds exit investments, if not offset by new commitments and investments, would reduce future management fees. Additionally, in certain of our funds that derive management fees only on the basis of invested capital, the pace at which we make investments, the length of time we hold such investment and the timing of disposition will directly impact our revenues. Many factors could cause such a decline in the pace of investment or the transaction and management or monitoring fees we receive, including:
•the inability of our investment professionals to identify attractive investment opportunities;
•competition for such opportunities among other potential acquirers;
•unfavorable market and economic conditions;
•decreased availability of capital or financing on attractive terms;
•our failure to consummate identified investment opportunities because of business, regulatory or legal complexities and adverse developments in the U.S. or global economy or financial markets;
•terms we may agree with or provide to our fund investors or investors in separately managed accounts with respect to fees such as increasing the percentage of transaction or other fees we may share with our fund investors; and
•new regulations, guidance or other actions provided or taken by regulatory authorities.
Our inability to raise additional or successor funds (or raise successor funds of a comparable size as our predecessor funds) could have a material adverse impact on our business.
Our current private equity funds and certain other funds and investment vehicles have a finite life and a finite amount of commitments from fund investors. Once a fund nears the end of its investment period, our success depends on our ability to raise additional or successor funds in order to keep making investments and, over the long term, earning management fees (although our funds and investment vehicles continue to earn management fees after the expiration of their investment periods, they are generally at a reduced rate). Even if we are successful in raising successor funds, to the extent we are unable to raise successor funds of a comparable size to our predecessor funds or the extent that we are delayed in raising such successor funds, our revenues may decrease as the investment period of our predecessor funds expire and associated fees decrease. For example, European Fund IV was smaller than its predecessor fund and North America Fund XI was smaller than its predecessor fund. The performance of our funds also impacts our ability to raise capital, and deterioration in the performance of our funds would result in challenges to future fundraising. The evolving preferences of our fund investors may necessitate that alternatives to the traditional investment fund structure, such as separately managed accounts, smaller funds and co-investment vehicles, become a larger part of our business going forward. This could increase our cost of raising capital at the scale we have historically achieved. Furthermore, in order to raise capital for new strategies and products without drawing capital away from our existing products, we will need to seek new sources of capital such as individual investors.
Our ability to raise new funds could also be hampered if the general appeal of private equity and alternative investments were to decline. An investment in a limited partner interest in a private equity fund is less liquid than an exchange traded instrument and the returns on such investment may be more volatile than an investment in securities for which there is a more active and transparent market. Private equity and alternative investments could fall into disfavor as a result of concerns about liquidity and short-term performance. Institutional investors in private equity funds that have suffered from decreasing returns, liquidity pressure, increased volatility or difficulty maintaining target asset allocations may materially decrease or temporarily suspend making new investments in private equity funds. Such concerns could be exhibited, in particular, by public pension funds, which have historically been among the largest investors in alternative assets. Many public pension funds are significantly underfunded and their funding problems have been, and may in the future be, exacerbated by economic downturn. Concerns with liquidity could cause such public pension funds to reevaluate the appropriateness of alternative investments, and other institutional investors may reduce their overall portfolio allocations to alternative investments. This could result in a smaller overall pool of available capital in our industry. There is no assurance that the amount of commitments investors are making to alternative investment funds will continue at recent levels or that our ability to raise capital from investors will not be hampered.
In addition, the asset allocation rules or regulations or investment policies to which such third-party investors are subject could inhibit or restrict the ability of third-party investors to make investments in our investment funds. Coupled with a lack of distributions from their existing investment portfolios, many of these investors may have been left with disproportionately outsized remaining commitments to, and invested capital in, a number of investment funds, which may significantly limit their ability to make new commitments to third-party managed investment funds such as those advised by us.
Fund investors may also seek to redeploy capital away from certain of our credit or other non-private equity investment vehicles, which permit redemptions on relatively short notice in order to meet liquidity needs or invest in other asset classes. We believe that our ability to avoid excessive redemption levels primarily depends on our funds' continued satisfactory performance, although redemptions may also be driven by other factors important to our fund investors, including their need for liquidity and compliance with investment mandates, even if our performance is superior. Investors' liquidity needs tend to be more pronounced during periods of market volatility. Any such redemptions would decrease our AUM and revenues.
In addition, the Dodd-Frank Act, under what has become known as the "Volcker Rule," broadly prohibits depository institution holding companies (including foreign banks with U.S. branches, agencies or commercial lending companies and certain insurance companies), insured depository institutions and their subsidiaries and controlled affiliates, or "banking entities," from investing in "covered funds," including third-party private equity funds like ours. As a result, banking entities, subject to certain limited exemptions, had to conform their existing covered fund investments and relationships to the Volcker Rule, and are limited in their ability to undertake new contractual commitments to private equity funds like ours. In addition to federal law, changes in state and local law may limit investment activities of state pension plans and insurance companies.
The number of funds raising capital varies from year to year, and in years where relatively few funds are raising capital, the growth of our AUM, FPAUM and associated fees may be significantly lower. There is no assurance that fundraises for new strategies or successor funds will experience similar success as our existing or predecessor funds in the future.
Our investors in future funds may negotiate to pay us lower management fees, reimburse us for fewer expenses or change the economic terms of our future funds, including with respect to transaction fees, management fees or monitoring fees, to be less favorable to us than those of our existing funds, which could materially and adversely affect our revenues or profitability.
In connection with raising new funds or securing additional investments in existing funds, we negotiate terms for such funds and investments with our fund limited partners. The outcome of such negotiations could result in our agreement to terms that are materially less favorable to us than the terms of prior funds we have advised or funds advised by our competitors. Such terms could restrict our ability to raise investment funds with investment objectives or strategies that compete with existing funds, reduce fee revenues we earn, reduce the percentage of profits on third-party capital in which we share, increase the performance hurdle required to be generated on investment prior to our right to receive carried interest, add expenses and obligations for us in managing the fund or increase our potential liabilities. Furthermore, as institutional investors increasingly consolidate their relationships with investment firms and competition becomes more acute, we may receive more requests to modify the terms in our new funds. Certain of our newer funds also include more favorable terms for fund investors that commit to early closes for our funds. Additionally, in certain funds, we have agreed to charge management fees based on invested capital or net asset value as opposed to charging management fees based on committed capital. In certain cases, we have provided "fee holidays" to certain investors during which we do not charge management fees for a fixed period of time (such as the first six months). Agreement to terms that are materially less favorable to us could result in a material decrease in our profitability.
Certain institutional investors have also publicly criticized certain fund fee and expense structures, including monitoring fees and transaction fees. We have received and expect to continue to receive requests from a variety of fund investors and groups representing such investors to decrease fees and to modify our carried interest and incentive fee structures, which could result in a reduction or delay in the timing of receipt of the fees and carried interest and incentive fees we earn. The SEC has focused on certain fund fees and expenses, including whether such fees and expenses were appropriately disclosed to fund limited partners, and such focus may lead to increased publicity that could cause fund investors to further resist our receipt of certain fees and expense reimbursements. In our flagship private equity funds, we have increased the percentage of transaction and monitoring fees that are credited against fund management fees to 100% of the amount of the transaction and monitoring fees attributable to that fund.
In addition, certain institutional investors, including sovereign wealth funds and public pension funds, have demonstrated an increased preference for alternatives to the traditional investment fund structure, such as separately managed accounts, specialized funds and co-investment vehicles. We also have entered into strategic investor partnerships with specific investors whereby we manage that investor's capital across a variety of our products on separately negotiated terms. There can be no assurance that such alternatives will be as profitable to us as the traditional investment fund structure, and the impact such a trend could have on our results of operations, if widely implemented, is unclear. Moreover, certain institutional investors are demonstrating a preference to in-source their own investment professionals and to make direct investments in alternative assets without the assistance of investment advisers like us. Such institutional investors may become our competitors and could cease to be our clients.
Any agreement to or changes in terms less favorable to us could materially and adversely affect our revenues and profitability.
The investment management business is intensely competitive, which could have a material adverse impact on our business.
We compete as an investment manager for both fund investors and investment opportunities. The investment management business is highly fragmented, with our competitors consisting primarily of sponsors of public and private investment funds, real estate development companies, BDCs, investment banks, commercial finance companies and operating companies acting as strategic buyers of businesses. We believe that competition for fund investors is based primarily on:
•investment performance;
•investor liquidity and willingness to invest;
•investor perception of investment managers' drive, focus and alignment of interest;
•business reputation;
•the duration of relationships with fund investors;
•the quality of services provided to fund investors;
•pricing;
•fund terms (including fees);
•the relative attractiveness of the types of investments that have been or will be made; and
•consideration for environmental, social and governance issues.
We believe that competition for investment opportunities is based primarily on the pricing, terms and structure of a proposed investment and certainty of execution.
A number of factors serve to increase our competitive risks:
•a number of our competitors in some of our businesses may have greater financial, technical, marketing and other resources and more personnel than we do, and, in the case of some asset classes or geographic regions, longer operating histories, more established relationships, greater expertise or better reputation;
•fund investors may materially decrease their allocations in new funds due to their experiences following an economic downturn, the limited availability of capital, regulatory requirements or a desire to consolidate their relationships with investment firms;
•some of our competitors may have agreed to terms on their investment funds or products that are more favorable to fund investors than our funds or products, such as lower management fees, greater fee sharing or higher performance hurdles for carried interest, and therefore we may be forced to match or otherwise revise our terms to be less favorable to us than they have been in the past;
•some of our funds may not perform as well as competitors' funds or other available investment products;
•our competitors have raised or may raise significant amounts of capital, and many of them have similar investment objectives and strategies to our funds, which may create additional competition for investment opportunities and may reduce the size and duration of pricing inefficiencies that many alternative investment strategies seek to exploit;
•some of these competitors may also have a lower cost of capital and access to funding sources that are not available to us, which may create competitive disadvantages for us with respect to investment opportunities;
•some of our competitors may have higher risk tolerances, different risk assessments or lower return thresholds, which could allow them to consider a wider variety of investments and to bid more aggressively than us for investments;
•some of our competitors may be subject to less regulation or less regulatory scrutiny and accordingly may have more flexibility to undertake and execute certain businesses or investments than we do and/or bear less expense to comply with such regulations than we do;
•there are relatively few barriers to entry impeding the formation of new funds, including a relatively low cost of entering these businesses, and the successful efforts of new entrants into our various lines of business, including major commercial and investment banks and other financial institutions, have resulted in increased competition;
•some fund investors may prefer to invest with an investment manager that is not publicly traded, is smaller or manages fewer investment products; and
•other industry participants will from time to time seek to recruit our investment professionals and other employees away from us.
We may lose investment opportunities in the future if we do not match investment prices, structures and terms offered by competitors. Our competitors that are corporate buyers may be able to achieve synergistic cost savings in respect of an investment, which may provide them with a competitive advantage in bidding for an investment. Alternatively, we may experience decreased investment returns and increased risks of loss if we match investment prices, structures and terms offered by competitors. Moreover, as a result, if we are forced to compete with other investment firms on the basis of price, we may not be able to maintain our current fund fee, carried interest or other terms. There is a risk that fees and carried interest in the alternative investment management industry will decline, without regard to the historical performance of a manager. Fee or carried interest income reductions on existing or future funds, without corresponding decreases in our cost structure, could materially and adversely affect our revenues and profitability.
In addition, if interest rates were to rise or if market conditions for competing investment products become or are more favorable and such products begin to offer rates of return superior to those achieved by our funds, the attractiveness of our funds relative to investments in other investment products could decrease. This competitive pressure could materially and adversely affect our ability to make successful investments and limit our ability to raise future funds, either of which would adversely impact our business, results of operations and cash flow.
We are subject to increasing focus by our fund investors, our stockholders and regulators on environmental, social and governance ("ESG") matters.
Our fund investors, stockholders, regulators and other stakeholders are increasingly focused on ESG matters. Certain fund investors, including public pension funds, have considered our record of socially responsible investing and other ESG factors in determining whether to invest in our funds. Similarly, certain of our stockholders, particularly institutional investors, use third-party benchmarks or scores to measure our ESG practices, and decide whether to invest in our common stock or engage with us to require changes to our practices. If our ESG practices do not meet the standards set by these fund investors or stockholders, they may choose not to invest in our funds or exclude our common stock from their investments, and we may face reputational challenges by other stakeholders. The occurrence of any of the foregoing could have a material adverse impact on new fundraises and negatively affect the price of our stock. In addition, there has also been an increased regulatory focus on ESG-related practices by investment managers. The SEC has examined the methodology used by ESG funds for determining socially responsible investments, and a new EU regulation on sustainability disclosure, which is intended to standardize the definition of environmentally sustainable investing, will begin to apply in March 2021. Under the new U.S. presidential administration, there is a higher likelihood of regulatory focus on ESG matters. If regulators disagree with the procedures or standards we use for ESG investing, or new regulation or legislation requires a methodology of measuring or disclosing ESG impact that is different from our current practice, our business and reputation could be adversely affected.
Changes in relevant tax laws, regulations or treaties or an adverse interpretation of these items by tax authorities could adversely impact our effective tax rate and tax liability.
Our effective tax rate and tax liability is based on the application of current income tax laws, regulations and treaties. These laws, regulations and treaties are complex, and the manner which they apply to us and our funds is sometimes open to interpretation. Significant management judgment is required in determining our provision for income taxes, our deferred tax assets and liabilities and any valuation allowance recorded against our net deferred tax assets. Although management believes its application of current laws, regulations and treaties to be correct and sustainable upon examination by the tax authorities, the tax authorities could challenge our interpretation resulting in additional tax liability or adjustment to our income tax provision that could increase our effective tax rate. Regarding the impact of our conversion to a corporation on our income taxes, see Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Note 11 "Income Taxes."
Tax laws, regulations or treaties newly enacted or enacted in the future may cause us to revalue our net deferred tax assets and have a material change to our effective tax rate and tax liabilities. In December 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (the "IRS") released final regulations under Section 162(m), which addressed changes made by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which was enacted in December 2017 and amended various aspects of U.S. federal income tax legislation (the "2017 Tax Act"), and,
among other things, extended the coverage of Section 162(m) to include compensation paid by a partnership for services performed for it by a covered employee of a corporation that is a partner in the partnership. These regulations could meaningfully reduce the amount of tax deductions available to us in 2021 and future years for compensation paid to covered employees. Additionally, foreign and state and local governments may enact tax laws in response to the 2017 Tax Act that could result in further changes to foreign and state and local taxation and materially affect our financial position and results of operations.
Moreover, as a result of the recent presidential and congressional elections in the United States, there could be significant changes in tax law and regulations. While the likelihood and nature of any such legislation or regulations is uncertain, the new administration may pursue tax policies seeking to increase the corporate tax rate and further limit the deductibility of interest, among other things. Such changes could materially increase the amount of taxes we or our portfolio companies are required to pay.
The U.S. Congress, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (the "OECD") and other government agencies in jurisdictions in which we and our affiliates invest or do business have maintained a focus on issues related to the taxation of multinational companies, such as KKR. The OECD, which represents a coalition of member countries, is contemplating changes to numerous long-standing tax principles through its base erosion and profit shifting ("BEPS") project, which is focused on a number of issues, including profit shifting among affiliated entities in different jurisdictions, interest deductibility and eligibility for the benefits of double tax treaties. Several of the proposed measures, including measures covering treaty abuse (including an anti-abuse "principal purpose" test that would deny treaty benefits to the extent that obtaining such benefit was one of the principal purposes of any arrangement or transaction that resulted directly or indirectly in such benefit), the deductibility of interest expense, local nexus requirements, transfer pricing and hybrid mismatch arrangements are potentially relevant to some of our structures and could have an adverse tax impact on our funds, investors and/or our portfolio companies. Some member countries have been moving forward on the BEPS agenda but, because timing of implementation and the specific measures adopted will vary among participating states, significant uncertainty remains regarding the impact of BEPS proposals. If implemented, these and other proposals could result in a loss of tax treaty benefits and increased taxes on income from our investments. In addition, the OECD is working on a "BEPS 2.0" initiative, which is aimed at (1) shifting taxing rights to the jurisdiction of the consumer and (2) ensuring all companies pay a global minimum tax. New rules could be recommended in 2021 and if implemented could have a significant impact on KKR, its portfolio companies and its investment structures. The timing and scope of any provisions currently are subject to significant uncertainty.
We depend on our founders and other key personnel, the loss of whose services could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We depend on the efforts, skills, reputations and business contacts of our employees, including our founders, Henry Kravis and George Roberts, and other key personnel, the information and deal flow they and others generate during the normal course of their activities and the synergies among the diverse fields of expertise and knowledge held by our professionals. Accordingly, our success depends on the continued service of these individuals, who are not obligated to remain employed with us. The loss of the services of any of them could have a material adverse effect on our revenues, net income and cash flows and could harm our ability to maintain or grow AUM in existing funds or raise additional funds in the future.
Our employees and other key personnel possess substantial experience and expertise and have strong business relationships with investors in our funds and other members of the business community. As a result, the loss of these personnel could jeopardize our relationships with investors in our funds and members of the business community and result in the reduction of AUM or fewer investment opportunities. For example, if any of our key personnel were to join or form a competing firm, our business, results of operations and financial condition could suffer. Global Atlantic's business similarly depends on the ability to attract and retain experienced insurance professionals. Global Atlantic does not have a captive distribution force and must attract and retain life insurance agents who may also sell products of other insurers. Global Atlantic's Bermuda business must maintain key personnel in Bermuda. As a result, if Global Atlantic is unable to recruit Bermudian employees, or obtain or renew work permits for current or prospective non-Bermudian employees, Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries may not be able to maintain their operations and support growth in the business.
Furthermore, the agreements governing our committed capital funds generally provide that in the event certain "key persons" (for example, investment professionals who are named as "key executives" for certain geographically or product focused funds) cease to actively manage a fund or be substantially involved in KKR activities, investors in the fund will be entitled to reduce, in whole or in part, their capital commitments available for further investments on an investor-by-investor basis. In the case of certain of our fully paid-up funds, investors may be permitted to terminate their investment in the event a "key persons" provision is triggered, which could possibly lead to a liquidation of those funds. In addition, the occurrence of such a "key person" event could cause us to agree to less favorable ongoing terms with respect to the affected fund. Although we periodically engage in discussions with the limited partners of our funds regarding a waiver of such provisions with respect
to executives involved in geographically or product focused funds whose departures have occurred or are anticipated, such waiver is not guaranteed, and our limited partners' refusal to provide a waiver may have a material adverse effect on our revenue, net income and cash flow.
If we cannot retain and motivate our employees and other key personnel and recruit, retain and motivate new employees and other key personnel, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.
Our most important asset is our people, and our continued success is highly dependent upon the efforts of our employees and other key personnel, and to a substantial degree on our ability to retain and motivate our employees and other key personnel and to strategically recruit, retain and motivate new talented employees, including qualified investment professionals. However, we may not be successful in these efforts as the market for talented and qualified candidates is extremely competitive. Our ability to recruit, retain and motivate our employees is dependent on our ability to offer highly attractive incentive opportunities. Under the 2017 Tax Act, investments must be held for more than three years, rather than the prior requirement of more than one year, for carried interest to be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as capital gain. The longer holding period requirement may result in some of our carried interest being treated as ordinary income, which would materially increase the amount of taxes that our employees and other key personnel would be required to pay, thereby adversely affecting our ability to offer attractive incentive opportunities. In addition, the tax treatment of carried interest may continue to be an area of focus for policymakers and government officials, which could result in a further regulatory action by federal or state governments. For example, the new Congress and presidential administration in the United States may seek to treat carried interest as ordinary income, and certain states, including New York and California, have proposed legislation to levy additional state tax on carried interest, which may also negatively affect our ability to attract and retain employees and key personnel. Similarly, changes in the United Kingdom with respect to the taxation of carried interest, including the treatment of certain carried interest returns as income, which became effective from April 6, 2016, may impact our ability to recruit, retain and motivate employees and key personnel in the United Kingdom. In addition, there have been proposed laws and regulations that sought to regulate the compensation of certain of our employees. See "—Extensive regulation of our business affects our activities and creates the potential for significant liabilities and penalties. The possibility of increased regulatory focus or legislative or regulatory changes could materially and adversely affect our business." The loss of even a small number of our investment professionals could jeopardize the performance of our funds and other investment products, which would have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. Efforts to retain or attract employees, including our investment professionals, may result in significant additional expenses, which could materially and adversely affect our profitability.
Many of our employees hold interests in our business through KKR Holdings. These individuals historically received financial benefits from our business in the form of distributions and amounts funded by KKR Holdings and through their direct and indirect participation in the value of KKR Group Partnership Units held by KKR Holdings. While all of our employees receive base compensation from us, prior to 2018, annual cash bonuses for certain employees were borne by KKR Holdings from its cash reserves based upon distributions on a portion of KKR Group Partnership Units held by KKR Holdings. However, substantially all units in KKR Holdings have been allocated to certain employees, and upon their vesting, distributions on vested units would belong to such unitholders and not be available to fund annual cash bonuses. In addition, under its dividend policy, KKR intends to make equal quarterly dividends to holders of its common stock in a fixed amount per share per quarter. In 2020, no annual cash bonuses were borne by KKR Holdings. Although KKR Holdings may fund a portion of the cash bonus payments from its cash reserves, if any, in future periods, we likely will continue to utilize our own funds for most, if not all, of the cash bonus payments. In that event, either our profit margins or our employee retention or both may be adversely impacted. In addition, many of our employees hold interests in our carry pool through KKR Associates Holdings L.P. Currently 40%, 43% or 65%, as applicable, of the carried interest earned from our investment funds is allocated to our carry pool. There can be no assurance that the carry pool will have sufficient cash available to continue to make cash payments in the future and fluctuations from the distributions generated from the carry pool, if not offset by funds from other sources, including other performance-based income, could render the compensation that KKR pays to be less attractive. In any of these circumstances, a higher percentage of our revenue would be paid out in the form of cash compensation, which could have a material adverse impact on our profit margins. We are not permitted under our certificate of incorporation to increase the percentage of carried interest allocable to the carry pool without the consent of a majority of our independent directors.
We have granted equity awards from our Equity Incentive Plans and expect to grant equity awards from our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, which has caused and will cause dilution. If we increase the use of equity awards in the future, expense associated with equity-based compensation may increase materially. For example, in 2020, we issued equity awards with respect to 30.1 million shares of common stock under our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, of which 16.9 million represent market condition awards subject to both stock price target requirements and service requirements. On the other hand, KKR Holdings awards granted, if any, come from outstanding but previously unallocated units of KKR Holdings, and consequently these grants do not increase the number of KKR Holdings units outstanding or outstanding shares of KKR common stock on a fully-diluted basis. The value of our common stock may drop in value or be volatile, which may make our equity less attractive to our employees.
In July 2015, the SEC proposed rules, as mandated by the Dodd-Frank Act, requiring companies to develop and enforce recovery policies that in the event of an accounting restatement, "claw back" from current and former executive officers incentive-based compensation they would not have received based on the restatement. In April and May 2016, the SEC also issued for public comment revised proposed rules designed to prohibit certain incentive-based compensation arrangements deemed to encourage inappropriate risk taking by covered financial institutions by providing "excessive" compensation, fees or benefits or that could lead to material losses. Although the SEC has not adopted the proposed rules to date, depending on the outcome of the rule making process, the application of these rules to us could require us to substantially revise our compensation strategy, increase our compensation and other costs, and materially and adversely affect our ability to recruit and retain qualified employees. In addition, less carried interest from the carry pool may be allocated to certain of our employees, which may result in less cash payments to such employees. To the extent our equity incentive or carry pool programs are not effective, we may be limited in our ability to attract, retain and motivate talented employees and other key personnel and we may need to increase the level of cash compensation that we pay.
In addition, there is no guarantee that the confidentiality and restrictive covenant agreements to which our employees and other key personnel are subject, together with our other arrangements with them, will prevent them from leaving us, joining our competitors or otherwise competing with us. Depending on which entity is a party to these agreements and/or the laws applicable to them, we may not be able to, or may choose not to, enforce them or become subject to lawsuits or other claims, and certain of these agreements might be waived, modified or amended at any time without our consent. Even when enforceable, these agreements expire after a certain period of time, at which point each of our employees and other key personnel are free to compete against us and solicit our fund investors and employees. See "Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence—Confidentiality and Restrictive Covenant Agreements."
We strive to maintain a work environment that reinforces our culture of collaboration, inclusiveness, motivation and alignment of interests with fund investors. If we do not continue to develop and implement the right processes and tools to manage our changing enterprise and maintain our culture, our ability to compete successfully and achieve our business objectives could be impaired, which could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Operational risks may disrupt our businesses, result in losses or limit our growth.
We rely heavily on our financial, accounting and other data processing systems and on the systems of third parties who provide services to us. If any of these systems do not operate properly or are disabled, we could suffer financial loss, a disruption of our businesses, liability to our funds, regulatory intervention or reputational damage. In addition, we operate in businesses that are highly dependent on information systems and technology. For example, we face operational risk from errors made in the execution, confirmation or settlement of transactions. We also face operational risk from transactions not being properly recorded, evaluated or accounted for in our funds. In particular, our Public Markets business line is highly dependent on our ability to process and evaluate, on a daily basis, transactions across markets and geographies in a time-sensitive, efficient and accurate manner. Our and our third-party service providers' information systems and technology may not continue to be able to accommodate our growth, may not be able to adequately protect the information of our individual fund investors or Global Atlantic's policyholders, may not be suitable for new products and strategies (including instruments using SOFR or another successor rate to LIBOR) and may be subject to security risks, and the cost of maintaining such systems and technology may increase from our current level. Such a failure to accommodate growth, or an increase in costs related to such information systems and technology, could have a material adverse effect on our business. We are also dependent on an increasingly concentrated group of third-party vendors that we do not control for hosting solutions and technologies. A disaster or a disruption in technology or infrastructure that supports our businesses, including a disruption involving electronic communications or other services used by us, our vendors or third parties with whom we conduct business, including paying agents and escrow agents, or directly affecting our principal offices, could have a material adverse impact on our ability to continue to operate our business without interruption. Our business continuation or disaster recovery programs may not be sufficient to mitigate the harm that may result from such a disaster or disruption. In addition, insurance and other safeguards might only partially reimburse us for our losses, if at all. Furthermore, most of our administrative personnel and our information system and technology infrastructure for the asset management business are located in our New York City office. Any disruption in the operation of, or inability to access, our New York City office could have a significant impact on our business, and such risk of disruption or inaccessibility could be heightened during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cyber-security failures and data security breaches may disrupt or have a material adverse impact on our businesses, operations and investments.
We rely on the secure processing, storage and transmission of confidential and other information in our computer systems and networks. We face various security threats on a regular basis, including ongoing cyber-security threats to and attacks on our information technology infrastructure that are intended to gain access to our proprietary information, destroy data or disable, degrade or sabotage our systems. Although we take protective measures and endeavor to modify them as circumstances warrant, our computer systems, software and networks may be vulnerable to unauthorized access, theft, misuse, computer viruses or other malicious code, and other events that could have a security impact. We may be exposed to a more significant risk if these acts are taken by state actors. We and our employees have been and expect to continue to be the target of fraudulent calls and emails, and the subject of impersonations and fraudulent requests for money, including attempts to redirect material payment amounts in a transaction to a fraudulent bank account, and other forms of activities. Cyber-criminals may attempt to redirect payments required to be paid at the closings of our investments to unauthorized accounts, which we or the services providers we retain, like paying agents and escrow agents, may not be able to detect or protect against. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated these risks due to heavier reliance on online communication and remote working environment, which are less secure, and a significant increase in hacking attempts by cyber-criminals. The costs related to cyber or other security threats or disruptions may not be fully insured or indemnified by others, including by our service providers.
Cyber-security has become a top priority for regulators around the world. Many jurisdictions in which we operate have laws and regulations relating to data privacy, cyber-security and protection of personal information, including the General Data Protection Regulation in the European Union that became effective in May 2018 and the California Consumer Privacy Act that became effective in January 2020. Some jurisdictions have also enacted laws requiring companies to notify individuals of data security breaches involving certain types of personal data. Global Atlantic, in particular, processes sensitive personal information of its policyholders, which exposes Global Atlantic to a heightened risk, as discussed in "—Risks Related to Global Atlantic—Business Risks Related to Global Atlantic—Any failure to protect the confidentiality of client information could adversely affect Global Atlantic's reputation and have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition and results of operations." Breaches in security could potentially jeopardize our, our employees', our fund investors', Global Atlantic policyholders' or counterparties' confidential and other information processed and stored in, and transmitted through, our computer systems and networks, or otherwise cause interruptions or malfunctions in our, our employees', our fund investors', Global Atlantic policyholders', our counterparties' or third parties' operations, which could result in significant losses, increased costs, disruption of our business, liability to our fund investors and other counterparties, regulatory intervention or reputational damage. Furthermore, if we experience a cyber-security incident and fail to comply with the relevant laws and regulations, it could result in regulatory investigations and penalties, which could lead to negative publicity and may cause our fund investors and clients to lose confidence in the effectiveness of our security measures.
We rely on third-party service providers for certain aspects of our business, including for certain information systems, escrow services, paying agent services, trustee services, insurance policy administration, legal services, technology, administration, tax, accounting and compliance matters. These third-party service providers could also experience any of the above cyber-security threats, fraudulent activities or security breaches, and as a result, unauthorized individuals could improperly gain access to our confidential data. Any interruption or deterioration in the performance of these third parties or cyber-security incidents involving these third parties could impair the quality of our and our funds' operations and could impact our reputation and materially and adversely affect our businesses and limit our ability to grow.
Our portfolio companies also rely on data processing systems and the secure processing, storage and transmission of information, including payment and health information. A disruption or compromise of these systems could have a material adverse effect on the value of these businesses. Our funds may invest in strategic assets having a national or regional profile or in infrastructure, the nature of which could expose them to a greater risk of being subject to a terrorist attack or security breach than other assets or businesses. Such an event may have material adverse consequences on our investment or assets of the same type or may require portfolio companies to increase preventative security measures or expand insurance coverage.
Our organizational documents do not limit our ability to enter into new lines of businesses, and we may expand into new investment strategies, geographic markets and businesses, each of which may result in additional risks and uncertainties in our businesses.
We intend, to the extent that market conditions warrant, to seek to grow our businesses by increasing AUM in existing businesses, pursuing new investment strategies (including investment opportunities in new asset classes), developing new types of investment structures and products (such as separately managed accounts and structured products), and expanding into new geographic markets and businesses. We have in the past opened offices in Asia and the Middle East, and also developed a capital markets business in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific, which we intend to grow and diversify.
We have also launched a number of new investment initiatives in areas such as real estate, energy, infrastructure, growth equity, core and impact investments. Introducing new types of investment structures and products could increase the complexities involved in managing such investments, including ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements and terms of the investment. See "—We may not be successful in executing upon or managing the complexities of new investment strategies, markets and businesses, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition."
Our organic growth strategy focuses on providing resources to foster the development of new product offerings and business strategies by our investment professionals and launching successor and related products, such that our new strategies achieve a level of scale and profitability. Given our diverse platform, these initiatives could create conflicts of interests with existing products, increase our costs and expose us to new market risks, and legal and regulatory requirements. The success of our organic growth strategy will also depend on, among other things, our ability to correctly identify and create products that appeal to the limited partners of our funds and vehicles. While we have made significant expenditures to develop these new strategies and products, there is no assurance that they will achieve a satisfactory level of scale and profitability. To raise new funds and pursue new strategies, we have and expect to continue to use our balance sheet to warehouse seed investments, which may decrease the liquidity available for other parts of our business. If a new strategy or fund does not develop as anticipated and such investments are not ultimately transferred to a fund, we may be forced to realize losses on these retained investments.
We have and may continue to pursue growth through acquisitions of other investment management companies, acquisitions of critical business partners, strategic partnerships or other strategic initiatives, which may include entering into new lines of business. In addition, we expect opportunities will arise to acquire other alternative or traditional investment managers. For example, we have expanded our European credit business with our acquisition of Avoca in 2014. We have also made minority investments in hedge fund managers, and we have entered into joint ventures with third parties to participate in new real estate investment strategies. In April 2018, we completed our transaction to form FS/KKR Advisor, a strategic BDC partnership with FS Investments, to provide investment advisory services to our BDCs. In February 2021, we expanded into the insurance business by acquiring Global Atlantic. To the extent we make strategic investments or acquisitions, undertake other strategic initiatives or enter into a new line of business, we will face numerous risks and uncertainties, including risks associated with:
•our ability to successfully negotiate and enter into beneficial arrangements with our counterparties;
•the required investment of capital and other resources;
•the incurrence of substantial transaction-related costs including non-recurring transaction-related costs;
•delays or failure to complete an acquisition or other transaction in a timely manner or at all due to a failure to obtain shareholder or regulatory approvals or satisfy any other closing conditions, which may subject us to damages or require us to pay significant costs;
•lawsuits challenging an acquisition or unfavorable judgments in such lawsuits, which may prevent the closing of the transaction, cause delays, or require us to incur substantial costs including in costs associated with the indemnification of directors;
•the possibility that we have insufficient expertise to engage in such activities profitably or without incurring inappropriate amounts of risk or liability or have not appropriately planned for such activities;
•the possibility of diversion of management's time and attention from our core business;
•the possibility of disruption of our ongoing business;
•the failure to realize the anticipated benefits from an acquired business or strategic partnership in a timely manner, if at all;
•combining, integrating or developing operational and management systems and controls including an acquired business's internal controls and procedures;
•integration of the businesses including the employees of an acquired business;
•potential increase in concentration of the investors in our funds;
•disagreements with joint venture partners or other stakeholders in our hedge fund partnerships and our strategic partnerships;
•the additional business risks of the acquired business and the broadening of our geographic footprint, including the risks associated with conducting operations in foreign jurisdictions such as taxation;
•properly managing conflicts of interests;
•our ability to obtain requisite regulatory approvals and licenses without undue cost or delay and without being required to comply with material restrictions or material conditions that would be detrimental to us or to the combined organization;
•our ability to comply with new regulatory regimes; and
•regulatory scrutiny or litigation exposure due to the activities of the acquired business, hedge fund partners or joint venture partners.
Entry into new strategies or certain lines of business may subject us to new laws and regulations with which we are not familiar, or from which we are currently exempt, and may lead to increased litigation and regulatory risk and costs. If a new business generates insufficient revenues or if we are unable to efficiently manage our expanded operations, our results of operations will be adversely affected. Our strategic initiatives include joint ventures or the acquisition of minority interests in third parties, in which case we will be subject to additional risks and uncertainties in that we may be dependent upon, and subject to liability, losses or reputational damage relating to, systems, controls and personnel that are not under our control.
In addition, as an insurance company, Global Atlantic's ability to grow is dependent on the sufficiency of its capital base to support that growth. Global Atlantic may need to seek additional capital to manage its growth, and Global Atlantic may not be able to maintain its current strong capital position as it grows. As Global Atlantic grows, it must invest additional assets. If Global Atlantic is unable to take advantage of investment opportunities to support its growth and adequately manage its investments, Global Atlantic's financial condition and results of operations in the future could be less favorable than in historical periods. Growth may increase the risk of service problems with policyholder administration, and Global Atlantic may need to expend additional resources to provide consistent service. Any negative impact on the quality of customer service Global Atlantic provides may cause reputational harm. Global Atlantic also considers its operational capabilities, including at third-party administrators, when adjusting crediting rates on its products. Future growth will also impose added responsibilities on Global Atlantic’s management, including the need to identify, recruit, maintain and integrate additional employees, and to implement more complex organizational management structures. There is also a risk that Global Atlantic will not be able to manage its expenses effectively or scale its business as it grows. Global Atlantic’s ability to reinsure business to its Bermuda reinsurance subsidiaries may also be limited by law or regulation, and accordingly Global Atlantic may not realize any benefits from its efficient operating structure on this new business. Global Atlantic’s failure to manage growth effectively for the reasons discussed above could have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition and results of operations.
If Global Atlantic’s businesses do not perform well and/or their estimated fair values decline, Global Atlantic may be required to recognize an impairment of goodwill, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
We may not be successful in executing upon or managing the complexities of new investment strategies, markets and businesses, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Our growth strategy is based, in part, on the expansion of our platform through selective investment in, and development or acquisition of, businesses, products and investment strategies complementary to our business. The expansion into new products and geographies has demanded greater management attention and dedication of resources to manage the increasing complexity of operations and regulatory compliance. For example, we developed and completed several structured transactions in which KKR provides subordinated or equity financing and third party investors provide senior financing to an investment vehicle that invests in our funds. In addition to the increased operational complexity and cost that arise from the structure and bespoke terms of these transactions, because of the subordinated nature of KKR's interests, we are at risk of losing all of our capital committed to these transactions ahead of any third party if the vehicle's investments do not perform as expected.
This growth strategy involves a number of risks, including the risk that: the expected synergies from a newly developed product or strategic alliance will not be realized; the expected results will not be achieved; new strategies are not appropriately planned for or integrated into the firm; the new strategies may conflict, detract from or compete against our existing businesses; the investment process, controls and procedures that we have developed around our existing platform will prove insufficient or inadequate; or our information systems and technology, including related security systems, may prove to be inadequate.
We have entered into strategic investor partnerships and established separately managed accounts, which lack the scale of our traditional funds and are more costly to administer. The prevalence of these accounts may also present conflicts and introduce complexity in the deployment of capital. The offering of investment products to retail investors, including any funds registered under the Investment Company Act, BDCs and KREF, may result in increased compliance and litigation costs. We may also incur significant charges in connection with such investments, which ultimately may result in significant losses and costs. We have also sponsored a special purpose acquisition company ("SPAC") and may in the future utilize SPACs or other blank check companies to make investments. As a sponsor to a SPAC, we may lose all our investment in the SPAC if a business combination is not completed within the prescribed timeframe or if the business combination is unsuccessful, which may result in regulatory scrutiny and litigation costs. We expect regulatory scrutiny of SPACs and other blank check companies to increase. Any losses relating to these developments could adversely impact our business, results of operations and financial condition, as well as harm our professional reputation.
If we are unable to syndicate the securities or indebtedness or realize returns on investments financed with our balance sheet assets, our liquidity, business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.
Our balance sheet assets provide us with a significant source of capital to grow and expand our business, increase our participation in our transactions and underwrite commitments in our capital markets business. We have used our balance sheet assets to underwrite loans, securities or other financial instruments, which we generally expect to syndicate to third parties. We also entered into an arrangement with a third party that reduces our risk associated with holding unsold securities when underwriting certain debt transactions, which enables our capital markets business to underwrite a larger amount. To the extent that we are unable to syndicate our commitments to third parties or our risk reduction arrangement does not fully perform as anticipated, we may be required to sell such investments at a significant loss or hold them indefinitely. If we are required to retain investments on our balance sheet for an extended period of time, our results would be directly impacted by the performance of such investments and it would also impair our capital markets business' ability to complete additional transactions, either of which could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We generally have a larger balance sheet than many of our competitors, and consequently, the performance of these balance sheet assets has a greater impact on our results of operations. In particular, during a period when our balance sheet assets are concentrated in a limited number of investments, results from a small number of investments can have a significant impact on our balance sheet performance. Our success in deploying our balance sheet assets and generating returns on this capital will depend, among other things, on the availability of suitable opportunities after giving priority in investment opportunities to our advised investment funds, the level of competition from other companies that may have greater financial resources and our ability to value potential development or acquisition opportunities accurately and negotiate acceptable terms for those opportunities. To the extent we are unsuccessful in deploying our balance sheet assets, our business and financial results may suffer. In addition, our balance sheet assets have been a significant source of capital for new strategies and products. To the extent that such strategies or products are not successful or our balance sheet assets cease to provide adequate liquidity, we would realize losses on our balance sheet investments or become limited in our ability to seed new businesses or support our existing business as effectively as contemplated. For example, we developed and completed several structured transactions in which our balance sheet provides subordinated or equity financing and third party investors provide senior financing to an investment vehicle that invests in our funds. In addition to the increased operational complexity and cost that arise from the structure and bespoke terms of these transactions, because of the subordinated nature of KKR's interests, we are at risk of losing all of our interests in these transactions ahead of any third party if the investments do not perform as expected. As of December 31, 2020, total balance sheet investments made by KKR in these structured transactions were approximately $1,742 million. See "—We may not be successful in executing upon or managing the complexities of new investment strategies, markets and businesses, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition."
Extensive regulation of our businesses affects our activities and creates the potential for significant liabilities and penalties. The possibility of increased regulatory focus or legislative or regulatory changes could materially and adversely affect our business.
Our business is subject to extensive regulation, including periodic examinations, inquiries and investigations by governmental and self-regulatory organizations in the jurisdictions in which we operate around the world. Many of these regulators, including U.S. federal and state and foreign government agencies and self-regulatory organizations, are empowered to impose fines, suspensions of personnel or other sanctions, including censure, the issuance of cease-and-desist orders or the suspension or expulsion of applicable licenses and memberships. Any of the foregoing may damage our relationships with existing fund investors, impair our ability to raise capital for successor funds, impair our ability to carry out certain investment strategies, impair Global Atlantic's ability to conduct its insurance business, or contravene provisions concerning compliance with law in agreements to which we are a party. Even if a sanction is not imposed or the sanction imposed against us or our personnel by a regulator were small in monetary amount, the adverse publicity relating to the regulatory activity or imposition
of these sanctions could harm our reputation and cause us to lose existing fund investors or fail to gain new fund investors or to lose or fail to gain new policyholders or ceding parties.
The private equity industry has been and continues to be under increased regulatory and news media scrutiny with governmental officials and regulators, including the SEC, focusing on the private equity industry's fees, allocation of expenses to funds, valuation practices, allocation of fund investment opportunities, particularly co-investment opportunities, disclosures to fund investors, compliance programs, conflicts of interest, and fiduciary duties owed to managed funds and client accounts. The SEC's focus areas included, among others, the acceleration of monitoring fees, the allocation of broken-deal and other expenses, the disclosure, use and compensation of operating partners or consultants as well as third-party compliance or similar service providers, outside investment and business activities of firm principals and employees, group purchasing arrangements, disclosure of affiliated service providers, general conflicts of interest disclosures, electronic messaging, cyber-security, data privacy and protection, the use of purchased data, valuation, retail investors, foreign bribery and corruption, and policies covering custody, auditing, handling of material nonpublic information, insider trading, business continuity and transition planning. The SEC is continuing its pursuit of these or other focus areas. In 2020, the SEC and its staff promulgated several documents on examination priorities and observations that specifically identified private fund managers as a priority and, in particular, highlighted the SEC's focus on managers that have a greater impact on retail investors, controls with respect to the misuse of material non-public information, conflicts of interest including with respect to allocation of investment opportunities, relationships with clients, preferential liquidity rights, and co-investments, and disclosure and other considerations with respect to fees and expenses and the use of affiliated service providers for clients. Any actions by the SEC or other regulators against us or other investment managers can cause changes in business practices that could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Any changes or potential changes in the regulatory framework applicable to our business, including the changes and potential changes described below and those resulting from the new leadership at regulators and in the government more broadly, as well as adverse news media attention, may: impose additional expenses or capital requirements on us; limit our fundraising for our investment products; result in limitations in the manner in which our business is conducted; have an adverse impact upon our results of operations, financial condition, reputation or prospects; impair employee retention or recruitment; and require substantial attention by senior management. It is impossible to determine the extent of the impact of any new laws, regulations, initiatives or regulatory guidance that may be proposed or may become law on our business or the markets in which we operate. If enacted, any new law, regulation, initiatives or regulatory guidance could negatively impact our funds and us in a number of ways, including: increasing our costs and the cost for our funds of investing, borrowing, hedging or operating; increasing the funds' or our regulatory operating costs; imposing additional burdens on the funds' or our staff; and potentially requiring the disclosure of sensitive information. In addition, we may be materially and adversely affected by changes in the interpretation or enforcement of existing laws and rules by these governmental authorities and self-regulatory organizations. New laws, regulations, initiatives or regulatory guidance could make compliance more difficult or more expensive, affect the manner in which we conduct business and divert significant management and operational resources and attention from our business. Moreover, an increase in regulatory investigations and new or enhanced reporting requirements of the trading and other investment activities of alternative investment management funds and firms, including our funds and us, is possible. Such investigations and reporting requirements could impose additional expenses on us, require the attention of senior management, increase the complexity of managing our business, or result in fines or other sanctions if we or any of our funds are deemed to have violated any law or regulations.
Recent and Potential Regulatory Changes in the United States. In recent years, there have been a number of changes in the regulatory framework applicable to our business, including those required under the Dodd-Frank Act. These changes have, among other things: increased regulatory scrutiny of our industry; increased our record-keeping, reporting and disclosure requirements; and placed restrictions on the growth or type of activities certain financial institutions may pursue. We discuss below several recent and potential regulatory changes that have impacted or may further impact our business.
Financial Stability Oversight Council (the "FSOC"). Established under the Dodd-Frank Act, the FSOC is an inter-agency body charged with, among other things, designating systemically important nonbank financial companies for heightened prudential supervision and making recommendations regarding the imposition of enhanced regulatory standards regarding capital, leverage, conflicts and other requirements for financial firms deemed to pose a systemic threat to U.S. financial stability. On December 4, 2019, the FSOC finalized interpretive guidance on non-bank financial company designations that prioritizes an "activities-based" approach to identify, assess, and address potential risks to U.S. financial stability and reserves entity-specific designations for instances when a potential risk cannot be adequately addressed through an activities-based approach. Pursuant to guidance, which became effective on January 29, 2020, the FSOC applies a two-step activities-based approach to identify and address risks to financial stability from certain activities, products or practices. If the FSOC identifies a product, activity, or practice that could pose a risk to financial stability, it will, during the first step, evaluate the extent to which certain characteristics could "amplify" risks to financial stability. These characteristics include asset valuation risk or credit risk;
leverage arising from debt, derivatives, off-balance sheet obligations, and other arrangements; liquidity risk or maturity mismatch; counterparty risk; transparency of financial markets; and operational risks. If the FSOC identifies a potential risk to financial stability, it will progress to step two, during which it would work with relevant financial regulators to seek the implementation of actions to address the identified potential risk and coordinate among member agencies to ensure the risk is addressed. There currently is little precedent or guidance specifically addressing the FSOC's approach or methodology to evaluating and identifying activities that could pose a risk to financial stability. It is possible that the FSOC could identify one or more of our product lines, activities, or practices as a potential risk to U.S. financial stability and, along with other regulators, could take the actions described above to address such risk, which may result in additional compliance costs. If the FSOC finds that the regulators' efforts have not adequately addressed the potential risk or if the potential threat arises "outside the jurisdiction or authority" of financial regulatory agencies and the potential risk could be addressed by an FSOC designation, the FSOC may designate a nonbank financial company as systemically important. If the FSOC were to designate us as a systemically important nonbank financial company, we would become subject to supervision by the U.S. Federal Reserve and a heightened degree of regulation, including more stringent standards relating to capital, leverage, liquidity, risk management, resolution planning, credit exposure reporting and concentration limits, restrictions on acquisitions, and annual stress testing by the U.S. Federal Reserve. There can be no assurance that nonbank financial firms such as us will not become subject to the aforementioned restrictions or other requirements for financial firms deemed to be systemically important to the financial stability of the U.S. economy.
On December 18, 2014, prior to the adoption of the activities-based approach described above, the FSOC issued a notice seeking public comment on potential systemic risks from asset management products and activities, focusing in particular on (1) liquidity and redemption risks, (2) use of leverage, (3) operational functions and (4) resolution-related issues. On November 16, 2016, the FSOC reiterated its focus on these risk areas, as well as securities lending, in a public statement on its review of asset management products and activities. According to the notice and statement, the FSOC has not made any final determination regarding the existence or nature of any potential risks to financial stability posed by the asset management industry.
Regulation of Swaps. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the "CFTC") administers a comprehensive regulatory framework for swaps that was largely adopted under Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act. As a result:
•Operating pooled funds that trade swaps, or providing investment advice to clients that trade swaps is a basis for registration with the CFTC, absent an applicable exemption. Operating our funds in a manner consistent with one or more exemptions from registration with the CFTC may limit the activities of certain of our funds, and monitoring and analysis of these exemptions requires management and operational resources and attention. Registration with the CFTC, if required, could impact our operations and add additional costs associated with ongoing compliance.
•The CFTC's swap rules also impose regulatory requirements on the trading of swaps, including requirements that most swaps be executed on an exchange or "swap execution facility" and cleared through a central clearing house. Although these requirements presently apply only to certain classes of interest rate swaps and credit default swaps, the CFTC may mandate central execution and clearing with respect to additional classes of swaps in the future.
•CFTC regulations employ quantitative tests and thresholds to determine whether entities are "swap dealers" or "major swap participants" that must register in the appropriate category and comply with capital, margin, record keeping, reporting and business conduct rules. Our funds could become subject to the requirement to register as major swap participants due to changes to the funds' investment strategy or valuations, or revisions to the thresholds for registration.
•In October 2020, the CFTC adopted a final rule that will apply federal position limits to additional physical commodity futures contracts and economically equivalent swaps. Implementation of the final rule, which has a general compliance date of January 1, 2020, could also limit or restrict the ability of our funds to use, trade or invest in futures and swaps and increase the cost of engaging in these transactions. The Dodd-Frank Act also authorizes the SEC to establish position limits on security-based swaps, which rules could have a similar impact on our business.
•The SEC, CFTC and banking regulators have adopted rules regarding margin and capital requirements for most uncleared or "over-the-counter" swaps. These rules generally require swap dealers and major swap participants to collect and post a minimum amount of margin when trading with other covered entities and financial end-users. These requirements could increase the cost of trading in the derivative markets, which could in turn make it more expensive and difficult, and in certain cases impractical, for us or our funds to enter into swaps and other derivatives in the normal course of our business and reduce the effectiveness of the funds' and our investment strategies. These rules
could also adversely impact liquidity in derivatives markets, which could expose our funds and us to greater risks and reduce hedging opportunities in connection with their trading activities.
•In September 2016, the U.S. Federal Reserve issued for public comment a proposed rule that, if adopted as proposed, would impose significant capital and other prudential requirements on the physical commodities activities of certain banking organizations. The implementation of these or other new regulations could increase the cost of trading in the commodities and derivative markets, which could in turn make it more expensive and difficult for us or our funds to enter into swaps and other derivatives in the normal course of our business. Moreover, these increased regulatory responsibilities and increased costs could reduce trading levels in the commodities and derivative markets by a number of market participants, which could in turn adversely impact liquidity in the markets and expose our funds to greater risks in connection with their trading activities.
Other Regulations under the Dodd-Frank Act. The Dodd-Frank Act amended the Exchange Act to compensate and protect whistleblowers who voluntarily provide original information to the SEC and establishes a fund to be used to pay whistleblowers who will be entitled to receive a payment equal to between 10% and 30% of certain monetary sanctions imposed in a successful government action resulting from the information provided by the whistleblower. The CFTC has adopted a similar whistleblower program. In addition, in October 2011, the SEC adopted a rule requiring certain advisers to private funds to periodically file reports on Form PF, as required under the Dodd-Frank Act. Large private fund advisers including advisers with at least $1.5 billion in assets under management attributable to hedge funds and advisers with at least $2 billion in assets under management attributable to private equity funds are subject to more detailed and in certain cases more frequent reporting requirements. The information is to be used by the FSOC in monitoring risks to the U.S. financial system. These regulations increase our compliance costs and could result in adverse regulatory actions against us.
The SEC has finalized and is in the process of implementing and requiring compliance with the rules it has adopted under Dodd-Frank related to security-based swaps. Specifically, the SEC will require, beginning in the fall of 2021, security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants to register with the SEC and comply with extensive business conduct rules and other requirements. These regulations, among others, and our and our counterparties' compliance with these regulations, may increase our compliance costs and could result in adverse regulatory actions against us.
EU-Wide Regulations. The EU Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (the "AIFMD"), which became effective on July 22, 2013, established a comprehensive regulatory and supervisory framework for alternative investment fund managers ("AIFMs") managing or marketing alternative investment funds ("AIFs") in the European Union. The AIFMD imposes various substantive regulatory requirements on AIFMs, which could have a material adverse effect on our businesses by (i) imposing disclosure obligations and restrictions on distributions by EU portfolio companies, (ii) requiring changes to our compensation structures for key personnel, thereby potentially affecting our ability to recruit and retain these personnel, (iii) increasing the cost and complexity of raising capital for our funds, which may slow the pace of fundraising, and (iv) generally increasing our compliance costs. In addition, there are areas of the AIFMD that are subject to legal uncertainty, including the scope of the legal structures qualifying as AIFs subject to AIFMD. Failure to comply with AIFMD, even in areas where there is legal uncertainty, can result in enforcement action, including, but not limited to, fines.
Although a subsidiary of ours is registered as an AIFM with the Central Bank of Ireland, we may not be able to benefit from an "EU passport" under the AIFMD to market all of our funds to professional investors throughout the European Union, and the EU marketing passport will not apply to marketing to investors in the United Kingdom due to its withdrawal from the European Union. See "—Brexit" below.
Additionally, certain of our European subsidiaries are subject to other EU-wide regulations including, but not limited to:
•the Second Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II), which imposes a range of compliance requirements on our business in areas such as transaction reporting, marketing infrastructure and securities and derivatives trading;
•the Market Abuse Regulation (MAR), which requires, among other things, systems and controls regarding inside information, record keeping and other prescribed procedures for market soundings, and conflicts of interest and other relevant disclosure when providing investment recommendations;
•the Capital Requirements Directive IV (CRD IV) and the Capital Requirements Regulation, which implement the capital and liquidity standards promulgated by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (commonly referred to as Basel III) and impose various governance and remuneration obligations;
•other EU bank regulatory initiatives, including the Second Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive and the European Banking Authority's guidelines on limits to exposures to shadow banking entities which carry out banking activities outside a regulated framework under EU law (including funds employing leverage on a substantial basis, within the meaning of AIFMD and its implementing rules, and credit funds);
•the European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) and EMIR Refit, which impose various reporting, margining and central clearing requirements on certain OTC derivative transactions;
•the Securitization Regulation, which establishes due diligence, risk retention and disclosure regarding certain of our European investments, subsidiaries and CLOs;
•the Short Selling Regulation, which limits naked short selling of sovereign bonds and stocks;
•the Financial Conglomerates Directive, which establishes a prudential regime for financial conglomerates to address perceived risks associated with large cross-sector businesses, and could increase the costs of investing in insurance companies, investment firms and banks located in the European Union;
•the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, which imposes sustainability risk assessment requirements and ESG-specific transparency requirements that must be disclosed;
•the Securities Financing Transaction Regulation, which requires securities financing transactions to be reported to trade repositories, places additional reporting requirements on investment managers and introduces prior risk disclosures and written consent before assets are rehypothecated; and
•the General Data Protection Regulation, which imposes stringent data protection requirements and provides for significant penalties for noncompliance.
These regulations impose significant regulatory requirements on our and our counterparties' operations in Europe, which may increase our or our portfolio companies’ costs of doing business with such counterparties or accessing credit; cause increased costs through our implementation and maintenance of suitable compliance arrangements; have a negative impact on liquidity in the market which may impact our funds; give rise to an enforcement action or fines in the event of any failure to comply with the requirements; and impact the compensation structure of our key personnel under the remuneration obligations and potentially affect certain of our subsidiaries’ abilities to recruit and retain personnel.
Brexit. On January 31, 2020, the United Kingdom exited the European Union (the "Brexit"). The related withdrawal agreement provided for a transitional period through December 31, 2020, during which our subsidiaries located in the European Union and the United Kingdom had largely the same rights as they had prior to the Brexit, including in relation to the exercise of passporting rights. Following the cessation of the transitional period, our subsidiaries that are authorized and regulated by the FCA are no longer able to provide services in other EU Member States and our CBI-authorized alternative investment fund manager can no longer benefit from the EU marketing passport to market products to investors in the United Kingdom. On December 24, 2020, the United Kingdom and the European Union agreed to the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement and subsequently issued the Joint Declaration on Financial Services Regulatory Cooperation, but at present, there is no universal arrangement in place that allows broad market access between the United Kingdom and the European Union. Under the joint declaration, the parties agreed to enter into a memorandum of understanding by March 2021 to establish the framework for regulatory cooperation on financial services. The loss of passporting rights and the uncertainty regarding market access may adversely affect our ability to source attractive investments in the United Kingdom and may impact the value of our investments that are located in the United Kingdom, or those that conduct business in or derive revenues from, the United Kingdom. While we have properly permissioned subsidiaries to allow us to continue to conduct our business in both the United Kingdom and the European Union, Brexit is likely to increase our cost of raising capital, underwriting and distributing securities and conducting business generally, including the cost of complying with two, potentially divergent, regimes, and interfere with our ability to market our products and provide our services. Changes in regulation may also impair our ability to recruit, retain and motivate new employees and retain key employees.
Other Financial Markets Regulation. Certain requirements imposed by regulators, as well as certain legislation and proposed legislation, are designed primarily to ensure the integrity of the financial markets or other objectives and are not designed to protect our stockholders. These laws and regulations often serve to limit our activities. In addition to many of the regulations and proposed regulations described above under "—Recent and Potential Regulatory Changes in the United States" and "—EU-Wide Regulations," U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies and the European Central Bank have issued leveraged lending guidance covering transactions characterized by a degree of financial leverage, although in the United States, the status of this guidance is uncertain as the U.S. Government Accountability Office determined, in October 2017, that the guidance is subject to review under the Congressional Review Act. If applied by the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies in its current form, such guidance would limit the amount or availability of debt financing available to borrowers and may increase the cost of financing we are able to obtain for our transactions and may cause the returns on our investments to suffer.
In June 2019, the SEC approved a rule that requires a broker-dealer, or a natural person who is an associated person of a broker-dealer, to act in the best interest of a retail customer when making a recommendation of any securities transaction or investment strategy involving securities, without placing the financial or other interest of the broker, dealer or natural person
who is an associated person of a broker-dealer making the recommendation ahead of the interest of the retail customer ("Regulation Best Interest"). The term "retail customer" is defined as a natural person who uses such a recommendation primarily for personal, family or household purposes, without reference to investor sophistication or net worth. The "best interest" standard would be satisfied through compliance with certain disclosure, duty of care, conflict of interest mitigation and compliance obligations. Compliance with Regulation Best Interest was required as of June 30, 2020 and may impose additional costs to us if we continue to expand our product offerings and investment platforms to retail customers. For discussions of the risks posed by Regulation Best Interest and similar rules on Global Atlantic, see "—Risks Related to Global Atlantic—Regulatory Risks Related to Global Atlantic—Changes to comply with new and potential laws or regulations which impose fiduciary or best interest standards in connection with the sale of Global Atlantic's products could materially increase Global Atlantic's costs, decrease its sales and result in a material adverse impact on its business."
In July 2019, a Senate bill titled Stop Wall Street Looting Act was introduced that aims to regulate certain business practices by private funds, which the bill defines as companies or partnerships relying on Section 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act (except venture capital funds), that directly, or through an affiliate, act as a "control person" by acquiring at least 20% of voting securities of a portfolio company. The bill, among others, requires such private funds to be jointly and severally liable for debt and other obligations of a portfolio company; prohibits portfolio companies from paying dividends within 24 months of their acquisition by a private fund; imposes 100% tax on any monitoring fee or transaction fee paid by portfolio companies to a private fund; applies an ordinary income tax rate, instead of a capital gains tax rate, on carried interest; and requires an annual SEC disclosure of certain information about a private fund and its portfolio companies. Although the bill did not see further action after its introduction in 2019, if it were to be re-introduced and become law, our business would be materially adversely impacted, and we would be required to change various operational and investment practices, which would be costly, time-consuming and disruptive. Following the 2020 presidential and congressional elections in the United States, there is an increased risk of legislative and regulatory action that could adversely limit and affect our and our portfolio companies' businesses both as described above and as described in "—Changes in relevant tax laws, regulations or treaties or an adverse interpretation of these items by tax authorities could adversely impact our effective tax rate and tax liability." Potential changes in legislation or regulation may include higher corporate tax rate, greater scrutiny on the private equity industry or elimination of carried interest or limitations of the capital gains tax.
Certain of the funds we manage and certain portfolio companies that engage in originating, lending and/or servicing loans, may consider investments that would subject us to state and federal regulation, borrower disclosure requirements, limits on fees and interest rates on some loans, state lender licensing requirements and other regulatory requirements in the conduct of their business. If our funds or portfolio companies engage in these activities, they may also be subject to consumer disclosures and substantive requirements on consumer loan terms and other federal regulatory requirements applicable to consumer lending that are administered by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. These state and federal regulatory programs are designed to protect borrowers. Following the 2020 presidential and congressional elections in the United States, there is an increased risk of legislative and regulatory action that could adversely limit and affect our and our portfolio companies' businesses in these activities.
State and federal regulators and other governmental entities have authority to bring administrative enforcement actions or litigation to enforce compliance with applicable lending or consumer protection laws, with remedies that can include fines and monetary penalties, restitution of borrowers, injunctions to conform to law, or limitation or revocation of licenses and other remedies and penalties. In addition, lenders and servicers may be subject to litigation brought by or on behalf of borrowers for violations of laws or unfair or deceptive practices. If we enter into transactions that subject us to these risks, failure to conform to applicable regulatory and legal requirements could be costly and have a detrimental impact on certain of our funds and ultimately on us.
Portfolio Company Legal and Regulatory Environment. We are subject to certain laws, such as certain environmental laws, takeover laws, anti-bribery, trade sanctions, trade control, anti-money laundering and anti-corruption laws, escheat or abandoned property laws, antitrust laws and data privacy and data protection laws that may impose requirements on us and our portfolio companies as an affiliated group. As a result, we could become jointly and severally liable for all or part of fines imposed on our portfolio companies or be fined directly for violations committed by portfolio companies, and such fines imposed directly on us could be greater than those imposed on the portfolio company. Moreover, portfolio companies may seek to hold us responsible if any fine imposed on them is increased because of their membership in a larger group of affiliated companies. For example, on April 2, 2014, the European Commission announced that it had fined 11 producers of underground and submarine high voltage power cables a total of 302 million euro for participation in a ten-year market and customer sharing cartel. Fines were also imposed on parent companies of the producers involved, including Goldman Sachs, the former parent company of one of the cartel members. The Court of Justice of the European Union affirmed the decision on January 27, 2021. Similarly, on February 16, 2018, the U.S. Department of Justice named a private equity sponsor as a co-defendant in a False Claims Act case against one of its portfolio companies, alleging that the private equity sponsor had an active involvement in
managing the company and in developing its strategy to use illegal kickback payments to increase reimbursements. In addition, compliance with certain laws or contracts could also require us to commit significant resources and capital towards information gathering and monitoring thereby increasing our operating costs. For example, because we may indirectly hold voting securities in public utilities subject to regulation by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC"), including entities that may hold FERC authorization to charge market-based rates for sales of wholesale power and energy, we may be subject to certain FERC regulations, including regulations requiring us and our portfolio companies to collect, report and keep updated substantial information concerning our ownership of such voting interests and voting interests in other related energy companies, corporate officers, and our direct and indirect investment in such utilities and related companies. Such rules may subject our portfolio companies and us to costly and burdensome data collection and reporting requirements.
In the United States, certain statutes may subject us or our funds to the liabilities of our portfolio companies. The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act ("CERCLA"), also referred to as the "Superfund," requires cleanup of sites from which there has been a release or threatened release of hazardous substances, and authorizes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to take any necessary response action at Superfund sites, including ordering potentially responsible parties liable for the release to pay for such actions. Potentially responsible parties are broadly defined under CERCLA and could include us.
In addition, we or certain of our investment funds could potentially be held liable under U.S. Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA") for the pension obligations of one or more of our portfolio companies if we or the investment fund were determined to be a "trade or business" under ERISA and deemed part of the same "controlled group" as the portfolio company under such rules, and the pension obligations of any particular portfolio company could be material. On March 28, 2016, a Federal District Court judge in Massachusetts ruled that two private equity funds affiliated with Sun Capital were jointly and severally responsible for unfunded pension liabilities of a Sun Capital portfolio company. While neither fund held more than an 80% ownership interest of the portfolio company, the percentage required under existing regulations to find liability, the court found the funds had formed a partnership-in-fact conducting a trade or business and that as a result each fund was jointly and severally liable for the portfolio company's unfunded pension liabilities. While a federal appellate court only upheld certain aspects of the District Court holding, if the rationale of the District Court decision were to be applied by other courts, we or certain of our investment funds could be held liable under ERISA for certain pension obligations of portfolio companies. In addition, if the rationale of this decision were expanded to apply also for U.S. federal income tax purposes, then certain of our investors could be subject to increased U.S. income tax liability or filing obligations in certain contexts. Similar laws that could be applied with similar results also exist outside of the United States. Moreover, if the general accounts or separate accounts of one or more of Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries were to constitute "plan assets" for purposes of ERISA, in the absence of an exemption we could potentially have liability under the prohibited transaction provisions of ERISA and the Code as a result of any investment management activities by KKR with respect to, or transactions by KKR involving, such general account or separate account assets.
Similarly, our portfolio companies may be subject to contractual obligations which may impose obligations or restrictions on their affiliates. The interpretation of such contractual provisions will depend on local laws. Given that we do not control all of our portfolio companies and that our portfolio companies generally operate independently of each other, there is a risk that we could contravene one or more of such laws, regulations and contractual arrangements due to limited access and opportunities to monitor compliance. In addition, compliance with these laws or contracts could require us to commit significant resources and capital towards information gathering and monitoring thereby increasing our operating costs.
Because of our ownership interest in portfolio companies, attention on our portfolio companies can also result in attention on us. For example, heightened governmental scrutiny of the healthcare and educational industries has resulted in requests by a Congressional committee and members of Congress for information from us about our investments in portfolio companies that operate in these industries. Congressional scrutiny and other similar inquiries by governmental bodies may damage our reputation and may also result in potential legislation designed to further regulate portfolio companies or the industries in which they operate, which may materially and adversely affect our portfolio companies' businesses, which in turn could decrease the value of our investments.
Similarly, our ownership interest in Global Atlantic exposes us to risks and developments in the insurance industry. As an insurance company, Global Atlantic is subject to extensive regulations in the United States and Bermuda. See "—Risks Related to Global Atlantic–Regulatory Risks Related to Global Atlantic."
Complex regulations may limit our ability to raise capital, increase the costs of our capital raising activities and may subject us to penalties.
We regularly rely on exemptions in the United States from various requirements of the Securities Act, the Exchange Act, the Investment Company Act, the Commodity Exchange Act and ERISA in conducting our investment management activities. These exemptions are sometimes highly complex and may in certain circumstances depend on compliance by third parties whom we do not control. If for any reason these exemptions were to become unavailable to us, we could become subject to additional restrictive and costly registration requirements, regulatory action or third-party claims and our business could be materially and adversely affected. For example, in raising new funds, we typically rely on private placement exemptions from registration under the Securities Act, including Rule 506 of Regulation D. However, Rule 506 becomes unavailable to issuers (including our funds) if the issuer or any of its "covered persons" (certain officers and directors and also certain third parties including, among others, promoters, placement agents and beneficial owners of 20% of outstanding voting securities of the issuer) has been the subject of a "disqualifying event," which includes a variety of criminal, regulatory and civil matters (so-called "bad actor" disqualification). If our funds or any of the covered persons associated with our funds are subject to a disqualifying event, one or more of our funds could lose the ability to raise capital in a Rule 506 private offering for a significant period of time, which could significantly impair our ability to raise new funds, and, therefore, could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, if certain of our employees or any potential significant investor has been the subject of a disqualifying event, we could be required to reassign or terminate such an employee or we could be required to refuse the investment of such an investor, which could impair our relationships with investors, harm our reputation or make it more difficult to raise new funds. See "—Risks Related to Our Organizational Structure—If we were deemed to be an 'investment company' subject to regulation under the Investment Company Act, applicable restrictions could make it impractical for us to continue our business as contemplated and could have a material adverse effect on our business."
We are and will become further subject to additional regulatory and compliance burdens as we expand our product offerings and investment platform to include retail investors. For example, funds in our Public Markets business line are registered under the Investment Company Act as investment companies. These funds and KKR Credit Advisors (US) LLC, which currently serves as their investment adviser, are subject to the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder, which, among other things, regulate the relationship between a registered investment company and its investment adviser and prohibit or severely restrict principal transactions and joint transactions. In 2018, we completed our transaction to form FS/KKR Advisor, a strategic BDC partnership with FS Investments, to provide investment advisory services to our BDCs. BDCs are subject to certain restrictions and prohibitions under the Investment Company Act. If any of the BDCs advised by FS/KKR Advisor fails to meet the requirements for a BDC, it may be regulated as a closed-end investment company under the Investment Company Act and become subject to substantially more regulatory restrictions, which could limit its operating flexibility and in turn result in decreased profitability for FS/KKR Advisor. As our business expands we may be required to make additional registrations under the Investment Company Act or similar laws, including in jurisdictions outside the United States. As an example, in 2019, we raised an Australian listed investment trust, which is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange and subject to the regulation of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. Compliance with these and other U.S. and non-U.S. rules will increase our compliance costs and create potential for additional liabilities and penalties, which would divert management's attention from our business and investments.
Rule 206(4)-5 under the Investment Advisers Act regulates "pay to play" practices by investment advisers involving campaign contributions and other payments to elected officials or candidates for political office who are able to exert influence on government clients. Among other restrictions, the rule prohibits investment advisers from providing advisory services for compensation to a government client for two years, subject to very limited exceptions, after the investment adviser, its senior executives or its personnel involved in soliciting investments from government entities make contributions to certain candidates and officials in position to influence the hiring of an investment adviser by such government client. Advisers are required to implement compliance policies designed, among other matters, to track contributions by certain of the adviser's employees and engagements of third parties that solicit government entities and to keep certain records in order to enable the SEC to determine compliance with the rule. There has also been similar rule-making on a state-level regarding "pay to play" practices by investment advisers, including in California and New York. FINRA has released its own set of "pay to play" regulations that effectively prohibit the receipt of compensation from state or local government agencies for solicitation and distribution activities within two years of a prohibited contribution by a broker-dealer or one of its covered associates. Any failure on our part to comply with these rules could cause us to lose compensation for our advisory services or expose us to significant penalties and reputational damage.
Federal, state and foreign anti-corruption and trade sanctions laws and restrictions on foreign direct investment applicable to us and our portfolio companies create the potential for significant liabilities and penalties, the inability to complete transactions and reputational harm.
We are subject to a number of laws and regulations governing payments and contributions to political persons or other third parties, including restrictions imposed by the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ("FCPA"), as well as trade sanctions and trade control laws administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control ("OFAC"), the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Department of State. The FCPA is intended to prohibit bribery of foreign governments and their officials and political parties, and requires public companies in the United States to keep books and records that accurately and fairly reflect those companies' transactions. OFAC, the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Department of State administer and enforce various trade control laws and regulations, including economic and trade sanctions based on U.S. foreign policy and national security goals against targeted foreign states, organizations and individuals. These laws and regulations implicate a number of aspects of our business, including servicing existing fund investors, finding new fund investors, and sourcing new investments, as well as activities by the portfolio companies in our investment portfolio or other controlled investments. Some of these regulations provide that penalties can be imposed on us for the conduct of a portfolio company, even if we have not ourselves violated any regulation.
The Iran Threat Reduction and Syrian Human Rights Act of 2012 ("ITRA") expanded the scope of U.S. sanctions against Iran and requires public reporting companies to disclose in their annual or quarterly reports certain dealings or transactions the company or its affiliates "knowingly" engaged in during the previous reporting period involving Iran or other individuals and entities targeted by certain OFAC sanctions. In some cases, ITRA requires companies to disclose these types of dealings or transactions even if they are permissible under U.S. law or are conducted outside of the United States by a foreign affiliate. If any such activities are disclosed in a periodic report, we are required to separately file, concurrently with such report, a notice of such disclosure. The SEC is required to post this notice on its website and send the report to the U.S. President and certain U.S. Congressional committees. The U.S. President thereafter is required to initiate an investigation and, within 180 days of initiating such an investigation, to determine whether sanctions should be imposed. Disclosure of such activity, even if such activity is not subject to sanctions under applicable law, and any sanctions actually imposed on us or our affiliates as a result of these activities, could harm our reputation and have a negative impact on our business.
The U.S. government has also implemented and expanded a number of economic sanctions programs and export controls that target Chinese entities and nationals on national security grounds, and has imposed restrictions on acquiring and retaining interests in the securities of certain Chinese entities. These initiatives target, for example, China's response to political demonstrations in Hong Kong, China’s conduct concerning the treatment of Uighurs and other ethnic minorities in its Xinjiang province, and certain Chinese entities designated by the U.S. government as Communist Chinese military companies, among other things. In January 2021, China's Ministry of Commerce issued The Rules on Counteracting Unjustified Extraterritorial Application of Foreign Legislation and Other Measures to counteract the impact of foreign sanctions on Chinese persons by enabling Chinese citizens, legal persons, and other organizations to seek remedies as a result of prohibitions or restrictions on normal economic, trade, and related activities with persons of other countries.
Due to restrictions on foreign direct investment, we may face restrictions on completing certain transactions, such as acquisitions and divestitures. The U.S. government also enacted Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act ("FIRRMA") and related regulations, which significantly expanded the types of transactions that are subject to the jurisdiction of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States ("CFIUS"). Under FIRRMA, CFIUS has the authority to review and potentially block or impose conditions on certain foreign investments in U.S. companies or real estate. In addition to the United States, many other countries are enacting or beginning to enforce their own foreign direct investment laws, such as Measures for the Security Review of Foreign Investments in China or the proposed National Security and Investment Bill in the United Kingdom.
Similar laws in non-U.S. jurisdictions, such as EU sanctions and blocking statutes, the U.K. Bribery Act, as well as other applicable anti-bribery, anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, or sanction or other export control, or foreign direct investment laws in the United States and abroad, may also impose stricter or more onerous requirements than the FCPA, OFAC, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Department of State or U.S. Department of Treasury, and implementing them may disrupt our business or cause us to incur significantly more costs to comply with those laws. Different laws may also contain conflicting provisions, making compliance with all laws more difficult. If we fail to comply with these laws and regulations, we could be exposed to claims for damages, civil or criminal financial penalties, reputational harm, incarceration of our employees, restrictions on our operations and other liabilities, which could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, we may be subject to successor liability for FCPA violations or other acts of bribery, or violations of applicable sanctions, other export control or foreign direct investment laws committed by companies in which we or our funds invest or which we or our funds acquire.
We face significant liabilities and damage to our professional reputation as a result of litigation allegations and negative publicity.
The activities of our businesses, including the investment decisions we make and the activities of our employees in connection with our funds, portfolio companies, insurance subsidiaries or other investment vehicles like SPACs, may subject us and them to the risk of litigation by third parties, including fund investors dissatisfied with the performance or management of our funds, holders of our or our portfolio companies' debt or equity, Global Atlantic's policyholders, and investors in our SPAC and a variety of other potential litigants. See Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Note 16 "Commitments and Contingencies—Litigation." For example, we, our funds and certain of our employees are each exposed to the risks of litigation relating to investment activities of our funds, insurance subsidiaries and SPAC and actions taken by the officers and directors (some of whom may be KKR employees) of portfolio companies, such as lawsuits by other shareholders of our public portfolio companies or holders of debt instruments of companies in which we or our funds have significant investments. We are also exposed to risks of litigation, investigation or negative publicity in the event of any transactions that are alleged not to have been properly considered and approved under applicable law.
Although investors in our funds do not have legal remedies against us, the general partners of our funds, our funds, our employees or our affiliates solely based on their dissatisfaction with the investment performance of those funds, such investor may have remedies against us, the general partners of our funds, our funds, our employees or our affiliates to the extent any losses result from fraud, negligence, willful misconduct or other similar misconduct. While the general partners and investment advisers to our investment funds, including their directors, officers, employees and affiliates, are generally indemnified to the fullest extent permitted by law with respect to their conduct in connection with the management of the business and affairs of our investment funds, such indemnity generally does not extend to actions determined to have involved fraud, gross negligence, willful misconduct or other similar misconduct. If any civil or criminal lawsuits were brought against us and resulted in a finding of substantial legal liability or culpability, the lawsuit could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition or cause significant reputational harm to us, which could seriously impact our business.
Furthermore, the current rise of populist political movements has generated and may continue to generate a growing negative public sentiment toward globalization, free trade, capitalism and financial institutions, which could lead to heightened scrutiny and criticisms of our business and our investments. In addition, public discourse leading to the 2020 U.S. presidential election and social inequality issues raised and debated during the campaign have demonstrated the elevated level of focus put on us, our industry and companies in which our funds are invested. See "—Extensive regulation of our businesses affects our activities and creates the potential for significant liabilities and penalties. The possibility of increased regulatory focus or legislative or regulatory changes could materially and adversely affect our business—Portfolio Company Legal and Regulatory Environment." The risk of reputational harm is elevated by the prevalence of Internet and social media usage and the increased public focus on behaviors and externalities of business activities, including those affecting stakeholder interests and ESG considerations. We depend to a large extent on our business relationships and our reputation for integrity and high-caliber professional services to attract and retain fund investors and qualified professionals and to pursue investment opportunities for our funds. As a result, allegations of improper conduct by private litigants or regulators, whether the ultimate outcome is favorable or unfavorable to us, as well as negative publicity and press speculation about us, our investment activities or the private equity industry in general, whether or not valid, may harm our reputation, which may be more damaging to our business than to other types of businesses.
With a workforce composed of many highly-paid professionals, we face the risk of litigation relating to claims for compensation or other damages, which may, individually or in the aggregate, be significant in amount. The cost of settling any such claims could negatively impact our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Certain types of investment vehicles may subject us to additional risk of litigation and regulatory scrutiny.
We have formed and may continue to form investment vehicles seeking investment from retail investors, which may subject us to additional risk of litigation and regulatory scrutiny. See "—Extensive regulation of our businesses affects our activities and creates the potential for significant liabilities and penalties. The possibility of increased regulatory focus or legislative or regulatory changes could materially and adversely affect our business." We have and expect to continue to distribute products through new channels, including through unaffiliated firms, and we may not be able to effectively monitor or control the manner of their distribution, which could result in litigation against us, including with respect to, among other things, claims that products distributed through such channels are distributed to customers for whom they are unsuitable or distributed in any other inappropriate manner. The distribution of products through new channels whether directly or through market intermediaries, including in the retail channel, could expose us to additional regulatory risk in the form of allegations of improper conduct and/or actions by state and federal regulators against us with respect to, among other things, product suitability, conflicts of interest and the adequacy of disclosure to customers to whom our products are distributed through those
channels. Following the 2020 presidential and congressional elections in the United States, there is an increased risk of legislative and regulatory action that could adversely limit and affect our efforts to seek, or to manage vehicles that have investments from, retail investors.
In addition, investment adviser subsidiaries of KKR externally manage a number of publicly traded permanent capital vehicles, including KREF (a REIT listed on the NYSE), KKR Income Opportunities Fund (a closed-end management investment company listed on the NYSE), KKR Credit Opportunities Portfolio (a closed-end management investment company operated as an interval fund) and KKR Credit Income Fund (an Australian listed investment trust). FS KKR Capital Corp. and FS KKR Capital Corp. II (BDCs listed on the NYSE) are advised by FS/KKR Advisor, in which we own a 50% interest. We plan to enter into new investment management agreements with other publicly traded permanent capital vehicles in the future. Publicly traded permanent capital vehicles allow us to invest in potentially longer-term strategies and potentially more stable fee streams, while providing liquidity to such vehicle's equity investors. However, these vehicles are subject to the heightened regulatory requirements applicable to public companies, including compliance with the laws and regulations of the SEC, the Exchange Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the national securities exchanges on which their securities are listed, among others. These requirements will place increased demands on senior employees, require administrative, operational and accounting resources, and incur significant expenses. Failure to comply with these requirements could result in a civil lawsuit, regulatory penalties, enforcement actions, or potentially lead to suspension of trading or de-listing from an exchange. Furthermore, if the shareholders of these vehicles were to be dissatisfied with the investment performance or disagree with investment strategies employed by us, they may seek to cause the board of directors of the relevant vehicle to terminate the investment management agreement with us or change the terms of such agreement in a manner that is less favorable to us. As publicly traded entities, these permanent capital vehicles also face additional litigation risk, including class actions and other shareholder lawsuits, which would distract senior employees, including investment professionals. Global Atlantic is also involved in litigation and regulatory actions in the ordinary course of business, and Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries are subject to comprehensive regulation and supervision under U.S. federal and state laws. Therefore, following KKR's acquisition of Global Atlantic, we are subject to additional risks of litigation and regulatory scrutiny that we may not have experienced before.
Misconduct of our employees, consultants or sub-contractors or by our portfolio companies could harm us by impairing our ability to attract and retain clients and subjecting us to significant legal liability and reputational harm.
There is a risk that our employees, consultants or sub-contractors could engage in misconduct that adversely affects our business. We are subject to a number of obligations and standards arising from our business and our authority over the assets we manage. The violation of these obligations and standards by any of our employees, consultants or sub-contractors would adversely affect our clients and us. We may also be adversely affected if there is misconduct by senior management of portfolio companies in which we invest, even though we may be unable to control or mitigate such misconduct. Such misconduct may also negatively affect the valuation of the investments in such portfolio companies. Our current and former employees, consultants or sub-contractors and those of our portfolio companies may also become subject to allegations of sexual harassment, racial and gender discrimination or other similar misconduct, which, regardless of the ultimate outcome, may result in adverse publicity that could significantly harm our and such portfolio company's brand and reputation. Furthermore, our business often requires that we deal with confidential matters of great significance to companies in which we may invest. If our employees, consultants or sub-contractors were improperly to use or disclose confidential information, we could suffer serious harm to our reputation, financial position and current and future business relationships, as well as face potentially significant litigation or investigation. It is not always possible to detect or deter such misconduct, and the precautions we take may not be effective in all cases. If any of our employees, consultants or sub-contractors or the employees of portfolio companies were to engage in misconduct or were to be accused of such misconduct, our business and our reputation could be materially and adversely affected.
Underwriting, syndicating and securities placement activities expose us to risks.
KKR Capital Markets LLC and our other broker-dealer subsidiaries may act as an underwriter, syndicator or placement agent in securities offerings and, through affiliated entities, loan syndications. We may incur losses and be subject to reputational harm to the extent that, for any reason, we are unable to sell securities or indebtedness we purchased or placed as an underwriter, syndicator or placement agent at the anticipated price levels or at all. As an underwriter, syndicator or placement agent, we also may be subject to potential liability for material misstatements or omissions in prospectuses and other offering documents relating to offerings our broker-dealer subsidiaries underwrite, syndicate or place. In certain situations, our broker-dealer subsidiaries may have liabilities arising from transactions in which our investment fund may participate as a purchaser or a seller of securities, which could constitute a conflict of interest or subject us to damages or reputational harm. See "—Extensive regulation of our businesses affects our activities and creates the potential for significant liabilities and
penalties. The possibility of increased regulatory focus or legislative or regulatory changes could materially and adversely affect our business—Other Regulations of the Financial Markets."
We are subject to risks in using third-party service providers, including prime brokers, custodians, administrators and other agents.
Certain of our investment funds, finance vehicles and our principal trading activities depend on the services of third-party service providers, including prime brokers, custodians, escrow agents, placement agents, administrators and other agents, to carry out administrative or other services, including valuations, securities transactions, tax preparation, insurance policy administration and government filings. We are subject to risks of errors and mistakes made by these third parties, which may be attributed to us and subject us (including our insurance subsidiaries) or our fund investors to reputational damage, penalties or losses. We may be unsuccessful in seeking reimbursement or indemnification from these third-party service providers.
Furthermore, in the event of the insolvency of a prime broker and/or custodian, our funds may not be able to recover equivalent assets in full as they will rank among the prime broker's and custodian's unsecured creditors in relation to assets that the prime broker or custodian borrows, lends or otherwise uses. In addition, our and our funds' cash held with a prime broker or custodian may not be segregated from the prime broker's or custodian's own cash, and our funds therefore may rank as unsecured creditors in relation to that cash. The inability to recover assets from the prime broker or custodian could have a material adverse impact on the performance of our funds and our business, results of operations and financial condition. Counterparties have generally reacted to recent market volatility by tightening their underwriting standards and increasing their margin requirements for all categories of financing, which has the result of decreasing the overall amount of leverage available and increasing the costs of borrowing. Many of our funds have credit lines, and if a lender under one or more of these credit lines were to become insolvent, we may have difficulty replacing the credit line and one or more of our funds may face liquidity problems.
Default risk may arise from events or circumstances that are difficult to detect, foresee or evaluate. In addition, concerns about, or a default by, one large market participant could lead to significant liquidity problems for other market participants, which may in turn expose us to significant losses. We may not accurately anticipate the impact of market stress or counterparty financial condition, and as a result, we may not have taken sufficient action to reduce these risks effectively, which, if left unmitigated, could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
For discussions of the risks related to Global Atlantic's use third-party service providers, see "—Risks Related to Global Atlantic—Business Risks Related to Global Atlantic—Global Atlantic depends on the performance of its third-party service providers, including distribution partners and agents, and their failure to perform in a satisfactory manner could negatively affect Global Atlantic's business."
Risks Related to the Assets We Manage
As an investment manager, we sponsor and manage funds that make investments worldwide on behalf of third-party investors and, in connection with those activities, are required to deploy our own capital in those investments. The investments of these funds are subject to many risks and uncertainties which, to the extent they are material, are discussed below. In addition, we have investments on our balance sheet, which we manage for our own behalf. These risks, as they apply to our balance sheet investments, may have a greater impact on our results of operations and financial conditions as we directly bear the full risk of our balance sheet investments. As a result, the gains and losses on such assets are reflected in our net income and the risks set forth below relating to the assets that we manage will directly affect our operating performance.
The historical returns attributable to our funds, including those presented in this report, should not be considered as indicative of the future results of our funds, our insurance subsidiaries or our balance sheet investments, of our future results or the performance of our common stock.
We have presented in this report certain information relating to our investment returns, such as net and gross IRRs, multiples of invested capital and realized and unrealized investment values for funds that we have sponsored and managed. The historical and potential future returns of the funds that we manage are not directly linked to returns on KKR Group Partnership Units.
Moreover, historical returns of our funds may not be indicative of the future results that you should expect from our funds, our insurance subsidiaries or our balance sheet investments. In particular, the future results may differ significantly from their historical results for the following reasons, among others:
•the rates of returns of our funds reflect unrealized gains as of the applicable valuation date that may never be realized, which may adversely affect the ultimate value realized from those funds' investments;
•the historical returns that we present in this report derive largely from the performance of our earlier private equity funds, whereas future fund returns will depend increasingly on the performance of our newer funds in private equity and other strategies, which may have little or no investment track record, and in particular, you will not benefit from any value that was created in our funds prior to the KPE Transaction to the extent such value has been realized and we may be required to repay excess amounts previously received in respect of carried interest in our funds if, upon liquidation of the fund, we have received carried interest distributions in excess of the amount to which we were entitled;
•the future performance of our funds will be affected by macroeconomic factors, including negative factors arising from disruptions in the global financial markets or tensions in global trade, which may not have been prevalent in the periods relevant to the historical return data included in this report;
•in some historical periods, the rates of return of some of our funds have been positively influenced by a number of investments that experienced a substantial decrease in the average holding period of such investments and rapid and substantial increases in value following the dates on which those investments were made; those trends and rates of return may not be repeated in the future as the actual or expected length of holding periods related to investments is likely longer than such historical periods;
•our newly established funds may generate lower returns during the period that they take to deploy their capital;
•our funds' returns have benefited from investment opportunities and general market conditions in certain historical periods that may not repeat themselves, and there can be no assurance that our current or future funds will be able to avail themselves of comparable investment opportunities or market conditions; and
•we may create new funds and investment products in the future that reflect a different asset mix in terms of allocations among funds, investment strategies, geographic and industry exposure, vintage year and economic terms.
In addition, our historical rates of return reflect our historical cost structure, which has varied and may vary further in the future. Certain of our newer funds, for example, have lower fee structures and also have performance hurdles. Future returns will also be affected by the risks described elsewhere in this report, including risks of the industry sectors and businesses in which a particular fund invests and changes in laws. See "—Risks Related to Our Business—Difficult market and economic conditions can adversely affect our business in many ways, including by reducing the value or performance of the investments that we manage or by reducing the ability of our funds to raise or deploy capital, each of which could negatively impact our net income and cash flow and adversely affect our financial prospects and condition."
Valuation methodologies for certain assets in our funds, in our insurance subsidiaries and on our balance sheet can be subjective and the fair value of assets established pursuant to such methodologies may never be realized, which could result in significant losses for our funds and us.
There are no readily ascertainable market prices for a substantial majority of illiquid investments of our investment funds, our finance vehicles, insurance subsidiaries or other assets on our balance sheet. When determining fair values of investments, we use the last reported market price as of the statement of financial condition date for investments that have readily observable market prices. When an investment does not have a readily available market price, the fair value of the investment represents the value, as determined by us in good faith, at which the investment could be sold in an orderly disposition over a reasonable period of time between willing parties other than in a forced or liquidation sale. There is no single standard for determining fair value in good faith and in many cases fair value is best expressed as a range of fair values from which a single estimate may be derived. When making fair value determinations for our private equity investments, we typically use a market multiples approach that considers a specified financial measure (such as EBITDA) and/or a discounted cash flow analysis. Real asset investments in infrastructure, energy and real estate are valued using one or more of the discounted cash flow analysis, market comparables analysis and direct income capitalization, which in each case incorporates significant assumptions and judgments, and in certain cases, utilizes the services of independent valuation firms. Credit investments are valued using values obtained from dealers or market makers, and where these values are not available, credit investments are valued by us based on ranges of valuations determined by an independent valuation firm. For a majority of Global Atlantic's available-for-sale fixed maturity securities and other investments, the determination of fair value is based on valuation methodologies, securities Global Atlantic deems to be comparable and assumptions deemed appropriate based on market conditions specific to the security.
Each of these methodologies requires estimates of key inputs and significant assumptions and judgments. We also consider a range of additional factors that we deem relevant, including the applicability of a control premium or illiquidity discount, the presence of significant unconsolidated assets and liabilities, any favorable or unfavorable tax attributes, the method of likely exit, financial projections, estimates of assumed growth rates, terminal values, discount rates including risk free rates, capital structure, risk premiums, commodity prices and other factors, and determining these factors may involve a significant degree of our management's judgment and the judgment of management of our portfolio companies.
Because valuations, and in particular valuations of investments for which market quotations are not readily available, are inherently uncertain, may fluctuate over short periods of time and may be based on estimates, determinations of fair value may differ materially from the values that would have resulted if a ready market had existed. Even if market quotations are available for our investments, such quotations may not reflect the value that we would actually be able to realize because of various factors, including possible illiquidity associated with a large ownership position, subsequent illiquidity in the market for a company's securities, future market price volatility or the potential for a future loss in market value based on poor industry conditions or the market's view of overall company and management performance. Our stockholders' equity could be adversely affected if the values of investments that we record is materially higher than the values that are ultimately realized upon the disposal of the investments and changes in values attributed to investments from quarter to quarter may result in volatility in our AUM and such changes could materially affect the results of operations that we report from period to period. There can be no assurance that the investment values that we record from time to time will ultimately be realized and that we will be able to realize the investment values that are presented in this report.
Because there is significant uncertainty in the valuation of, or in the stability of the value of, illiquid investments, the fair values of investments reflected in an investment fund's or finance vehicle's net asset value ("NAV") do not necessarily reflect the prices that would actually be obtained by us on behalf of the fund or finance vehicle when such investments are realized. For example, there may be liabilities such as unknown or uncertain tax exposures with respect to investments, especially those outside the United States, which may not be fully reflected in valuations. Realizations at values significantly lower than the values at which investments have been reflected in prior fund NAVs would result in losses for the applicable fund and the loss of potential carried interest and other fees. Also, if realizations of our investments produce values materially different than the carrying values reflected in prior fund NAVs, fund investors may lose confidence in us, which could in turn result in difficulty in raising capital for future funds.
In addition, because we value our entire portfolio only on a quarterly basis, subsequent events that may have a material impact on those valuations may not be reflected until the next quarterly valuation date.
Our investments are impacted by various economic conditions and events outside of our control that are difficult to quantify or predict, which may have a significant impact on the valuation of our investments and, therefore, on the investment income we realize and our results of operations and financial condition.
Our investments are impacted by various economic conditions and events outside of our control that are difficult to quantify or predict, which may have a significant impact on the valuation of our investments and, therefore, on the investment income we realize and our results of operations and financial condition. For example:
•Global equity markets, which may be volatile, significantly impact the valuation of our portfolio companies and, therefore, the investment income that we recognize. Equity markets have experienced greater overall volatility following the emergence of COVID-19 in 2020, driven primarily by the impact of COVID-19 on the broader market and at times by opportunistic or coordinated trades targeting certain issuers. For our investments that are publicly listed and thus have readily observable market prices, global equity markets have a direct impact on valuation. For other investments, these markets have an indirect impact on valuation as we typically utilize market multiples (i.e., stock price of comparable companies divided by earnings or cash flow) as a critical input to ascertain fair value of our investments that do not have readily observable market prices. In addition, the valuation for any particular period may not be realized at the time of disposition. For example, because our private equity funds often hold very large amounts of the securities of their portfolio companies, the disposition of these securities often takes place over a long period of time, which can further expose us to volatility risk. In addition, the receptivity of equity markets to initial public offerings, as well as subsequent secondary equity offerings by companies already public, impacts our ability to realize investment gains. Unfavorable market conditions, market volatility and other factors may also adversely impact our strategic partnerships with third-party hedge fund managers by influencing the level or pace of subscriptions or redemptions from the funds managed by our partners.
•Changes in credit markets can also impact valuations and may have offsetting results depending on the valuation methodology used. For example, we typically use a discounted cash flow analysis as one of the methodologies to ascertain the fair value of our investments that do not have readily observable market prices. If applicable interest rates rise, then the assumed cost of capital for those portfolio companies would be expected to increase under the discounted cash flow analysis, and this effect would negatively impact their valuations if not offset by other factors. Rising U.S. interest rates may also negatively impact certain foreign currencies that depend on foreign capital flows. Conversely, a fall in interest rates can positively impact valuations of certain portfolio companies if not offset by other factors. These impacts could be substantial depending upon the magnitude of the change in interest rates. In certain cases, the valuations obtained from the discounted cash flow analysis and the other primary methodology we use, the market multiples approach, may yield different and offsetting results. For example, the positive impact of falling interest rates on discounted cash flow valuations may offset the negative impact of the market multiples valuation approach and may result in less of a decline in value than for those investments that had a readily observable market price. Any adverse change to the cost of borrowing resulting from the LIBOR transition could also negatively impact the valuations of our investments and could result in us receiving lower interest income for our credit funds. Finally, low interest rates related to monetary stimulus and economic stagnation may also negatively impact expected returns on all investments, as the demand for relatively higher return assets increases and supply decreases.
•Foreign exchange rates can materially impact the valuations of our investments that are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. For example, U.S. dollar appreciation relative to other currencies is likely to cause a decrease in the dollar value of non-U.S. investments to the extent unhedged.
•Conditions in commodity markets impact the performance of our portfolio companies and other investments in a variety of ways, including through the direct or indirect impact on the cost of the inputs used in their operations as well as the pricing and profitability of the products or services that they sell. The price of commodities has historically been subject to substantial volatility, which among other things, could be driven by economic, monetary, political or weather related factors. If the operating partners for certain of our real asset funds or our portfolio companies are unable to raise prices to offset increases in the cost of raw materials or other inputs, or if consumers defer purchases of or seek substitutes for the products of our funds or such portfolio companies, our funds or such portfolio companies could experience lower operating income which may in turn reduce the valuation of such funds' investments or those portfolio companies. The value of energy investments generally increase or decrease with the increase or decrease, respectively, of energy commodity prices and in particular with long-term forecasts for such energy commodity prices. Given our investments in oil and gas companies and assets, the value of this portfolio and the investment income we realize is sensitive to oil and gas prices. The volatility of commodity prices also makes it difficult to predict commodity price movements. Apart from our energy investments, a number of our other investments may be dependent to varying degrees on the energy sector through, for example, the provision of equipment and services used in energy exploration and production. These companies may benefit from an increase or suffer from a decline in commodity prices.
•Political developments, natural disasters, war or threat of war, terrorist attacks, epidemic, pandemic or other public health crises and other events outside of our control can, and periodically do, materially and adversely impact our portfolio companies and other investments around the world. Our investment strategies target opportunities globally, across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. Political instability and extremism, civil unrest and anti-government protests in any region where we have material business operations or investments can, and periodically does, have an adverse impact on our and our portfolio companies’ business results, reputation or license to operate. In addition, occurrence of war or hostilities involving a country in which we have investments or where our portfolio companies operate could adversely affect the operations and valuations of our portfolio companies and investments in such country. Natural disasters, such as extreme weather events, climate change, earthquakes, tsunamis or floods, can also have an adverse impact on certain of our portfolio companies and investments, especially our real asset investments and portfolio companies that rely on physical factories, plants or stores located in the affected areas. As the effects of climate change increase, we expect the frequency and impact of weather and climate related events and conditions to increase as well. For example, unseasonal or violent weather events can have a material impact to businesses or properties that focus on tourism or recreational travel. Public health crises, pandemics and epidemics, such as those caused by new strains of viruses such as H5N1 (avian flu), severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and, most recently, COVID-19, are also expected to increase as international travel continues to rise, and also directly and indirectly impact us and our portfolio companies in material respects by threatening our and their employees' well-being and morale, interrupting business activities, supply chains and transactional activities, disrupting travel, and negatively impacting the economies of the affected countries or regions.
Changes in these factors can have a significant effect on the results of the valuation methodologies used to value our portfolio, and our reported fair values for these assets could vary materially if these factors from prior quarters were to change significantly. See "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Business Environment."
Global and regional economic conditions have a substantial impact on the value of investments. See "—Risks Related to Our Business—Difficult market and economic conditions can adversely affect our business in many ways, including by reducing the value or performance of the investments that we manage or by reducing the ability of our funds to raise or deploy capital, each of which could negatively impact our net income and cash flow and adversely affect our financial prospects and condition" and "—Risks Related to Our Business–COVID-19 continues to impact the United States and other countries throughout the world, and it has caused and may further cause disruptions to our business and adversely affect our financial results."
Dependence on significant leverage in investments by our funds and our balance sheet assets could adversely affect our ability to achieve attractive rates of return on those investments.
Because many of our funds' investments and our balance sheet investments often rely heavily on the use of leverage, our ability to achieve attractive rates of return will depend on our continued ability to access sufficient sources of indebtedness at attractive rates. For example, our credit funds use varying degrees of leverage when making investments. Similarly, in many private equity investments, indebtedness may constitute 70% or more of a portfolio company's total debt and equity capitalization, including debt that may be incurred in connection with the investment, and a portfolio company's indebtedness may also increase in recapitalization transactions subsequent to the company's acquisition. The absence of available sources of sufficient debt financing for extended periods of time could therefore materially and adversely affect our funds and our portfolio companies. U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies and the European Central Bank have issued leveraged lending guidance covering transactions characterized by a degree of financial leverage. Such guidance may limit the amount or availability of debt financing and may increase the cost of financing we are able to obtain for our transactions and may cause the returns on our investments to suffer. See "—Risks Related to Our Business—Extensive regulation of our businesses affects our activities and creates the potential for significant liabilities and penalties. The possibility of increased regulatory focus or legislative or regulatory changes could materially and adversely affect our business."
An increase in either the general levels of interest rates or in the risk spread demanded by sources of indebtedness such as we experienced during the global financial crisis in 2008 and 2009 would make it more expensive to finance those investments. In addition, increases in interest rates could decrease the value of fixed-rate debt investments that our balance sheet assets, finance vehicles or our funds make. Increases in interest rates could also make it more difficult to locate and consummate private equity and other investments because other potential buyers, including operating companies acting as strategic buyers, may be able to bid for an asset at a higher price due to a lower overall cost of capital or their ability to benefit from a higher amount of cost savings following the acquisition of the asset. In addition, a portion of the indebtedness used to finance private equity investments often includes high-yield debt securities issued in the capital markets. Capital markets are volatile, and there may be times when we might not be able to access those markets at attractive rates, or at all, when completing an investment.
Investments in highly leveraged entities are also inherently more sensitive to declines in revenues, increases in expenses and interest rates and adverse economic, market and industry developments. The incurrence of a significant amount of indebtedness by an entity could, among other things:
•subject the entity to a number of restrictive covenants, terms and conditions, any violation of which would be viewed by creditors as an event of default and could materially impact our ability to realize value from our investment;
•allow even moderate reductions in operating cash flow to render it unable to service its indebtedness;
•give rise to an obligation to make mandatory prepayments of debt using excess cash flow, which might limit the entity's ability to respond to changing industry conditions to the extent additional cash is needed for the response, to make unplanned but necessary capital expenditures or to take advantage of growth opportunities;
•limit the entity's ability to adjust to changing market conditions, thereby placing it at a competitive disadvantage compared to its competitors who have relatively less debt;
•limit the entity's ability to engage in strategic acquisitions that might be necessary to generate attractive returns or further growth; and
•limit the entity's ability to obtain additional financing or increase the cost of obtaining such financing, including for capital expenditures, working capital or other general corporate purposes.
A leveraged company's income and equity also tend to increase or decrease at a greater rate than would otherwise be the case if money had not been borrowed. As a result, the risk of loss associated with a leveraged company is generally greater than for comparable companies with comparatively less debt. For example, leveraged companies could default on their debt obligations due to a decrease in revenues and cash flow precipitated by an economic downturn or by poor relative performance at such a company. Similarly, the leveraged nature of some of our investments in real assets increases the risk that a decline in the fair value of the underlying real asset will result in their abandonment or foreclosure. For example, if the property-level debt on a particular investment has reached its maturity and the underlying asset value has declined below its debt-level, we may, in absence of cooperation by the lender in regards to a partial debt-write-off, be forced to put the investment into liquidation. In addition, the 2017 Tax Act partially limits the tax deductibility of interest, which could have a material adverse effect on our funds' investment activities and on operations of a leveraged company.
When our existing portfolio investments reach the point when debt incurred to finance those investments matures in significant amounts and must be either repaid or refinanced, those investments may materially suffer if they have generated insufficient cash flow to repay maturing debt and there is insufficient capacity and availability in the financing markets to permit them to refinance maturing debt on satisfactory terms, or at all. If the financing for such purposes were to be unavailable or uneconomic when significant amounts of the debt incurred to finance our existing portfolio investments start to come due, these investments could be materially and adversely affected. In the event of default or potential default under applicable financing arrangements, one or more of our portfolio companies may go bankrupt, which could give rise to substantial investment losses, adverse claims or litigation against us or our employees and damage to our reputation.
Among the sectors particularly challenged by downturns in the global credit markets (such as the global financial crisis in 2008 and 2009) are the CLO and leveraged finance markets. We have significant exposure to these markets through our CLO subsidiaries, which we principally acquired in the acquisitions of KFN and Avoca. As of December 31, 2020, we indirectly hold below investment grade corporate loans and securities with a $17.7 billion estimated fair market value through our CLO subsidiaries. Each of these subsidiaries is a special purpose company that issued to us and other investors notes secured by a pool of collateral consisting primarily of corporate leveraged loans. In most cases, our CLO holdings are deeply subordinated, representing the CLO subsidiary's substantial leverage, which increases both the opportunity for higher returns as well as the magnitude of losses when compared to holders or investors that rank more senior to us in right of payment. These loans and bonds also generally involve a higher degree of risk than investment grade rated debt, including the risks described in the paragraphs above. Our CLO subsidiaries have historically experienced an increase in downgrades, depreciations in market value and defaults in respect of leveraged loans in their collateral during downturns in credit markets. The CLOs' portfolio profile tests set limits on the amount of discounted obligations a CLO can hold. During any time that a CLO issuer exceeds such a limit, the ability of the CLO's manager to sell assets and reinvest available principal proceeds into substitute assets is restricted. In such circumstances, CLOs may fail certain over-collateralization tests, which would cause diversions of cash flows away from us as holders of the more junior CLO, which may impact our cash flows. The ability of the CLOs to make interest payments to the holders of the senior notes of those structures is highly dependent upon the performance of the CLO collateral. If the collateral in those structures were to experience a significant decrease in cash flow due to an increased default level, payment of all principal and interest outstanding may be accelerated as a result of an event of default or by holders of the senior notes. There can be no assurance that market conditions giving rise to these types of consequences will not occur, re-occur, subsist or become more acute in the future. Because our CLO structures involve complex collateral and other arrangements, the documentation for such structures is complex, is subject to differing interpretations and involves legal risk. These CLOs have served as long-term, non-recourse financing for debt investments and as a way to reduce refinancing risk, reduce maturity risk and secure a fixed cost of funds over an underlying market interest rate. An inability to continue to utilize CLOs or other similar financing vehicles successfully could limit our ability to fund future investments, grow our business or fully execute our business strategy and our results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.
Our CLO subsidiaries regularly use significant leverage to finance their assets. An inability of such subsidiaries to continue to raise or utilize leverage, to refinance or extend the maturities of their outstanding indebtedness or to maintain adequate levels of collateral under the terms of their CLOs could limit their ability to grow their business, reinvest principal cash, distribute cash to us or fully execute their business strategy, and our results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. If these subsidiaries are unable to maintain their operating results and access to capital resources, they could face substantial liquidity problems and might be required to dispose of material assets or operations to meet debt service and other obligations. These CLO strategies and the value of the assets of such CLO subsidiaries are also sensitive to changes in interest rates because these strategies rely on borrowed money and because the value of the underlying portfolio loans can fall when interest rates rise. If interest rates on CLO borrowings increase and the interest rates on the portfolio loans do not also increase, the CLO
strategy is unlikely to achieve its projected returns. Also, if interest rates increase in the future, our CLO portfolio will likely experience a reduction in value because it would hold assets receiving below market rates of interest.
Our credit-oriented funds and CLOs may choose to use leverage as part of their respective investment programs and regularly borrow a substantial amount of their capital. The use of leverage poses a significant degree of risk and enhances the possibility of a significant loss in the value of the investment portfolio. A fund may borrow money from time to time to purchase or carry securities or debt obligations or may enter into derivative transactions (such as total return swaps) with counterparties that have embedded leverage. The interest expense and other costs incurred in connection with such borrowing may not be recovered by appreciation in the securities or debt obligations purchased or carried and will be lost—and the timing and magnitude of such losses may be accelerated or exacerbated—in the event of a decline in the market value of such securities or debt obligations. Gains realized with borrowed funds may cause the fund's NAV to increase at a faster rate than would be the case without borrowings. However, if investment results fail to cover the cost of borrowings, the fund's NAV could also decrease faster than if there had been no borrowings.
Any of the foregoing circumstances could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition and cash flow.
The due diligence process that we undertake in connection with our investments may not reveal all facts that may be relevant in connection with an investment.
Before making our investments, we conduct due diligence that we deem reasonable and appropriate based on the facts and circumstances applicable to each investment. The objective of the due diligence process is to identify attractive investment opportunities based on the facts and circumstances surrounding an investment, to identify possible risks associated with that investment and, in the case of private equity investments, to prepare a framework that may be used from the date of an acquisition to drive operational achievement and value creation. When conducting due diligence, we typically evaluate a number of important business, financial, tax, accounting, ESG, technological, cyber-security, regulatory and legal issues in determining whether or not to proceed with an investment. Outside consultants, legal advisors, accountants and investment banks are involved in the due diligence process in varying degrees depending on the type of investment. Nevertheless, when conducting due diligence and making an assessment regarding an investment, we rely on resources available to us, including information provided by the target of the investment and, in some circumstances, third-party investigations. The due diligence process may at times be subjective with respect to newly organized companies or carve-out transactions for which only limited information is available.
Instances of bribery, fraud, accounting irregularities and other improper, illegal or corrupt practices can be difficult to detect, and fraud and other deceptive practices can be widespread in certain jurisdictions. Several of our funds invest in emerging market countries that may not have established laws and regulations that are as stringent as in more developed nations, or where existing laws and regulations may not be consistently enforced. For example, our funds invest throughout jurisdictions that have material perceptions of corruption according to international rating standards (such as Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index) such as China, India, Indonesia, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa. Due diligence on investment opportunities in these jurisdictions is frequently more complicated because consistent and uniform commercial practices in such locations may not have developed. Bribery, fraud, accounting irregularities and corrupt practices can be especially difficult to detect in such locations.
The due diligence conducted for certain of our credit strategies, as well as certain private equity and real asset investments, is limited to publicly available information. Accordingly, we cannot be certain that the due diligence investigation that we will carry out with respect to any investment opportunity will reveal or highlight all relevant facts (including fraud, bribery and other illegal activities and contingent liabilities) that may be necessary or helpful in evaluating such investment opportunity, including the existence of contingent liabilities. We also cannot be certain that our due diligence investigations will result in investments being successful or that the actual financial performance of an investment will not fall short of the financial projections we used when evaluating that investment.
Our investment management activities involve investments in relatively high-risk, illiquid assets, and we may fail to realize any profits from these activities for a considerable period of time or lose some or all of the capital invested.
Many of our funds and our balance sheet may hold investments in securities that are not publicly traded. In many cases, our funds or we may be prohibited by contract or by applicable securities laws from selling such securities at many points in time. Our funds or we will generally not be able to sell these securities publicly unless their sale is registered under applicable securities laws, or unless an exemption from such registration is available, and then only at such times when we do not possess material nonpublic information. The ability of many of our funds or us to dispose of investments is heavily dependent on the
capital markets and in particular the public equity markets. For example, the ability to realize any value from an investment may depend upon the ability to complete an initial public offering of the portfolio company in which such investment is made. Even if the securities are publicly traded, large holdings of securities can often be disposed of only over a substantial length of time, exposing our investment returns to risks of downward movement in market prices during the intended disposition period. Moreover, because the investment strategy of many of our funds, particularly our private equity funds, often entails having representation on our funds' public portfolio company boards, our funds may be restricted in their ability to effect such sales during certain time periods. In addition, market conditions and regulatory environment can also delay our funds' ability to exit and realize value from their investments. For example, rising interest rates and challenging credit markets may make it difficult for potential buyers to raise sufficient capital to purchase our funds' investments. Government policies regarding certain regulations, such as antitrust law, or restrictions on foreign investment in certain of our funds' portfolio companies or assets can also limit our funds' exit opportunities. For example, under FIRRMA, CFIUS has the authority to review and potentially block or impose conditions on certain foreign investments in U.S. companies or real estate, which may reduce the number of potential buyers and limit the ability of our funds to exit from certain investments. As many of our funds have a finite term, we could also be forced to dispose of investments sooner than otherwise desirable. Accordingly, under certain conditions, our funds may be forced to either sell their investments at lower prices than they had expected to realize or defer sales that they had planned to make, potentially for a considerable period of time. Moreover, we may determine that we may be required to sell our balance sheet assets alongside our funds' investments at such times. We have made and expect to continue to make significant capital investments in our current and future funds and other strategies. Contributing capital to these funds is risky, and we may lose some or all of the principal amount of our investments.
Our investments are subject to a number of inherent risks.
Our results are highly dependent on our continued ability to generate attractive returns from our investments. Investments made by our private equity, credit or other investments in companies involve a number of significant risks inherent to private equity, credit and other investment in companies, including the following:
•companies in which investments are made may have limited financial resources and may be unable to meet their obligations under their securities, which may be accompanied by a deterioration in the value of their equity securities or any collateral or guarantees provided with respect to their debt;
•companies in which investments are made are more likely to depend on the management talents and efforts of a small group of persons and, as a result, the death, disability, resignation or termination of one or more of those persons could have a material adverse impact on their business and prospects;
•companies in which private equity investments are made may be businesses or divisions acquired from larger operating entities that may require a rebuilding or replacement of financial reporting, information technology, operational and other functions;
•companies in which investments are made may from time to time be parties to litigation, may be engaged in rapidly changing businesses with products subject to a substantial risk of obsolescence and may require substantial additional capital to support their operations, finance expansion or maintain their competitive position;
•instances of bribery, fraud and other deceptive practices committed by senior management of portfolio companies in which our funds or we invest may undermine our due diligence efforts with respect to such companies, and if such bribery, fraud or other deceptive practices are discovered, negatively affect the valuation of a fund's investments as well as contribute to overall market volatility that can negatively impact a fund's or our investment program;
•our funds may make investments that they do not advantageously dispose of prior to the date the applicable fund is dissolved, either by expiration of such fund's term or otherwise, resulting in a lower than expected return on the investments and, potentially, on the fund itself;
•our portfolio companies generally have capital structures established on the basis of financial projections based primarily on management's judgments and assumptions, and general economic conditions and other factors may cause actual performance to fall short of these financial projections, which could cause a substantial decrease in the value of our equity holdings in the portfolio company and cause our funds' or our performance to fall short of our expectations;
•executive officers, directors and employees of an equity sponsor may be named as defendants in litigation involving a company in which an investment is made or is being made, and we or our funds may indemnify such executive officers, directors or employees for liability relating to such litigation;
•we advise funds that invest in businesses that operate in a variety of industries that are subject to extensive domestic and foreign regulation (including companies that supply services to governmental agencies), such as the telecommunications industry, the defense and government services industry, the healthcare industry, oil and gas industry, the waste management industry and the food industry, which may involve greater risk due to rapidly changing market and governmental conditions in those sectors;
•our transactions involve complex tax structuring that could be challenged or disregarded, which may result in losing treaty benefits or would otherwise adversely impact our investments; and
•significant failures of our portfolio companies to comply with laws and regulations applicable to them could affect the ability of our funds or us to invest in other companies in certain industries in the future and could harm our reputation.
For additional risks that rise from the types of investment vehicles used in an investment, see "—Risks Related to Our Business—Certain types of investment vehicles may subject us to additional risk of litigation and regulatory scrutiny."
Our investments in real assets such as real estate, infrastructure and energy may expose us to increased risks and liabilities and may expose our stockholders to adverse consequences.
Investments in real assets, which may include real estate, infrastructure, oil and gas properties and other energy assets, may expose us to increased risks and liabilities that are inherent in the ownership of real assets in addition to the kinds of risks and liabilities described above or investments in companies. For example:
•Ownership of real assets in our funds or vehicles may increase our risk of liability under environmental laws that impose, regardless of fault, joint and several liability for the cost of remediating contamination and compensation for damages. In addition, changes in environmental laws or regulations or the environmental condition of an investment may create liabilities that did not exist at the time of acquisition that would not have been foreseen. Even in cases where we are indemnified by a seller with respect to an investment against liabilities arising out of violations of environmental laws and regulations, there can be no assurance as to the financial viability of the seller to satisfy such indemnities or our ability to achieve enforcement of such indemnities;
•Ownership of real assets may also present additional risk of liability for personal and property injury or impose significant operating challenges and costs, for example with respect to compliance with zoning, environmental or other applicable laws;
•Real asset investments may face construction risks, including without limitation: (i) labor disputes, shortages of material and skilled labor, or work stoppages; (ii) slower than projected construction progress and the unavailability or late delivery of necessary equipment; (iii) less than optimal coordination with public utilities in the relocation of their facilities; (iv) adverse weather conditions and unexpected construction conditions; (v) accidents or the breakdown or failure of construction equipment or processes; (vi) catastrophic events such as explosions, fires and terrorist activities, and other similar events and (vii) risks associated with holding direct or indirect interests in undeveloped land or underdeveloped real property. These risks could result in substantial unanticipated delays or expenses (which may exceed expected or forecasted budgets) and, under certain circumstances, could prevent completion of construction activities once undertaken. Certain real asset investments may remain in construction phases for a prolonged period and, accordingly, may not be cash generative for a prolonged period. Recourse against the contractor may be subject to liability caps or may be subject to default or insolvency on the part of the contractor;
•The operation of real assets is exposed to potential unplanned interruptions caused by significant catastrophic or force majeure events. These risks could, among other effects, adversely impact the cash flows available from investments in real assets, cause personal injury or loss of life, damage property, or instigate disruptions of service. In addition, the cost of repairing or replacing damaged assets could be considerable. Repeated or prolonged service interruptions may result in permanent loss of customers, litigation, or penalties for regulatory or contractual non-compliance. Force majeure events that are incapable of, or too costly to, cure may also have a permanent adverse effect on an investment;
•The management of the business or operations of a real asset may be contracted to a third-party management company unaffiliated with us. Although it would be possible to replace any such operator, the failure of such an operator to adequately perform its duties or to act in ways that are in the best interest of the investment, or the breach by an operator of applicable agreements or laws, rules and regulations, including instances of bribery, fraud or other deceptive practices, could have an adverse effect on the investment's results of operations and financial condition. Real asset investments may involve the subcontracting of design and construction activities in respect of projects, and as a
result our investments are subject to the risk that contractual provisions passing liabilities to a subcontractor could be ineffective, the subcontractor fails to perform services that it has agreed to provide and, in cases where a single subcontractor provides services to various investments, the subcontractor becomes insolvent;
•Technology advances may decrease the value of our current investments; and
•Certain investments are susceptible to risks of defaults under, or cancellation of contracts with, third parties.
Without limiting the foregoing risks, we note that investments that we have made and will continue to make in the oil and gas industries may present specific environmental, safety and other inherent risks. Such investments are subject to stringent and complex foreign, federal, state and local laws, ordinances and regulations specific to oil and gas industries, including, for example, those governing transportation, exploration and production of oil and natural gas. There are also various conservation laws and regulations applicable to oil and natural gas production and related operations, in addition to regulations governing occupational health and safety, the discharge of materials into the environment and other practices relating to environmental protection. Failure to comply with applicable laws, ordinances and regulations may result in the assessment of administrative, civil and criminal penalties, the imposition of remedial obligations and the issuance of orders enjoining some or all of our operations in affected areas. These laws, ordinances and regulations may also restrict the rate of oil and natural gas production below the rate that would otherwise be possible and increase the cost of production, thereby reducing profitability. Our oil and gas investments are subject to other risks, such as:
•Volatility in the prices of oil and gas properties may make it difficult to ensure that our acquisition of interest in such properties is at appropriate prices;
•Currently unforeseen environmental incidents may occur or past non-compliance with environmental laws or regulations may be discovered making it difficult to predict the future costs or impact of compliance;
•The oil and gas industries present inherent risk of personal and property injury, for which we may not be fully insured or indemnified;
•There may be unforeseen or increased regulatory and environmental risks stemming from the use of new technologies, including hydraulic fracturing;
•Our estimated oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids reserve quantities and future production rates are based on many assumptions that may prove to be inaccurate. Any material inaccuracies in these reserve estimates or the underlying assumptions will materially affect the quantities and value of our reserves;
•The performance of our energy investments depend on the skill, ability and decisions of third-party operators. The success of our investment will depend on their exploitation, development, construction and drilling activities and the timing and cost of drilling, completing and operating wells. Failure of such operators to comply with applicable laws, rules and regulations could result in liabilities to us, reduce the value of our interest in the oil and natural gas properties, and materially and adversely affect our cash flows and results of operations; and
•If commodity prices decline and remain depressed for a prolonged period, a significant portion of our development projects may become uneconomic and cause write-downs of the value of our oil and gas properties, which may reduce the value of our energy investments, have a negative impact on our ability to use these investments as collateral or otherwise have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.
Investments in real estate are subject to the risks inherent in the ownership and operation of real estate and real estate-related businesses and assets. These risks include those associated with the burdens of ownership of real property; general and local economic conditions; changes in supply of and demand for competing properties in an area (as a result, for instance, of overbuilding); fluctuations in the average occupancy (including as a result of social distancing requirement and remote working environment during the COVID-19 pandemic); the financial resources of tenants; changes in building, environmental and other laws; energy and supply shortages; various uninsured or uninsurable risks; natural disasters; changes in government regulations (such as rent control); changes in real property tax rates; changes in interest rates; the reduced availability of mortgage funds that may render the sale or refinancing of properties difficult or impracticable; negative developments in the economy that depress travel activity; environmental liabilities; contingent liabilities on disposition of assets; and terrorist attacks, war and other factors that are beyond our control. Our real estate investments are also subject to additional risks, including but not limited to the following:
•The success of certain investments will depend on the ability to restructure and effect improvements in the operations of the applicable properties, and there is no assurance that we will be successful in identifying or implementing such restructuring programs and improvements.
•If we acquire direct or indirect interests in undeveloped land or underdeveloped real property, which may often be non-income producing, they will be subject to the risks normally associated with such assets and development activities, including risks relating to the availability and timely receipt of zoning and other regulatory or environmental approvals, the cost and timely completion of construction (including risks beyond the control of us or our fund, such as weather or labor conditions or material shortages) and the availability of both construction and permanent financing on favorable terms.
•The strategy of our real estate funds may be based, in part, on the availability for purchase of assets at favorable prices followed by the continuation or improvement of market conditions or on the availability of refinancing. No assurance can be given that the real estate businesses or assets can be acquired or disposed of at favorable prices or that refinancing will be available.
•Lenders in commercial real estate financing customarily will require a "bad boy" guarantee, which typically provides that the lender can recover losses from the guarantors for certain bad acts, such as fraud or intentional misrepresentation, intentional waste, willful misconduct, criminal acts, misappropriation of funds, voluntary incurrence of prohibited debt and environmental losses sustained by lender. For our acquisitions, "bad boy" guarantees would generally be extended by our funds, our balance sheet or a combination of both depending on the ownership of the relevant asset. In addition, "bad boy" guarantees typically provide that the loan will be a full personal recourse obligation of the guarantor, for certain actions, such as prohibited transfers of the collateral or changes of control and voluntary bankruptcy of the borrower. It is expected that commercial real estate financing arrangements generally will require "bad boy" guarantees and in the event that such a guarantee is called, a fund's or our assets could be materially and adversely affected. Moreover, "bad boy" guarantees could apply to actions of the joint venture partners associated with the investments, and in certain cases the acts of such joint venture partner could result in liability to our funds or us under such guarantees.
•The acquisition, ownership and disposition of real properties carry certain specific litigation risks. Litigation may be commenced with respect to a property acquired in relation to activities that took place prior to the acquisition of such property. In addition, at the time of disposition, other potential buyers may bring claims related to the asset or for due diligence expenses or other damages. After the sale of a real estate asset, buyers may later sue our funds or us for losses associated with latent defects or other problems not uncovered in due diligence.
•Our funds or we may be subject to certain risks associated with investments in particular assets. REITs may be affected by changes in the value of their underlying properties and by defaults by borrowers or tenants. REITs depend on their ability to generate cash flow to make distributions and may be impacted by changes in tax laws or by a failure to qualify for tax-free pass through income. Investments in real estate debt investments may be unsecured and subordinated to a substantial amount of indebtedness. Such debt investments may not be protected by financial covenants. Non-performing real estate loans may require a substantial amount of workout negotiations and/or restructuring, which may entail, among other things, a substantial reduction in the interest rate and a substantial write-down of the principal of such loan. Investments in commercial mortgage loans are subject to risks of delinquency, foreclosure and loss of principal. In the event of any default under a mortgage loan held directly by our fund or us, our fund or we will bear a risk of loss of principal to the extent of any deficiency between the value of the collateral and the principal and accrued interest of the loan. Investments in assets or businesses that are distressed may have little or no near-term cash flow and involve a high degree of risk. Such investments subject to bankruptcy or insolvency could be subordinated or disallowed.
Infrastructure investments often involve an ongoing commitment to a municipal, state, federal or foreign government or regulatory agencies. The nature of these obligations exposes the owners of infrastructure investments to a higher level of regulatory control than typically imposed on other businesses. They may also rely on complex government licenses, concessions, leases or contracts, which may be difficult to obtain or maintain. Infrastructure investments may require operators to manage such investments, and such operators' failure to comply with laws, including prohibitions against bribing of government officials, may materially and adversely affect the value of such investments and cause us serious reputational and legal harm. Revenues for such investments may rely on contractual agreements for the provision of services with a limited number of counterparties, and are consequently subject to heightened counterparty default risk. The operations and cash flow of infrastructure investments are also more sensitive to inflation and, in certain cases, commodity price risk. Furthermore, services provided by infrastructure investments may be subject to rate regulations by government entities that determine or limit prices
that may be charged. Similarly, users of applicable services, or government entities in response to such users, may react negatively to any adjustments in rates, which may reduce the profitability of such infrastructure investments.
Our growth equity strategy invests in emerging and less established companies that are heavily dependent on new technologies.
Our growth equity funds may make investments in companies that are in a conceptual or early stage of development. These companies are often characterized by short operating histories, new technologies and products, quickly evolving markets, management teams that may have limited experience working together and in many cases, negative cash flow, all of which enhance the difficulty of evaluating these investment opportunities and the ultimate success of such investments. Other substantial operational risks to which such companies are subject include: uncertain market acceptance of the company's products or services; a high degree of regulatory risk for new or untried or untested business models, products and services; high levels of competition among similarly situated companies; new competing products and technology; lower barriers to entry and downward pricing pressure; lower capitalizations and fewer financial resources; the potential for rapid organizational or strategic change; and susceptibility to personal misconduct by or departure of key executives or founders. In addition, growth equity companies may be more susceptible to macroeconomic effects and industry downturns, and their valuations may be more volatile depending on the achievement of milestones, such as receiving a governmental license or approval.
Failure to protect our intellectual property rights adequately may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or our ability to compete.
Growth equity companies generally depend heavily on intellectual property rights, including patents, trademarks and proprietary products or processes. The ability to effectively enforce patent, trademark and other intellectual property laws in a cost-effective manner will affect the value of many of these companies. The presence of patents or other intellectual property rights belonging to other parties may lead to the termination of the research and development of a portfolio company's particular product. In addition, if a portfolio company infringes on third-party patents or other intellectual property rights, it could be prevented from using certain third-party technologies or forced to acquire licenses in order to obtain access to such technologies at a high cost.
Although KKR and Global Atlantic use a broad range of measures to protect its intellectual property rights, third parties may infringe or misappropriate KKR's or Global Atlantic's intellectual property, and KKR and Global Atlantic cannot provide any assurances that these protections will be adequate to prevent competitors from copying or reverse-engineering KKR's or Global Atlantic's services or independently developing and marketing services that are substantially equivalent to or superior to KKR's or Global Atlantic's. Moreover, third parties may be able to successfully challenge, oppose, invalidate, render unenforceable, dilute, misappropriate or circumvent KKR's and Global Atlantic's trademarks, copyrights, patent and other intellectual property rights.
KKR and Global Atlantic may fail to maintain or be unable to obtain adequate protections for certain of their respective intellectual property in the U.S. or certain foreign countries. Further, KKR’s and Global Atlantic's intellectual property rights may not receive the same degree of protection in foreign countries as they would in the United States because of the differences in foreign trademark, copyright, patent and other laws concerning proprietary rights. Such failure or inability to obtain or maintain adequate protection of KKR’s and Global Atlantic's intellectual property rights for any reason could have a material adverse effect on KKR’s and Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition. Monitoring and protecting intellectual property rights can be challenging and costly. From time to time, KKR and Global Atlantic may be required to initiate litigation or other action to enforce its intellectual property rights or to establish their validity and enforceability. Such action could result in substantial cost and diversion of resources and management attention, and KKR and Global Atlantic cannot provide any assurances that any such action will be successful.
Certain of our funds and CLOs, and our firm through our balance sheet, hold high-yield, below investment grade or unrated debt, or securities of companies that are experiencing significant financial or business difficulties, which generally entail greater risk, and if those risks are realized, it could materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition and cash flow.
Certain of our funds and CLOs, and our firm through our balance sheet, invest in high-yield, below investment grade or unrated debt, including corporate loans and bonds, each of which generally involves a higher degree of risk than investment grade rated debt, and may be less liquid. Issuers of high yield, below investment grade or unrated debt may be highly leveraged, and their relatively high debt-to-equity ratios create increased risks that their operations might not generate sufficient cash flow to service their debt obligations. As a result, high yield, below investment grade or unrated debt is often less liquid than investment grade rated debt. Also, investments may be made in loans and other forms of debt that are not marketable securities
and therefore are not liquid. In the absence of appropriate hedging measures, changes in interest rates generally will also cause the value of fixed rate debt investments to vary inversely to such changes. The obligor of a debt security or instrument may not be able or willing to pay interest or to repay principal when due in accordance with the terms of the associated agreement and collateral may not be available or sufficient to cover such liabilities. Commercial bank lenders and other creditors may be able to contest payments to the holders of other debt obligations of the same obligor in the event of default under their commercial bank loan agreements. Sub-participation interests in syndicated debt may be subject to certain additional risks as a result of having no direct contractual relationship with underlying borrowers. Debt securities and instruments may be rated below investment grade by recognized rating agencies or unrated and face ongoing uncertainties and exposure to adverse business, financial or economic conditions and the issuer's failure to make timely interest and principal payments.
Certain of our investment funds, especially in our special situations strategy, and our firm through our balance sheet may hold interests in business enterprises involved in work-outs, liquidations, reorganizations, bankruptcies and similar transactions and may purchase high-risk receivables. An investment in such business enterprises entails the risk that the transaction in which such business enterprise is involved either will be unsuccessful, will take considerable time or will result in a distribution of cash or a new security the value of which will be less than the purchase price to the fund of the security or other financial instrument in respect of which such distribution is received. In addition, if an anticipated transaction does not in fact occur, we or the fund may be required to sell the investment at a loss. Investments in troubled companies may also be adversely affected by U.S. federal and state and non-U.S. laws relating to, among other things, fraudulent conveyances, voidable preferences, lender liability and a bankruptcy court's discretionary power to disallow, subordinate or disenfranchise particular claims. Investments in securities and private claims of troubled companies made in connection with an attempt to influence a restructuring proposal or plan of reorganization in a bankruptcy case may also involve substantial litigation, which has the potential to adversely impact us or unrelated funds or portfolio companies. Companies that were not in financial distress at the time we or our funds made investments may in the future require work-outs, liquidations, reorganizations, bankruptcies or similar transactions, and as a result, become subject to the same risks described above. Because there is substantial uncertainty concerning the outcome of transactions involving financially troubled companies, there is a potential risk of loss of the entire investment in such company. Such investments involve a substantial degree of risk, and a decline in value of the assets would have a material adverse effect on our financial performance.
We often pursue investment opportunities that involve business, regulatory, legal or other complexities.
As an element of our investment style, we often pursue complex investment opportunities. This can often take the form of substantial business, regulatory or legal complexity that would deter other investment managers. Our tolerance for complexity presents risks, as such transactions can be more difficult, expensive and time consuming to finance and execute; it can be more difficult to manage or realize value from the assets acquired in such transactions; and such transactions sometimes entail a higher level of regulatory scrutiny, the application of complex tax laws or a greater risk of contingent liabilities. Our transactions involve complex tax structures that are costly to establish, monitor and maintain, and as we pursue a larger number of transactions across multiple assets classes and in multiple jurisdictions, such costs will increase and the risk that a tax matter is overlooked or inadequately or inconsistently addressed will increase. Consequently, we may fail to achieve the desired tax benefit or otherwise decrease the returns of our investments or damage the reputation of our firm. Changes in law and regulation and in the enforcement of existing law and regulation, such as antitrust laws and tax laws, also add complexity and risk to our business. Further, we, directly or through our funds, may acquire an investment that is subject to contingent liabilities, which could be unknown to us at the time of acquisition or, if they are known to us, we may not accurately assess or protect against the risks that they present. Acquired contingent liabilities could thus result in unforeseen losses for us or our funds. In addition, in connection with the disposition of an investment in a portfolio company, we or a fund may be required to make representations about the business and financial affairs of such portfolio company typical of those made in connection with the sale of a business. We or a fund may also be required to indemnify the purchasers of such investment to the extent that any such representations are inaccurate. These arrangements may result in the incurrence of contingent liabilities by us or a fund, even after the disposition of an investment. Any of these risks could harm the performance of us or our funds.
We make large private equity and real assets investments, which involves certain complexities and risks that are not encountered in small- and medium-sized investments.
Our private equity funds make investments in companies with relatively large capitalizations, which involves certain complexities and risks that are not encountered in small- and medium-sized investments. For example, larger transactions may be more difficult to finance and exiting larger deals may present incremental challenges. In addition, larger transactions may pose greater challenges in implementing changes in the company's management, culture, finances or operations, and may entail greater scrutiny by regulators, interest groups and other third parties. These constituencies may be more active in opposing larger investments by certain private equity firms.
In some transactions, the amount of equity capital that is required to complete a large capitalization private equity or real asset transaction may be significant and are required to be structured as a consortium transaction. A consortium transaction involves an equity investment in which two or more firms serve together or collectively as equity sponsors. While we have sought to limit where possible the amount of consortium transactions in which we have been involved, we have participated in a significant number of those transactions. Consortium transactions generally entail a reduced level of control by our firm over the investment because governance rights must be shared with the other consortium investors. Accordingly, we may not be able to control decisions relating to a consortium investment, including decisions relating to the management and operation of the company and the timing and nature of any exit, which could result in the risks described in "—We and our funds have made investments in companies that we do not control, exposing us to the risk of decisions made by others with which we may not agree." Any of these factors could increase the risk that our larger investments could be less successful. The consequences to our investment funds of an unsuccessful larger investment could be more severe given the size of the investment. Moreover, we have significant capital of our own committed in such large investments. For certain large private equity and real asset transactions, we may seek to syndicate a portion of our capital commitment to third parties; however, if we are unable to syndicate all or part of such commitment, we may be required to fund the remaining commitment amount from our balance sheet. If we are required to keep on our balance sheet a large portion of the capital commitment that could not be syndicated to third parties, poor performance of such large investment may have a material adverse impact on our financial results. See "—Risks Related to Our Business—If we are unable to syndicate the securities or indebtedness or realize returns on investments financed with our balance sheet assets, our liquidity, business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected" and "—Our funds and our firm through our balance sheet may make a limited number of investments, or investments that are concentrated in certain issuers, geographic regions or asset types, which could negatively affect our performance or the performance of our funds to the extent those concentrated assets perform poorly."
We and our funds have made investments in companies that we do not control, exposing us to the risk of decisions made by others with which we may not agree.
We and our funds hold investments that include debt instruments and equity securities of companies that we do not control, and such investments may comprise an increasing part of our business. Such instruments and securities may be acquired by our funds through trading activities or through purchases of securities from the issuer or we may purchase such instruments and securities on a principal basis. In addition, our funds may acquire minority equity interests, particularly when making private equity investments in Asia, making growth equity investments or sponsoring investments as part of an investor consortium or through many of our credit funds. Our funds may also dispose of a portion of their majority equity investments in portfolio companies over time in a manner that results in the funds retaining a minority investment. We and our funds, including our newer private equity funds, have made certain minority investments in publicly traded companies.
We have also made minority investments in companies including hedge fund and real estate managers on our balance sheet. For example, we have investments in Marshall Wace, BlackGold, PAAMCO Prisma and Drawbridge.
Transactions made by companies we do not control could be viewed as unwanted, damage our reputation, and consequently impair our ability to source transactions in the future. Those investments will be subject to the risk that the company in which the investment is made may make business, financial or management decisions with which we do not agree or that the majority stakeholders or the management of the company may take risks or otherwise act in a manner that does not serve our interests. These companies may be subject to complex regulatory requirements and instances of non-compliance by them may subject us to reputational harm or in certain cases, liability. We are also reliant on the systems and processes of these companies for, among other, financial information and valuations of our investments in or with them, including hedge fund managers and their funds, but we do not control the decisions and judgments made during such processes. Our investments in hedge fund managers may subject us to additional regulatory complexities or scrutiny if we are deemed to control the company for regulatory purposes, despite our minority interest. These asset managers may also be dependent on their founders and other key persons, and the loss of these key personnel could adversely impact our investment. If any of the foregoing were to occur, the value of the investments held by our funds or by us could decrease and our results of operations, financial condition and cash flow could be materially and adversely affected.
We make investments in companies that are based outside of the United States, which may expose us to additional risks not typically associated with investing in companies that are based in the United States.
Many of our funds invest or have the flexibility to invest a significant portion of their assets in the equity, debt, loans or other securities of issuers that are based outside of the United States. A substantial amount of these investments consist of private equity investments made by our private equity funds. For example, as of December 31, 2020, approximately 53% of the capital invested in those funds was attributable to non-U.S. investments. Investing in companies that are based or have significant operations in countries outside of the United States and, in particular, in emerging markets such as China and India,
Eastern Europe, South and Southeast Asia, Latin America and Africa, involves risks and considerations that are not typically associated with investments in companies established in the United States. These risks may include the following:
•the possibility of exchange control regulations;
•restrictions on repatriation of profit on investments or of capital invested;
•the imposition of non-U.S. taxes and changes in tax law;
•differences in the legal and regulatory environment, such as the recognition of information barriers, or enhanced legal and regulatory compliance;
•greater levels of corruption and potential exposure to the FCPA and other laws that prohibit improper payments or offers of payments to foreign governments, their officials and other third parties;
•violations of trade sanctions or trade control regimes;
•limitations on borrowings to be used to fund acquisitions or dividends;
•limitations on permissible counterparties in our transactions or consolidation rules that effectively restrict the types of businesses in which we may invest;
•political risks generally, including political and social instability, nationalization, expropriation of assets or political hostility to investments by foreign or private equity investors;
•less liquid markets;
•reliance on a more limited number of commodity inputs, service providers and/or distribution mechanisms;
•adverse fluctuations in currency exchange rates and costs associated with conversion of investment principal and income from one currency into another;
•higher rates of inflation;
•less available current information about an issuer;
•higher transaction costs;
•less government supervision of exchanges, brokers and issuers;
•less developed bankruptcy and other laws;
•greater application of concepts like equitable subordination, which may, in bankruptcy or insolvency, result in the subordination of debt or other senior interests held by our investment funds, vehicles or accounts in companies in which our investment funds, vehicles or accounts also hold equity interests;
•difficulty in enforcing contractual obligations;
•lack of uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards;
•less stringent requirements relating to fiduciary duties;
•fewer investor protections; and
•greater price volatility.
As a result of the complexity of and lack of clear laws, precedent or authority with respect to the application of various income tax laws to our structures, the application of rules governing how transactions and structures should be reported is also subject to differing interpretations. In particular, certain jurisdictions have either proposed or adopted rules that seek to limit the
amount of interest that may be deductible where the lender and the borrower are related parties (or where third-party borrowings have been guaranteed by a related party) and in some cases, without regard to whether the lender is a related party, or may seek to interpret existing rules in a more restrictive manner. In addition, the tax authorities of certain countries have sought to disallow tax deductions for transaction and certain other costs at the portfolio company level either on the basis that the entity claiming the deduction does not benefit from the costs incurred or on other grounds. These measures will most likely adversely affect portfolio companies in those jurisdictions in which our investment funds have investments, and limit the benefits of additional investments in those countries. Our business is also subject to the risk that similar measures might be introduced in other countries in which our investment funds currently have investments or plan to invest in the future, or that other legislative or regulatory measures that negatively affect their respective portfolio investments might be promulgated in any of the countries in which they invest. See "—Our investments are impacted by various economic conditions and events outside of our control that are difficult to quantify or predict, which may have a significant impact on the valuation of our investments and, therefore, on the investment income we realize and our results of operations and financial condition."
In addition, certain countries such as Australia, China, India, Japan, Brazil and South Korea, where we have made investments, have sought to tax investment gains derived by nonresident investors, including private equity funds, from the disposition of the equity in companies operating in those countries. In some cases this development is the result of new legislation or changes in the interpretation of existing legislation and local authority assertions that investors have a local taxable presence or are holding companies for trading purposes rather than for capital purposes, or are not otherwise entitled to treaty benefits.
Further, the tax authorities in certain countries, such as Australia, Belgium, China, India, Japan, Denmark, Germany and South Korea have sought to deny the benefits of income tax treaties or EU Directives with respect to withholding taxes on interest and dividends and capital gains of nonresident entities. Benefits of income tax treaties or EU Directives could be denied under each country's general anti-avoidance rules or on the basis that the entity benefiting from such treaty or Directive is not the owner of the income, is a mere conduit inserted primarily to access treaty benefits or Directives, or otherwise lacks substance.
These various proposals and initiatives could result in an increase in taxes paid by our funds and/or increased tax withholding with respect to our fund investors. See "—Risks Related to Our Business—Changes in relevant tax laws, regulations or treaties or an adverse interpretation of these items by tax authorities could adversely impact our effective tax rate and tax liability."
As a result of the complexity of our structures, foreign jurisdictions may seek to tax an additional portion of the fee income associated with our management advisory activity. Foreign jurisdictions may assert that an additional amount of fee income is subject to local tax, potentially reducing our profits associated with such income, although this risk may be mitigated by the availability of foreign tax credits. We or our funds may also inadvertently establish a taxable presence in a jurisdiction because of activities conducted there. Compliance with tax laws and structures in these jurisdictions and the costs of adapting to changes in tax policies require significant oversight and cost.
Although we expect that much of the capital commitments of our funds will be denominated in U.S. dollars, our investments and capital commitments that are denominated in a foreign currency, such as euro, will be subject to the risk that the value of a particular currency will change in relation to one or more other currencies. A depreciation of foreign currencies against the U.S. dollar, if not adequately hedged, would reduce the value of our investments in the relevant region, which could adversely impact our financial results. Factors that may affect currency values include trade balances, the ability of countries to pay their national debt, levels of short-term interest rates, differences in relative values of similar assets in different currencies, long-term opportunities for investment and capital appreciation and political developments. We may employ hedging techniques to reduce these risks, but we can offer no assurance that such strategies will be effective or even available at all. If we engage in hedging transactions, we may be exposed to additional risks associated with such transactions. See "—Risk management activities may adversely affect the return on our investments." In addition, various countries and regulatory bodies may implement controls on foreign exchange and outbound remittances of currency, which could impact not only the timing and amount of capital contributions that are required to be made to our funds but also the value, in U.S. dollars, of our investments and investment proceeds. See "—Risks Related to Our Business—Difficult market and economic conditions can adversely affect our business in many ways, including by reducing the value or performance of the investments that we manage or by reducing the ability of our funds to raise or deploy capital, each of which could negatively impact our net income and cash flow and adversely affect our financial prospects and condition" and "—Risks Related to Our Business—Extensive regulation of our businesses affects our activities and creates the potential for significant liabilities and penalties. The possibility of increased regulatory focus or legislative or regulatory changes could materially and adversely affect our business." See also "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Business Environment" for a discussion of recent developments in market and business conditions that may affect our business.
Third-party investors in our funds with commitment-based structures may not satisfy their contractual obligation to fund capital calls when requested by us, which could adversely affect a fund's operations and performance.
Investors in certain of our funds make capital commitments to those funds that the funds are entitled to call from those investors at any time during prescribed periods. We depend on fund investors fulfilling their commitments when we call capital from them in order for such funds to consummate investments and otherwise pay their obligations (for example, management fees) when due. Any fund investor that did not fund a capital call would generally be subject to several possible penalties, including having a significant amount of existing investment forfeited in that fund. However, the impact of the penalty is directly correlated to the amount of capital previously invested by the investor in the fund and if an investor has invested little or no capital, for instance early in the life of the fund, then the forfeiture penalty may not be as meaningful. Investors may in the future also negotiate for lesser or reduced penalties at the outset of the fund, thereby inhibiting our ability to enforce the funding of a capital call. If our fund investors were to fail to satisfy a significant amount of capital calls for any particular fund or funds, the operation and performance of those funds could be materially and adversely affected.
Our equity investments and many of our debt investments often rank junior to investments made by others, exposing us to greater risk of losing our investment.
In many cases, the companies in which we or our funds invest have, or are permitted to have, outstanding indebtedness or equity securities that rank senior to our or our fund's investment. By their terms, such instruments may provide that their holders are entitled to receive payments of distributions, interest or principal on or before the dates on which payments are to be made in respect of our or our fund's investment. Also, in the event of insolvency, liquidation, dissolution, reorganization or bankruptcy of a company in which an investment is made, holders of securities ranking senior to our investment would typically be entitled to receive payment in full before distributions could be made in respect of our investment. In addition, debt investments made by us or our funds in our portfolio companies may be equitably subordinated to the debt investments made by third parties in our portfolio companies. After repaying senior security holders, the company may not have any remaining assets to use for repaying amounts owed in respect of our investment. To the extent that any assets remain, holders of claims that rank equally with our investment would be entitled to share on an equal and ratable basis in distributions that are made out of those assets. Also, during periods of financial distress or following insolvency, the ability of us or our funds to influence a company's affairs and to take actions to protect an investment may be substantially less than that of the senior creditors.
Risk management activities may adversely affect the return on our investments.
When managing exposure to market risks, we employ hedging strategies or certain forms of derivative instruments to limit our exposure to changes in the relative values of investments that may result from market developments, including changes in prevailing interest rates, currency exchange rates and commodity prices. The scope of risk management activities undertaken by us is selective and varies based on the level and volatility of interest rates, prevailing foreign currency exchange rates, the types of investments that are made and other changing market conditions. We do not seek to hedge our exposure in all currencies or all investments, which means that our exposure to certain market risks are not limited. Where applicable, we use hedging transactions and other derivative instruments to reduce the effects of a decline in the value of a position, but they do not eliminate the possibility of fluctuations in the value of the position or prevent losses if the value of the position declines. However, such activities can establish other positions designed to gain from those same developments, thereby offsetting the decline in the value of the position. Such transactions may also limit the opportunity for gain if the value of a position increases. Moreover, it may not be possible to limit the exposure to a market development that is so generally anticipated that a hedging or other derivative transaction cannot be entered into at an acceptable price.
The success of any hedging or other derivative transactions that we enter into generally will depend on our ability to correctly predict market changes. As a result, while we may enter into such transactions in order to reduce our exposure to market risks, unanticipated market changes may result in poorer overall investment performance than if the hedging or other derivative transaction had not been executed. In addition, the degree of correlation between price movements of the instruments used in connection with hedging activities and price movements in a position being hedged may vary. Moreover, for a variety of reasons, we may not seek or be successful in establishing a perfect correlation between the instruments used in hedging or other derivative transactions and the positions being hedged. An imperfect correlation could prevent us from achieving the intended result and could give rise to a loss. In addition, it may not be possible to fully or perfectly limit our exposure against all changes in the value of its investments, because the value of investments is likely to fluctuate as a result of a number of factors, some of which will be beyond our control or ability to hedge.
While hedging arrangements may reduce certain risks, such arrangements themselves may entail certain other risks. These arrangements may require the posting of cash collateral, including at a time when a fund has insufficient cash or illiquid assets such that the posting of the cash is either impossible or requires the sale of assets at prices that do not reflect their underlying
value. Moreover, these hedging arrangements may generate significant transaction costs, including potential tax costs, that reduce the returns generated by a fund. The CFTC has proposed or adopted regulations governing swaps and security-based swaps, which may limit our trading activities and our ability to implement effective hedging strategies or increase the costs of compliance. See "Risks Related to Our Business—Extensive regulation of our businesses affects our activities and creates the potential for significant liabilities and penalties. The possibility of increased regulatory focus or legislative or regulatory changes could materially and adversely affect our business."
Our funds and our firm through our balance sheet may make a limited number of investments, or investments that are concentrated in certain issuers, geographic regions or asset types, which could negatively affect our performance or the performance of our funds to the extent those concentrated assets perform poorly.
The governing agreements of our funds contain only limited investment restrictions and only limited requirements as to diversification of fund investments, either by geographic region or asset type. Our private equity funds generally permit up to 20% of the fund to be invested in a single company. We also advise funds that invest in a single industry such as growth equity, energy, infrastructure or real estate or funds that focus on particular geographic region. During periods of difficult market conditions or slowdowns in these sectors or geographic regions, decreased revenues, difficulty in obtaining access to financing and increased funding costs may be exacerbated by this concentration of investments, which would result in lower investment returns. Because a significant portion of a fund's capital may be invested in a single investment or portfolio company, a loss with respect to such investment or portfolio company could have a material adverse impact on such fund's capital. Accordingly, a lack of diversification on the part of a fund could materially and adversely affect a fund's performance and therefore, our results of operations and financial condition.
Similarly, our balance sheet has significant exposures to certain issuers, industries or asset classes. Because we hold interests in some of our portfolio companies both through our balance sheet investments in our private equity funds and direct co-investments, fluctuation in the fair values of these portfolio companies may have a disproportionate impact on the investment income earned by us as compared to other portfolio companies. In these circumstances, as was the case with energy investments beginning in late 2014 through and into 2018, losses may have an even greater impact on our results of operations and financial condition, as we would directly bear the full extent of such losses. Our balance sheet also has significant exposures to a small group of companies, with our investments in Fiserv, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISV) and BridgeBio Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: BBIO) representing approximately 8.9% and 6.5%, respectively, and our top five investments representing approximately 28.6% of our balance sheet's total investments as of December 31, 2020. As a result, our investment income is subject to greater volatility depending on such companies' operating results and other idiosyncratic factors specific to such companies, and in the case of publicly traded companies, our operating results would be impacted by volatility in the public markets generally and in the stock price of such companies. See "—Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Analysis of Non-GAAP Operating Results—Non-GAAP Balance Sheet Measures" for information on significant investments held on our balance sheet.
Our business activities may give rise to a conflict of interest with our funds.
As we have expanded and as we continue to expand the number and scope of our businesses, we increasingly confront potential conflicts of interest relating to investment activities among our various funds and also our own account. For example:
•In pursuing the interest of our fund investors, we may take actions that could reduce our AUM or our profits that we could otherwise realize in the short term;
•We may be required to allocate investment opportunities among investment vehicles that may have overlapping investment objectives, including vehicles that may have different fee structures, and among KKR co-investment vehicles (including vehicles in which KKR employees may investment) and third-party co-investors;
•We may, on behalf of our funds or KKR itself, buy, sell, hold or otherwise deal with securities or other investments that may be purchased, sold or held by our other funds or that are otherwise issued by a portfolio company in which our funds invest. Conflicts of interest may arise between a fund, on one hand, and KKR on the other or among our funds including but not limited to those relating to the purchase or sale of investments, the structuring of, or exercise of rights with respect to investment transactions and the advice we provide to our funds. For example we may sell an investment at a different time or for different consideration than our funds;
•We may invest on behalf of our fund or for our own account in a portfolio company of one fund that is a competitor, service provider, supplier, customer, or other counterparty with respect to a portfolio company of another fund;
•We may structure an investment in a manner that may be attractive to fund investors or to KKR Holdings from a tax perspective even though KKR is required to pay corporate taxes;
•A decision to acquire material non-public information about a company while pursuing an investment opportunity for a particular fund or our own account may result in our having to restrict the ability of other funds to take any action with regards to that company or its securities;
•Our fiduciary obligations to our fund investors may preclude us from pursuing attractive proprietary investment opportunities, in particular as we enter into strategic relationships with broad investment mandates similar to the investments we make with our balance sheet. Notwithstanding the foregoing, we also allocate certain investments that we believe are not suitable for our funds to our balance sheet;
•Conflicts may arise in allocating investments, time, services, expenses or resources among the investment activities of our funds, KKR, other KKR-affiliated entities and the employees of KKR;
•Our principals have made personal investments in a variety of our investment funds, which may result in conflicts of interest among investors of our funds or stockholders regarding investment decisions for these funds;
•The general partner's entitlement to receive carried interest from many of our funds may create an incentive for that general partner to make riskier and more speculative investments on behalf of a fund than would be the case in the absence of such an arrangement. In addition, for our funds that pay carried interest based on accrued rather than realized gains, the amount of carried interest to which the general partner is entitled and the timing of its receipt of carried interest will depend on the valuation by the general partner of the fund's investment;
•Under the 2017 Tax Act, investments must be held for more than three years, rather than the prior requirement of more than one year, for carried interest to be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as capital gain, which may create a conflict of interest between the limited partner investors (whose investments would receive such capital gain treatment after a holding period of only one year) and the general partner on the execution, closing or timing of sales of a fund's investments in connection with the receipt of carried interest;
•From time to time, one of our funds or other investment vehicles (including CLOs) may seek to effect a purchase or sale of an investment with one or more of our other funds or other investment vehicles in a so-called "cross transaction," or we as a principal may seek to effect a purchase or sale of our investment with one or more of our funds or other investment vehicles in a so-called "principal transaction";
•A dispute may arise between our portfolio companies, and if such dispute is not resolved amicably or results in litigation, it could cause significant reputational harm to us, and our fund investors may become dissatisfied with our handling of the dispute;
•The investors in our investment vehicles are based in a wide variety of jurisdictions and take a wide variety of forms, and consequently have diverging interests among themselves from a regulatory, tax or legal perspective or with respect to investment policies and target risk/return profiles; and
•We or our affiliates, including our capital markets business, may receive fees or other compensation in connection with specific transactions or different clients that may give rise to conflicts. The decision to take on an opportunity in one of our businesses may, as a practical matter, also limit the ability of one or our other businesses to take advantage of other related opportunities.
In addition, our funds also invest in a broad range of asset classes throughout the corporate capital structure. These investments include investments in corporate loans and debt securities, preferred equity securities and common equity securities. In certain cases, we may manage separate funds that invest in different parts of the same company's capital structure. For example, our credit funds may invest in different classes of the same company's debt and may make debt investments in a company that is owned by one of our private equity funds. In those cases, the interests of our funds may not always be aligned, which could create actual or potential conflicts of interest or the appearance of such conflicts. For example, one of our private equity funds could have an interest in pursuing an acquisition, divestiture or other transaction that, in its judgment, could enhance the value of the private equity investment, even though the proposed transaction would subject one of our credit fund's debt investments to additional or increased risks. Finally, our ability to effectively implement a public securities strategy may be limited to the extent that contractual obligations entered into in the ordinary course of our private equity business impose restrictions on our engaging in transactions that we may be interested in otherwise pursuing.
We may also cause different investment funds to invest in a single portfolio company, for example, where the fund that made an initial investment no longer has capital available to invest. Conflicts may also arise where our insurance subsidiaries make investments, we make balance sheet investments for our own account or we permit employees to invest alongside our funds or our balance sheet for their own account. In certain cases, we may require that a transaction or investment be approved by fund investors or their advisory committees, be approved by an independent valuation expert, be subject to a fairness opinion, be based on arm's-length pricing data or be calculated in accordance with a formula provided for in a fund's governing documents prior to the completion of the relevant transaction or investment to address potential conflicts of interest. Such instances include principal transactions where we or our affiliates warehouse an investment in a portfolio company for the benefit of one or more of our funds pending the contribution of committed capital by the investors in such funds, follow-on investments by a fund other than a fund that made an initial investment in a company, or transactions in which we arrange for one of our funds to buy a security from, or sell a security to, another one of our funds.
Appropriately dealing with conflicts of interest is complex and difficult and we could suffer reputational damage or potential liability if we fail, or appear to fail, to deal appropriately with conflicts as they arise. Regulatory scrutiny on, or litigation in connection with, conflicts of interest could have a material adverse effect on our reputation which could in turn materially and adversely affect our business in a number of ways, including as a result of an inability to raise additional funds and a reluctance of counterparties to do business with us.
Investors in our real assets core funds in our Private Markets business line may redeem their investments in these funds.
Unlike investors in our traditional real estate and infrastructure funds, which in general do not permit redemptions of their fund interests until the liquidation of the funds upon their scheduled dates to terminate, our core real estate and infrastructure funds permit their investors to redeem their funds interests from time to time. Substantial redemptions could be triggered by a number of events, including unsatisfactory fund performance, events in the markets, significant change in our personnel, our removal or replacement as the investment manager of the fund, legal or regulatory issues that investors perceive to have a bearing on the fund, or other events. While the general partner of such funds has no obligation to take any actions to satisfy redemption requests other than out of available cash in the fund, actions taken to meet substantial redemption requests could result in material adverse effect to the fund's investments, ability to make new investments, or otherwise be able to achieve its investment objects, which could negatively impact our financial results.
Investors in certain funds in our Public Markets business line may redeem their investments in these funds with minimal notice.
Investors in our funds in certain of our leveraged credit investment vehicles may generally submit redemptions to redeem their investments on a quarterly or monthly basis following the expiration of a specified period of time or in certain cases capital may be withdrawn earlier subject to a fee, in each case subject to the applicable fund's specific redemption provisions. Factors that could result in investors leaving our funds include changes in interest rates that make other investments more attractive, changes in or rebalancing due to investors' asset allocation policy, changes in investor perception regarding our focus or alignment of interest, unhappiness with a fund's performance or investment strategy, changes in our reputation, departures or changes in responsibilities of key investment professionals, and performance and liquidity needs of fund investors. In a declining market or period of economic disruption or uncertainty, the pace of redemptions and consequent reduction in our AUM could accelerate. The decrease in revenues that would result from significant redemptions from our funds or other similar investment vehicles could have a material adverse effect on our business, revenues, net income and cash flows.
A portion of assets invested in our funds in the Public Markets business line are managed through separately managed accounts or entities structured for investment by one investor or related investors whereby we earn management and incentive fees, and we intend to continue to seek additional separately managed account or single entity mandates. The investment management agreements we enter into in connection with managing separately managed accounts or entities on behalf of certain clients may be terminated by such clients on as little as 30 days' prior written notice, or less in certain prescribed circumstances. In addition, we provide sub-advisory services to other investment advisers and managers. Such investment advisers and managers could terminate our sub-advisory agreements on as little as 30 days' prior written notice. In the case of any such terminations, the management and incentive fees we earn in connection with managing such account or company would immediately cease, which could result in a material adverse impact on our revenues.
In addition, certain funds in our Public Markets business line are registered under the Investment Company Act as management investment companies. These funds and KKR Credit Advisors (US) LLC, which serves as their investment adviser, are subject to the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder. Two of these funds are closed-end funds. BDCs in our BDC platform are also registered under the Investment Company Act, including FS KKR Capital Corp. and FS KKR Capital Corp. II, each a BDC listed on the NYSE. In addition, the management fees we and our strategic BDC partnership
receive for managing registered investment companies and BDCs will generally be subject to contractual rights the company's board of directors or the investment adviser has to terminate KKR's or our strategic BDC partnership's management of an account on as short as 60 days' prior notice. Termination of these agreements would reduce the fees we earn from the relevant funds, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.
Our stakes in our hedge fund partnerships subject us to numerous additional risks.
Our stakes in our hedge fund partnerships subject us to numerous additional risks applicable to hedge funds and funds of funds, including the following:
•Generally, there are few limitations on the execution of investment strategies of a hedge fund or fund of funds, which are subject to the sole discretion of the management company or the general partner of such funds;
•A fund of funds is subject to risks related to the limited rights it has to withdraw, redeem, transfer or otherwise liquidate its investments from the underlying hedge funds or other funds in which it invests. It may be impossible or costly for hedge funds or such other funds to liquidate positions rapidly in order to meet margin calls, withdrawal requests, redemption requests or otherwise, particularly if there are other market participants seeking to dispose of similar assets at the same time or the relevant market is otherwise moving against a position or in the event of trading halts or daily price movement limits on the market or otherwise. In addition, terms of the governing documents of the relevant portfolio funds may limit withdrawal, redemption, transfer or liquidation of investments, including restrictions on the redemption of capital for an initial period, restrictions on the amount of redemptions and the frequency with which redemptions can be made and investment minimums that must be maintained. Portfolio funds also typically reserve the right to reduce ("gate") or suspend redemptions, to set aside ("side pocket") capital that cannot be redeemed for so long as an event or circumstance has not occurred or ceased to exist, respectively, and to satisfy redemptions by making distributions in-kind, under certain circumstances. Moreover, these risks may be exacerbated for funds of funds. For example, if a fund of funds were to invest a significant portion of its assets in two or more hedge funds that each had illiquid positions in the same issuer, the illiquidity risk for such fund of funds would be compounded.
•Hedge funds may engage in short selling, which is subject to theoretically unlimited loss, in that the price of the underlying security could theoretically increase without limit, thus increasing the cost of buying those securities to cover the short position. There can be no assurance that the security necessary to cover a short position will be available for purchase. Purchasing securities to close out the short position can itself cause the prices of the securities to rise further, thereby exacerbating the loss;
•Hedge funds may enter into CDS as investments or hedges. CDS involve greater risks than investing in the reference obligation directly. In addition to general market risks, CDS are subject to risks related to changes in interest rates, credit spreads, credit quality and expected recovery rates of the underlying credit instrument;
•Hedge funds are exposed to the risk that a counterparty will not settle a transaction in accordance with its terms and conditions because of a dispute over the terms of the contract (whether or not bona fide) or because of a credit or liquidity problem, thus causing the fund to suffer a loss. Counterparty risk is accentuated for contracts with longer maturities where events may intervene to prevent settlement, or where the fund has concentrated its transactions with a single or small group of counterparties. Generally, hedge funds are not restricted from dealing with any particular counterparty or from concentrating any or all of their transactions with one counterparty. Moreover, the fund's internal consideration of the creditworthiness of their counterparties may prove insufficient. The absence of a regulated market to facilitate settlement may increase the potential for losses;
•The efficacy of investment and trading strategies depends largely on the ability to establish and maintain an overall market position in a combination of financial instruments. A hedge fund's trading orders may not be executed in a timely and efficient manner due to various circumstances, including systems failures or human error. In such event, the funds might only be able to acquire some but not all of the components of the position, or if the overall position were to need adjustment, the funds might not be able to make such adjustment. As a result, the funds would not be able to achieve the market position selected by the management company or general partner of such funds, and might incur a loss in liquidating their position;
•Hedge funds may make investments that they do not advantageously dispose of prior to the date the applicable fund is dissolved, either by expiration of such fund's term or otherwise. Although we generally expect that investments will be disposed of prior to dissolution or be suitable for in-kind distribution at dissolution, these funds may have to sell,
distribute or otherwise dispose of investments at a disadvantageous time as a result of dissolution. This would result in a lower than expected return on the investments and, perhaps, on the fund itself;
•Hedge funds may rely on computer programs, internal infrastructure and services, quantitative models (both proprietary models and those supplied by third parties) and information and data provided by third parties to trade, clear and settle securities and other transactions, among other activities, that are critical to the oversight of certain funds' activities. If any such models, information or data prove to be incorrect or incomplete, any decisions made in reliance thereon could expose the funds to potential risks. Any hedging based on faulty models, information or data may prove to be unsuccessful and adversely impact a fund's profits; and
•Hedge fund investments are also subject to risks relating to investments in commodities, futures, options and other derivatives, the prices of which are highly volatile and may be subject to the theoretically unlimited risk of loss in certain circumstances, including if the fund writes a call option. Price movements of commodities, futures and options contracts and payments pursuant to swap agreements are influenced by, among other things, interest rates, changing supply and demand relationships, trade, fiscal, monetary and exchange control programs and policies of governments and national and international political and economic events and policies. The value of futures, options and swap agreements also depends upon the price of the commodities underlying them. In addition, hedge funds' assets are subject to the risk of the failure of any of the exchanges on which their positions trade or of their clearinghouses or counterparties. Most U.S. commodities exchanges limit fluctuations in certain commodity interest prices during a single day by imposing "daily price fluctuation limits" or "daily limits," the existence of which may reduce liquidity or effectively curtail trading in particular markets. Hedge funds and funds of these hedge funds may also be subject to extensive regulations, including those of CFTC.
To the extent the financial condition of Marshall Wace, PAAMCO Prisma or other third-party hedge fund managers with which we have hedge fund partnerships is adversely affected by these risks, our revenues, AUM and FPAUM may also decline.
Risks Related to Our Common Stock
The Series I preferred stockholder's significant voting power limits the ability of holders of our common stock to influence our business.
Holders of our common stock are entitled to vote with respect to:
•Any amendment of our certificate of incorporation to change the par value of our common stock or the powers, preferences or special rights of our common stock in a way that would affect our common stock adversely;
•A conversion of the legal entity form of KKR & Co. Inc.; and
•A transfer, domestication or continuance of KKR & Co. Inc. to a foreign jurisdiction.
•A sale, exchange or disposition of all or substantially all of our assets;
•A merger, consolidation or other business combination;
•An increase in the number of authorized shares of Series I preferred stock; and
•Certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation that would have a material adverse effect on our common stock relative to the other classes of our stock.
Furthermore, holders of our common stock have the right to vote on the adoption of a new equity compensation plan any material amendment to an existing equity compensation plan, and an issuance of common stock if, based on the number of shares or the voting power outstanding before such issuance, more than 1% of our common stock is issued to our affiliates and other related parties or more than 20% of our common stock is issued in any transaction, subject to certain limited exemptions.
In general, any matters that are subject to a vote of the holders of our common stock will require the approval of a majority in voting power of all our common stock and Series II preferred stock, voting together as a single class. As a result, KKR Holdings, the holder of our Series II preferred stock, will vote together with the holders of our common stock. As of February 17, 2021, there were 576,611,174 shares of common stock and 275,626,493 shares of Series II preferred stock issued and outstanding, giving holders of common stock 67.7% and KKR Holdings 32.3% of the total combined voting power on matters for which they are entitled to vote together as a single class. Because our Co-Chairmen and Co-Chief Executive
Officers, when acting together, jointly control the general partner of KKR Holdings and thereby the vote of the shares of our Series II preferred stock held by KKR Holdings, our Co-Chairmen and Co-Chief Executive Officers are expected to be able to substantially influence the outcome of any matter submitted to a vote of our common stock. In addition, our Co-Chairmen and Co-Chief Executive Officers, when acting together, jointly control the Series I preferred stockholder and thereby the vote of the Series I preferred stock held by it. The vote of our Series I preferred stock will determine the outcome of all matters that are not listed above as being subject to a vote by our common stock.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws contain additional provisions affecting the holders of our common stock, including limitations on the calling of meetings of the stockholders and procedures for submitting proposals for business to be considered at meetings of the stockholders. In addition, any person that beneficially acquires 20% or more of any class of stock then outstanding without the consent of our board of directors (other than the Series I preferred stockholder or KKR Holdings L.P.) is unable to vote such stock on any matter submitted to such stockholders.
For a more detailed description of our common stock, Series I preferred stock and Series II preferred stock, see "Description of Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934," which is filed as an exhibit to this report.
As a "controlled company," we qualify for some exemptions from the corporate governance and other requirements of the NYSE.
We are a "controlled company" within the meaning of the corporate governance standards of the NYSE. As a "controlled company" we have elected not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements of the NYSE, including the requirements: (i) that the listed company have a nominating and corporate governance committee that is composed entirely of independent directors, (ii) that the listed company have a compensation committee that is composed entirely of independent directors and (iii) that the compensation committee be required to consider certain independence factors when engaging compensation consultants, legal counsel and other committee advisers. Accordingly, holders of our common stock do not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the corporate governance requirements of the NYSE.
We are not required to comply with certain provisions of U.S. securities laws relating to proxy statements and other annual meeting materials.
We are not required to file proxy statements or information statements under Section 14 of the Exchange Act, unless a vote of holders of our common stock is required. Accordingly, legal causes of action and remedies under Section 14 of the Exchange Act for inadequate or misleading information in proxy statements will not be generally available to holders of our common stock. In addition, we will generally not be subject to the "say-on-pay" and "say-on-frequency" provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. As a result, our stockholders will not have an opportunity to provide a non-binding vote on the compensation of our named executive officers. Moreover, holders of our common stock will be unable to bring matters before our annual meeting of stockholders or nominate directors at such meeting, nor can they generally submit stockholder proposals under Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act.
Our certificate of incorporation states that the Series I preferred stockholder is under no obligation to consider the separate interests of the other stockholders and contains provisions limiting the liability of the Series I preferred stockholder.
Subject to applicable law, our certificate of incorporation contains provisions limiting the duties owed by the Series I preferred stockholder and contains provisions allowing the Series I preferred stockholder to favor its own interests and the interests of its controlling persons over us and the holders of our common stock. Our certificate of incorporation contains provisions stating that the Series I preferred stockholder is under no obligation to consider the separate interests of the other stockholders (including the tax consequences to such stockholders) in deciding whether or not to authorize us to take (or decline to authorize us to take) any action as well as provisions stating that the Series I preferred stockholder shall not be liable to the other stockholders for damages or equitable relief for any losses, liabilities or benefits not derived by such stockholders in connection with such decisions. See "—Potential conflicts of interest may arise among the Series I preferred stockholder and the holders of our common stock."
The Series I preferred stockholder will not be liable to KKR or holders of our common stock for any acts, or omissions unless there has been a final and non-appealable judgment determining that the Series I preferred stockholder acted in bad faith or engaged in fraud or willful misconduct and we have also agreed to indemnify the Series I preferred stockholder to a similar extent.
Even if there is deemed to be a breach of the obligations set forth in our certificate of incorporation, our certificate of incorporation provides that the Series I preferred stockholder will not be liable to us or the holders of our common stock for any acts or omissions unless there has been a final and non-appealable judgment by a court of competent jurisdiction determining that the Series I preferred stockholder or its officers and directors acted in bad faith or engaged in fraud or willful misconduct. These provisions are detrimental to the holders of our common stock because they restrict the remedies available to stockholders for actions of the Series I preferred stockholder.
In addition, we have agreed to indemnify the Series I preferred stockholder and its affiliates and any member, partner, tax matters partner (as defined in U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code"), as in effect prior to 2018), partnership representative (as defined in the Code), officer, director, employee agent, fiduciary or trustee of any of KKR or its subsidiaries, KKR Group Partnership, the Series I preferred stockholder or any of our or the Series I preferred stockholder’s affiliates and certain other specified persons (collectively, "Indemnitees"), to the fullest extent permitted by law, against any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities, joint or several, expenses (including legal fees and expenses), judgments, fines, penalties, interest, settlements or other amounts incurred by any Indemnitee. We have agreed to provide this indemnification unless there has been a final and non-appealable judgment by a court of competent jurisdiction determining that the Indemnitee acted in bad faith or engaged in fraud or willful misconduct. We have also agreed to provide this indemnification for criminal proceedings.
The provision of our certificate of incorporation requiring exclusive venue in the state and federal courts located in the State of Delaware or federal district courts of the United States for certain types of lawsuits may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against us and our directors, officers and stockholders.
Our certificate of incorporation requires that (i) any derivative action, suit or proceeding brought on behalf of KKR, (ii) any action, suit or proceeding asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any current or former director, officer, employee or stockholder of KKR to KKR or KKR's stockholders, (iii) any action, suit or proceeding asserting a claim arising pursuant to any provision of the Delaware General Corporation Law ("DGCL"), our certificate of incorporation or our bylaws or as to which the DGCL confers jurisdiction on the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware or (iv) any action, suit or proceeding asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine may only be brought in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware or, if such court does not have subject matter jurisdiction thereof, the federal district court located in the State of Delaware. In addition, the federal district courts of the United States is the exclusive forum for the resolution of any action, suit or proceeding asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act. This provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against us and our directors, officers and stockholders.
The market price and trading volume of our common stock may be volatile, which could result in rapid and substantial losses for our common stockholders.
The market price of our common stock may be highly volatile, could be subject to wide fluctuations and could decline significantly in the future. In addition, the trading volume in our common stock may fluctuate and cause significant price variations to occur. If the market price of our common stock declines significantly, you may be unable to sell your shares at an attractive price, if at all. Some of the factors that could negatively affect the price of our common stock or result in fluctuations in the price or trading volume of our common stock include:
•variations in our quarterly operating results, including the accrual and payment of corporate taxes following our conversion to a corporation, which may be substantial;
•changes in the amount of our dividends or our dividend policy;
•taking a long-term perspective on making investment, operational and strategic decisions, which may result in significant and unpredictable variations in our quarterly returns;
•failure to meet analysts' earnings estimates or any publicly disclosed goals or targets;
•publication of research reports about us or the investment management industry or the failure of securities analysts to cover our common stock sufficiently;
•additions or departures of our key management and investment personnel;
•adverse market reaction to any acquisitions, joint ventures, reorganizations and other transactions, including incurrence of debt or issuance of securities in the future;
•changes in market valuations of similar companies;
•speculation in the press or investment community;
•changes or proposed changes in laws or regulations or differing interpretations thereof affecting our business or enforcement of these laws and regulations, or announcements relating to these matters;
•a concentrated ownership of our common stock or ownership by short-term investors;
•a lack of liquidity in the trading of our common stock;
•adverse publicity about the investment management or private equity industry generally or individual scandals, specifically; and
•general market and economic conditions.
An investment in our common stock is not an investment in any of our funds or other businesses operated by our subsidiaries, and the assets and revenues of our funds are not directly available to us.
Our common stock is only securities of KKR & Co. Inc., the holding company of the KKR business. While our historical consolidated financial statements include financial information, including assets and revenues, of certain funds on a consolidated basis, and our future financial statements will continue to consolidate certain of these funds, such assets and revenues are available to the fund and not to us except to a limited extent through management fees, carried interest or other incentive income, distributions and other proceeds arising from agreements with funds, as discussed in more detail in this report. Additionally, given our holding company structure, an investment in our common stock is not an investment in any other businesses that may be operated by our subsidiaries. See "Business—Organizational Structure" and "—Risks Related to Our Organizational Structure—We intend to pay periodic dividends to the holders of our common stock and preferred stock, but our ability to do so may be limited by our holding company structure and contractual restrictions."
Our common stock price may decline due to the large number of shares eligible for future sale or for exchange, and issued or issuable pursuant to our equity incentive plans or as consideration in acquisitions.
The market price of our common stock could decline as a result of sales of a large number of shares in the market or the perception that such sales could occur. These sales, or the possibility that these sales may occur, also might make it more difficult for us to sell shares of common stock in the future at a time and at a price that we deem appropriate. As of February 17, 2021, we have 576,611,174 shares of common stock outstanding, which amount excludes shares beneficially owned by KKR Holdings in the form of KKR Group Partnership Units discussed below and shares available for future issuance under our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan.
As of February 17, 2021, KKR Holdings owns 275,626,493 KKR Group Partnership Units that may be exchanged, on a quarterly basis, for shares of our common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to customary conversion rate adjustments for stock splits, stock distributions and reclassifications. The market price of our common stock could decline as a result of the exchange or the perception that an exchange may occur of a large number of KKR Group Partnership Units for shares of our common stock. These exchanges, or the possibility that these exchanges may occur, also might make it more difficult for holders of our common stock to sell shares of our common stock in the future at a time and at a price that they deem appropriate.
In addition, we will continue to issue additional shares of our common stock pursuant to our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan. See "Risks Related to Our Business—If we cannot retain and motivate our employees and other key personnel and recruit, retain and motivate new employees and other key personnel, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected." As of December 31, 2020, 92,324,255 shares of common stock were available for issuance in respect of outstanding awards and the grant of future awards, representing 15% of the aggregate number of shares of common stock and KKR Group Partnership Units (excluding KKR Group Partnership Units held by KKR & Co. Inc. or its subsidiaries) outstanding (together, "Diluted Common Shares") at the close of business on December 31, 2020, minus the
number of shares underlying any outstanding equity awards granted under our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan that have not yet been delivered upon vesting. Under the 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, on the first day of each fiscal year, the number of shares of common stock available for issuance of future awards under our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan will be adjusted upwards to 15% of the aggregate number of Diluted Common Shares outstanding at the close of business on the last day of the immediately preceding fiscal year, minus the number of shares underlying any outstanding equity awards granted under our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan that have not yet been delivered upon vesting. In addition, previously issued awards that were canceled or are canceled in the future, or in certain cases, withheld in respect of tax withholding obligations, are or will become available for further grant under the terms of our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan. See "Executive Compensation—KKR & Co. Inc. Equity Incentive Plan." In the past, we have issued and sold our common stock to generate cash proceeds to pay withholding taxes, social benefit payments or similar payments payable by us in respect of awards granted pursuant to our Equity Incentive Plans or the amount of cash delivered in respect of awards granted pursuant to our Equity Incentive Plans that are settled in cash instead of shares of common stock. We may issue and sell shares of our common stock in the future for similar purposes.
We have used and in the future may continue to use our common stock or securities convertible, exchangeable or exercisable into our common stock as consideration in acquisitions and strategic investments. For example, in connection with the Global Atlantic acquisition, we issued 23.0 million shares of Series C Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock; in connection with KKR's acquisition of KFN, we issued the equivalent of approximately 104.3 million shares of our common stock; in connection with KKR's acquisition of Avoca, we issued the equivalent of approximately 4.9 million shares of our common stock; and in connection with KKR's initial acquisition and subsequent increase in ownership of Marshall Wace, we issued the equivalent of approximately 23.0 million shares of our common stock. In addition, in connection with other investments, we may make certain future contingent payments in the form of common stock. If our valuations of these transactions are not accurate or if the value of these acquisitions and investments is not realized, the value of our common stock as well as our dividend per share of common stock may decline.
Our issuance of preferred stock may cause the price of our common stock to decline, which may negatively impact our common stockholders.
Our board of directors is authorized to issue series of shares of preferred stock without any action on the part of our stockholders and, with respect to each such series, fix, without stockholder approval (except as may be required by our certificate of incorporation or any certificate of designation relating to any outstanding series of preferred stock), the designation of such series, the powers (including voting powers), preferences and relative, participating, optional and other special rights, and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof, of such series of preferred stock and the number of shares of such series. Any series of preferred stock we may issue in the future will rank senior to all of our common stock with respect to the payment of dividends or upon our liquidation, dissolution, or winding-up. If we issue cumulative preferred stock in the future that has preference over our common stock with respect to the payment of dividends or upon our liquidation, dissolution, or winding up, or if we issue preferred stock with voting rights that dilute the voting power of our common stockholders in the instances in which they have the right to vote, the market price of our common stock could decrease. Similarly, the limited partnership agreement of the KKR Group Partnership authorizes the general partner of the KKR Group Partnership to issue an unlimited number of additional securities of the KKR Group Partnership with such designations, preferences, rights, powers and duties that are different from, and may be senior to, those applicable to the KKR Group Partnership Units, and which may be exchangeable for KKR Group Partnership Units. For example, in March and June of 2016, KKR issued 13,800,000 Series A preferred units (which have subsequently been converted to shares of Series A Preferred Stock) and 6,200,000 Series B preferred units (which have subsequently been converted to shares of Series B Preferred Stock), respectively, and in August of 2020, KKR issued 23,000,000 shares of Series C Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock, and in connection with such issuances, KKR Group Partnership issued preferred units with economic terms designed to mirror KKR's respective preferred units.
Our certificate of incorporation also provides us with a right to acquire all of the then outstanding shares of common stock under specified circumstances, which may adversely affect the price of our common stock and the ability of holders of our common stock to participate in further growth in our stock price.
Our certificate of incorporation provides that, if at any time, either (i) less than 10% of the total shares of any class our stock then outstanding (other than Series I preferred stock, Series II preferred stock and other series of preferred stock) is held by persons other than the Series I preferred stockholder and its affiliates or (ii) we are subjected to registration under the provisions of the Investment Company Act, we may exercise our right to call and purchase all of the then outstanding shares of common stock held by persons other than the Series I preferred stockholder or its affiliates or assign this right to the Series I preferred stockholder or any of its affiliates. As a result, a stockholder may have his or her shares of our common stock purchased from him or her at an undesirable time or price and in a manner which adversely affects the ability of a stockholder to participate in further growth in our stock price.
Risks Related to Our Organizational Structure
Potential conflicts of interest may arise among the Series I preferred stockholder and the holders of our common stock.
Our founders, who also serve as our Co-Chairmen and Co-Chief Executive Officers, jointly control the Series I preferred stockholder when acting together. As a result, conflicts of interest may arise among the Series I preferred stockholder and its controlling persons, on the one hand, and us and the holders of our common stock, on the other hand.
The Series I preferred stockholder has the ability to appoint and remove members of our board of directors and has the right to approve certain corporate actions as specified in our certificate of incorporation (in addition to approval by our board of directors). See "—Certain actions by our board of directors require the approval of the Series I preferred stockholder, which is controlled by our Co-Chairmen and Co-Chief Executive Officers when acting together." If the holders of our common stock are dissatisfied with the performance of our board of directors, they have no ability to remove any of our directors, with or without cause.
Through its ability to elect our board of directors and its approval rights over certain corporate transactions, the Series I preferred stockholder may be deemed to control our business and affairs, including influence over the amount and timing of the KKR Group Partnership's investments and dispositions, indebtedness and cash expenditures (including those relating to compensation, issuances of additional partner interests, tax liabilities and amounts of reserves), each of which can affect the amount of cash that is available for distribution to holders of KKR Group Partnership Units.
In addition, conflicts may arise relating to the selection, structuring and disposition of investments and other transactions, declaring dividends and other distributions and other matters due to the fact that our senior principals indirectly hold KKR Group Partnership Units through KKR Holdings, which is a pass-through entity that is not subject to corporate income taxation.
Certain actions by our board of directors require the approval of the Series I preferred stockholder, which is controlled by our Co-Chairmen and Co-Chief Executive Officers when acting together.
Although the affirmative vote of a majority of our directors is required for any action to be taken by our board of directors, certain specified actions will also require the approval of the Series I preferred stockholder, which is controlled by our Co-Chairmen and Co-Chief Executive Officers when acting together. These actions consist of the following:
•the entry into a debt financing arrangement by us in an amount in excess of 10% of our then existing long-term indebtedness (other than the entry into certain intercompany debt financing arrangements);
•the issuance by us or our subsidiaries of any securities that would (i) represent, after such issuance, or upon conversion, exchange or exercise, as the case may be, at least 5% on a fully diluted, as converted, exchanged or exercised basis, of any class of our or their equity securities or (ii) have designations, preferences, rights, priorities or powers that are more favorable than those of our common stock;
•the adoption by us of a shareholder rights plan;
•the amendment of our certificate of incorporation, certain provisions of our bylaws relating to our board of directors and officers or the operating agreement of the KKR Group Partnership;
•the exchange or disposition of all or substantially all of our assets or the assets of the KKR Group Partnership;
•the merger, sale or other combination of our company or the KKR Group Partnership with or into any other person;
•the transfer, mortgage, pledge, hypothecation or grant of a security interest in all or substantially all of the assets of the KKR Group Partnership;
•the appointment or removal of our Chief Executive Officer or a Co-Chief Executive Officer;
•the termination of our employment of any of our officers or the officers of any of our subsidiaries or the termination of the association of a partner with any of our subsidiaries, in each case, without cause;
•the liquidation or dissolution of us or the KKR Group Partnership; and
•the withdrawal, removal or substitution of any person as the general partner of the KKR Group Partnership or the transfer of beneficial ownership of all or any part of a general partner interest in the KKR Group Partnership to any person other than a wholly-owned subsidiary.
The Series I preferred stockholder may transfer its interest in the sole share of Series I preferred stock which could materially alter our business.
The Series I preferred stockholder may transfer the sole outstanding share of our Series I preferred stock held by it to a third party upon receipt of approval to do so by our board of directors and satisfaction of certain other requirements, and without the consent of the holders of our common stock or Series II preferred stock. Further, the partners of the Series I preferred stockholder may sell or transfer all or part of their partnership interests in the Series I preferred stockholder at any time without KKR's approval. A new holder of our Series I preferred stock or new controlling partners of the Series I preferred stockholder may appoint directors to our board of directors who have a different philosophy and/or investment objectives from those of our current directors. A new holder of our Series I preferred stock, new controlling partners of the Series I preferred stockholder and/or the directors they appoint to our board of directors could also have a different philosophy for the management of our business, including the hiring and compensation of our investment professionals. If any of the foregoing were to occur, we could experience difficulty in forming new funds and other investment vehicles and in making new investments, and the value of our existing investments, our business, our results of operations and our financial condition could materially suffer.
We intend to pay periodic dividends to the holders of our common stock and preferred stock, but our ability to do so may be limited by our holding company structure and contractual restrictions.
We intend to pay cash dividends on a quarterly basis. We are a holding company and have no material assets other than the KKR Group Partnership Units that we hold through a wholly-owned subsidiary and have no independent means of generating income. Accordingly, we intend to cause the KKR Group Partnership to make distributions on the KKR Group Partnership Units in order to provide us with sufficient amounts to fund dividends we may declare. If the KKR Group Partnership makes such distributions, other holders of KKR Group Partnership Units, including KKR Holdings, will be entitled to receive equivalent distributions pro rata based on their KKR Group Partnership Units.
The declaration and payment of dividends to our stockholders will be at the sole discretion of our board of directors, and our dividend policy may be changed at any time. The declaration and payment of dividends is subject to legal, contractual and regulatory restrictions on the payment of dividends by us or our subsidiaries, including restrictions contained in our debt agreements, the terms of our certificate of incorporation, and such other factors as the board of directors considers relevant including, among others: our available cash and current and anticipated cash needs, including funding of investment commitments and debt service and future debt repayment obligations; general economic and business conditions; our strategic plans and prospects; our results of operations and financial condition; and our capital requirements. Under Section 170 of the DGCL, our board of directors may only declare and pay dividends either out of our surplus (as defined in DGCL) or in case there is no such surplus, out of our net profits for the fiscal year in which the dividend is declared and/or the preceding fiscal year. However, dividends may not be declared out of net profits if our capital, computed in accordance with DGCL, shall have been diminished by depreciation in the value of our property, or by losses, or otherwise, to an amount less than the aggregate amount of the capital represented by the issued and outstanding stock of all classes having a preference upon the distribution of assets. Furthermore, by paying cash dividends rather than investing that cash in our businesses, we risk slowing the pace of our growth, or not having a sufficient amount of cash to fund our operations, new investments or unanticipated capital expenditures, should the need arise.
Our preferred stock ranks senior to our common stock with respect to the payment of dividends. Unless dividends have been declared and paid or declared and set apart for payment on the Series A Preferred Stock and the Series B Preferred Stock for a quarterly dividend, during the remainder of that dividend period we may not declare or pay or set apart payment for dividends on any class of stock of KKR & Co. Inc. that are junior to the Series A Preferred Stock and the Series B Preferred Stock, including our common stock, and we may not repurchase any such junior stock. In addition, unless all accumulated and unpaid dividends on the Series C Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock for all preceding dividend periods have been declared and paid or declared and set apart for payment, we may not declare or pay or set apart payment for dividends on any class of stock of KKR & Co. Inc. that are junior to the Series C Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock, including our common stock, and we may not repurchase any such junior stock.
Dividends on the Series A Preferred Stock and the Series B Preferred Stock are discretionary and non-cumulative, and dividends on the Series C Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock are discretionary and cumulative. Holders of preferred stock will only receive dividends on their shares of preferred stock when, as and if declared by our board of directors. If dividends on the Series A Preferred Stock, Series B Preferred Stock or Series C Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock have not been
declared and paid for the equivalent of six or more quarterly dividend periods, whether or not consecutive, holders of such preferred stock, together as a class with holders of any other series of parity stock with like voting rights, will be entitled to vote for the election of two additional directors to our board of directors. When quarterly dividends have been declared and paid or declared and set apart for payment, in the case of the Series C Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock, in full, or, in the case of the Series A Preferred Stock and the Series B Preferred Stock, for four consecutive quarters following such a nonpayment event, the right of the holders of preferred stock and such parity stock to elect these two additional directors will cease, the terms of office of these two directors will forthwith terminate and the number of directors constituting our board of directors will be reduced accordingly. Additional risks related to the Series A Preferred Stock, Series B Preferred Stock and Series C Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock are contained in the prospectus supplement relating to the respective securities.
We will be required to pay our principals for most of the benefits relating to our use of tax attributes we receive from prior and future exchanges of our common stock for KKR Group Partnership Units and related transactions, and the timing and value of these tax attributes differ from those of our restricted stock units.
We are required to acquire KKR Group Partnership Units from time to time pursuant to our exchange agreement with KKR Holdings. Certain of these exchanges are expected to result in an increase in our share of the tax basis of the tangible and intangible assets of the KKR Group Partnership, primarily attributable to a portion of the goodwill inherent in our business that would not otherwise have been available. This increase in tax basis may increase (for tax purposes) depreciation and amortization and therefore reduce the amount of income tax we would otherwise be required to pay in the future. This increase in tax basis may also decrease gain (or increase loss) on future dispositions of certain capital assets to the extent tax basis is allocated to those capital assets.
We have entered into a tax receivable agreement with KKR Holdings, which requires us to pay to KKR Holdings or to current and former principals who have exchanged KKR Holdings units for shares of common stock as transferees of KKR Group Partnership Units, 85% of the amount of cash tax savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state and local income tax that we realize as a result of this increase in tax basis, as well as 85% of the amount of any such savings we actually realize as a result of increases in tax basis that arise due to future payments under the agreement. A termination of the agreement or a change of control could give rise to similar payments based on tax savings that we would be deemed to realize in connection with such events. These payment obligations are obligations of KKR & Co. Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary and not of the KKR Group Partnership. The tax receivable agreement does not apply to the restricted holdings units that are issued under our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan. These restricted holdings units are not related to KKR Holdings. While the tax receivable agreement does not apply to restricted holdings units issued under our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan (and therefore we will receive 100% of any tax benefits arising from the exchange of restricted holdings units for shares of our common stock), any tax benefits we realize from the exchange of KKR Holdings units or restricted holdings units would be deferred until the holders thereof elect to exchange such units for shares of our common stock. The timing of the tax benefit is different with respect to our restricted stock units issued under our Equity Incentive Plans, where we realize any tax benefit at the time of vesting, which is generally earlier than the time of exchange of KKR Holdings units or restricted holdings units. As a result, the actual increase in tax basis and the amount of tax savings in any given year will vary depending upon a number of factors, including the timing of exchanges, the number of units exchanged, the price of our common stock at the time of the exchange, the extent to which such exchanges are taxable and the amount and timing of our taxable income. We expect that, as a result of the size of the increases in the tax basis of the tangible and intangible assets of the KKR Group Partnership, the payments that we may be required to make to KKR Holdings or to our current or former principals under the tax receivable agreement will be substantial.
We recorded $204.0 million in our consolidated statements of financial condition as of December 31, 2020, representing the estimated aggregate future payment amount, on an undiscounted basis, under the tax receivable agreement as of such date for previously exchanged KKR Holdings units. See "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity—Other Liquidity Needs—Contractual Obligations, Commitments and Contingencies." As of December 31, 2020, 275.6 million KKR Holdings units (the "Remaining KKR Holdings Units") remained available for exchange into shares of our common stock. The present value of our aggregate cash tax savings is highly dependent on the assumed discount rate used for its calculation. Assuming (i) all of the Remaining KKR Holdings Units had been exchanged for shares of our common stock on December 31, 2020, (ii) all such exchanges were taxable to the exchanging unitholders, (iii) the market value of our common stock was $40.49 per share (which was the closing price on December 31, 2020), and (iv) our effective tax rate, for federal, state and local income tax combined, was 23.0%, we estimate that the present value of our aggregate cash tax savings over the next 15 years attributable to such hypothetical exchange of the Remaining KKR Holdings Units would have been approximately $1,250 million assuming a 7% per annum discount rate and approximately $822 million assuming a 15% per annum discount rate. Using the assumptions above, we estimate our payments under the tax receivable agreement to KKR Holdings and current and former principals attributable to such hypothetical exchange of the Remaining KKR Holdings Units would be 85% of the foregoing amounts, or $1,062 million using a 7% discount rate and $699 million using a 15% discount rate. The estimates above also assume that we would have taxable income sufficient to fully utilize the deductions arising from the increase in tax basis and any interest imputed with respect to our payment obligations under the tax
receivable agreement, and that there would be no future changes to federal, state or local income tax rates. The assumptions and estimates described above are for illustrative purposes only. These estimates are not intended to be a projection of any future financial results, and the actual increases in tax basis and any payments under the tax receivable agreement resulting from any exchanges of KKR Holdings units that occur in the future are expected to vary materially from these estimates. Moreover, the method for calculating the estimated aggregate future payment amount recorded in our financial statements differs in material respects from the assumptions used to calculate the present value of our aggregate cash tax savings over the next 15 years attributable to the hypothetical exchange of all Remaining KKR Holdings Units. For example, no discount rate has been applied to the estimated aggregate future payment amount for previously exchanged KKR Holdings units.
We may need to incur debt to finance payments under the tax receivable agreement to the extent our cash resources are insufficient to meet our obligations under the tax receivable agreement as a result of timing discrepancies or otherwise. In particular, our obligations under the tax receivable agreement would be effectively accelerated in the event of an early termination of the tax receivable agreement by us or in the event of certain mergers, asset sales and other forms of business combinations or other changes of control. In these situations, we would be required to pay an early termination payment based upon the net present value of all tax benefits that would be required to be paid by us to KKR Holdings and current and former principals who have exchanged KKR Holdings units. The method used to calculate the early termination payment is prescribed in the tax receivable agreement and the assumptions used for this purpose, including an applicable discount rate, which currently is LIBOR (as defined) plus 1% (LIBOR plus 1% was 1.14388% as of December 31, 2020), differ in material respects from the assumptions used to calculate the estimated present value of our aggregate cash tax savings for the hypothetical exchange of all Remaining KKR Holdings Units or the estimated payment amount for previously exchanged KKR Holdings units that is recorded in our financial statements. Accordingly, as of December 31, 2020, the amount of early termination payment would have been significantly larger than the present value of the estimated payments under the tax receivable agreement described above. At the time of the filing of this report, we have no intention to exercise the early termination right.
Payments under the tax receivable agreement will be based upon the tax reporting positions that we will determine. We are not aware of any issue that would cause the IRS to challenge a tax basis increase. However, neither KKR Holdings nor our current or former principals will reimburse us for any payments previously made under the tax receivable agreement if such tax basis increase, or the tax benefits we claim arising from such increase, is successfully challenged by the IRS. As a result, in certain circumstances, payments to KKR Holdings or our current or former principals under the tax receivable agreement could be in excess of our cash tax savings. Our ability to achieve benefits from any tax basis increase, and the payments to be made under the tax receivable agreement, will depend upon a number of factors, as discussed above, including the timing and amount of our future income.
If we were deemed to be an "investment company" subject to regulation under the Investment Company Act, applicable restrictions could make it impractical for us to continue our business as contemplated and could have a material adverse effect on our business.
A person will generally be deemed to be an "investment company" for purposes of the Investment Company Act if:
•it is or holds itself out as being engaged primarily, or proposes to engage primarily, in the business of investing, reinvesting or trading in securities; or
•absent an applicable exemption, it owns or proposes to acquire investment securities having a value exceeding 40% of the value of its total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis.
We regard ourselves as an investment management firm. We are engaged primarily in the business of providing investment management services and, through Global Atlantic, the insurance business, and not in the business of investing, reinvesting or trading in securities. Accordingly, we do not believe that we are an "orthodox" investment company as defined in Section 3(a)(1)(A) of the Investment Company Act and described in the first bullet point above.
With regard to the provision described in the second bullet point above, we have no material assets other than our equity interests in our sole subsidiary, which in turn has no material assets other than general partner interests in the KKR Group Partnership. Through these interests, we indirectly are vested with all management and control over the KKR Group Partnership. We do not believe our equity interests in our subsidiary are investment securities, and we believe that the capital interests of the general partners of our funds in their respective funds are neither securities nor investment securities. Accordingly, based on our determination, less than 40% of our total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis are comprised of assets that could be considered investment securities. However, our subsidiaries have a significant number of investment securities, and we expect to make investments in other investment securities from time to time. We monitor these holdings regularly to confirm our continued compliance with the 40% test described in the second bullet point above. The need to comply with this 40% test may cause us to restrict our business and
subsidiaries with respect to the assets in which we can invest and/or the types of securities we may issue, sell investment securities, including on unfavorable terms, acquire assets or businesses that could change the nature of our business or potentially take other actions that may be viewed as adverse by the holders of our common stock, in order to ensure conformity with exceptions provided by, and rules and regulations promulgated under, the Investment Company Act.
The Investment Company Act and the rules and regulations thereunder contain detailed parameters for the organization and operation of investment companies. Among other things, the Investment Company Act and the rules and regulations thereunder limit or prohibit transactions with affiliates, impose limitations on the issuance of debt and equity securities, generally prohibit the issuance of options and impose certain governance requirements. We intend to conduct our operations so that we will not be deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act. If anything were to happen which would cause us to be deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, requirements imposed by the Investment Company Act, including limitations on our capital structure, ability to transact business with affiliates and ability to compensate key employees, would make it impractical for us to continue our business as currently conducted, impair the agreements and arrangements between and among us, including the KKR Group Partnership, and KKR Holdings, and materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, we may be required to limit the amount of investments that we make as a principal, potentially divest of our investments or otherwise conduct our business in a manner that does not subject us to the registration and other requirements of the Investment Company Act.
With respect to our subsidiary Global Atlantic, we believe it is not and does not propose to be primarily engaged in the business of investing, reinvesting or trading in securities, and we do not believe that Global Atlantic has held itself out as such. Global Atlantic is primarily engaged through its wholly-owned insurance company subsidiaries in the business of writing insurance, and on an unconsolidated basis Global Atlantic expects that in excess of 65% of Global Atlantic's gross income will be derived from its wholly-owned insurance company subsidiaries. Global Atlantic's holding companies do not own or propose to own investment securities in excess of the 40% test. Global Atlantic's insurance company subsidiaries intend to operate so that in excess of 65% of their business is derived from insurance business, meaning such entities are exempt from designation as an investment company under Section 3(c)(6) of the Investment Company Act. If Global Atlantic were deemed an investment company, restrictions imposed by the Investment Company Act, including limitations on capital structure and ability to transact with affiliates, will likely make it impractical for Global Atlantic to continue its business operations as currently conducted. Global Atlantic may need to take significant actions to avoid registration as an investment company.
With respect to our subsidiary KFN, we believe it is not and does not propose to be primarily engaged in the business of investing, reinvesting or trading in securities, and we do not believe that KFN has held itself out as such. KFN conducts its operations primarily through its majority-owned subsidiaries, each of which is either outside of the definition of an investment company as defined in the Investment Company Act or excepted from such definition under the Investment Company Act. KFN monitors its holdings regularly to confirm its continued compliance with the 40% test described in the second bullet point above, and restricts its subsidiaries with respect to the assets in which each of them can invest and/or the types of securities each of them may issue in order to ensure conformity with exceptions provided by, and rules and regulations promulgated under, the Investment Company Act. If the SEC were to disagree with KFN's treatment of one or more of its subsidiaries as being excepted from the Investment Company Act, with its determination that one or more of its other holdings are not investment securities for purposes of the 40% test, or with its determinations as to the nature of its business or the manner in which it holds itself out, KFN and/or one or more of its subsidiaries could be required either (i) to change substantially the manner in which it conducts its operations to avoid being subject to the Investment Company Act or (ii) to register as an investment company. Either of these would likely have a material adverse effect on KFN, its ability to service its indebtedness and to make distributions on its shares, and on the market price of its securities, and could thereby materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
In 2011, the SEC published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking regarding Rule 3a-7 under the Investment Company Act and a concept release seeking information on Section 3(c)(5)(C) of the Investment Company Act, two provisions with which KKR's subsidiaries, including KFN, must comply under the 40% test described above. Among the issues for which the SEC has requested comment is whether Rule 3a-7 should be modified so that parent companies of subsidiaries that rely on Rule 3a-7 should treat their interests in such subsidiaries as investment securities for purposes of the 40% test. The SEC is also seeking information about the nature of entities that invest in mortgages and mortgage-related pools and how the SEC staff's interpretive positions in connection with Section 3(c)(5)(C) affect these entities. Although no further action has been taken by the SEC, any guidance or action from the SEC or its staff, including changes that the SEC may ultimately propose and adopt to the way Rule 3a-7 applies to entities or new or modified interpretive positions related to Section 3(c)(5)(C), could further inhibit KKR's ability, or the ability of any of its subsidiaries, including KFN, to pursue its current or future operating strategies, which could have a material adverse effect on us.
We may from time to time undertake internal reorganizations that may adversely impact our business and results of operations.
On July 1, 2018, we converted from a Delaware limited partnership to a Delaware corporation, and on January 1, 2020, we completed an internal reorganization to, among other changes, combine KKR Management Holdings L.P. and KKR International Holdings L.P., which were former intermediate holdings companies for KKR's business, with another intermediate holding company, KKR Fund Holdings L.P., which changed its name to KKR Group Partnership L.P. From time to time, we may undertake other internal reorganizations or make other changes in an effort to simplify our organizational structure, streamline our operations, increase our stockholder base or for other operational reasons. These reorganizations or changes could be disruptive to our business, result in significant expense, require regulatory approvals, and may not be successful in achieving its objectives or fail to result in the intended or expected benefits, any of which could adversely impact our business and results of operations.
Anti-takeover provisions in our organizational documents could delay or prevent a change of control.
Certain provisions in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws may discourage, delay or prevent a merger or acquisition that a stockholder may consider favorable by, for example:
•permitting our board of directors to issue one or more series of preferred stock;
•requiring advance notice for stockholder proposals and nominations if they are ever permitted by applicable law; and
•placing limitations on convening stockholder meetings.
These provisions may also discourage acquisition proposals or delay or prevent a change in control. See "Description of Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934," which is filed as an exhibit to this report.
Risks Related to Global Atlantic
Our insurance business is operated by Global Atlantic, which we acquired on February 1, 2021. Beginning with the first quarter of 2021, Global Atlantic's financial results will be consolidated in KKR's financial statements as a separate reportable segment. Accordingly, the following risk factors may impact our consolidated financial results and materially adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Business Risks Related to Global Atlantic
The Global Atlantic acquisition may not achieve its intended benefits, and certain difficulties, costs or expenses may outweigh such intended benefits.
We may be unable to realize the anticipated benefits of the Global Atlantic acquisition in the timeframe that we expect or at all. Achieving the anticipated benefits, including the acquisition's impact on KKR’s AUM, FPAUM, book value, fee related earnings and after-tax distributable earnings, is subject to a number of uncertainties, including whether the Global Atlantic business will continue to operate and grow in the manner we anticipate.
While Global Atlantic is expected to continue to operate as a separate business, the acquisition may result in material difficulties, costs, and expenses, including:
•incremental operating costs arising from the integration of certain standards, controls, procedures and policies, including Global Atlantic's obligations to provide financial reporting as a subsidiary of a public company;
•unknown potential liabilities of Global Atlantic, including those for which we may become responsible or take responsibility;
•potential liabilities arising from claims by roll-over investors or co-investors of Global Atlantic, who own approximately 40% of Global Atlantic;
•the potential loss of key employees at Global Atlantic and the costs associated with our efforts to retain or replace them;
•disruptions or perceived disruptions resulting from the acquisition that may affect Global Atlantic's relationships with its policyholders and counterparties;
•provisions in Global Atlantic's contracts with third parties that may permit a termination upon a change of control or purport to apply to its affiliates, including KKR; and
•the significant attention required from our senior management, some of whom will join the Global Atlantic board of directors and are expected to provide oversight of the Global Atlantic business.
Importantly, a significant portion of the benefit of the acquisition is anticipated to come from KKR’s role as investment adviser for Global Atlantic’s insurance subsidiaries. KKR has not previously managed the entirety of the investment assets of an insurance company or assets of insurance companies at this scale, and we may not achieve our respective objectives. In addition, our investment management will require the assistance of Global Atlantic employees, with whom we have not historically worked.
Many of the foregoing factors will be outside of our control and any one of them could result in increased costs, decreases in the amount of expected revenues and diversion of management's time and energy, which could adversely affect our and Global Atlantic's business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, other events outside of our control, including, but not limited to, political climate, the severity and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, and regulatory or legislative changes, could also adversely affect our ability to realize the anticipated benefits from the acquisition. As a result of these risks, we may fail to realize some or all of the anticipated benefits of the acquisition or in an amount sufficient to offset the potential difficulties, costs and expenses arising from the acquisition. Accordingly, stockholders and potential investors should not place undue reliance on our expectation of the anticipated benefits from the acquisition.
In addition, while we expect Global Atlantic to continue to operate as a separate business with its existing brands and management team following the acquisition, acquiring Global Atlantic adds significantly to the scale and scope of KKR's overall business and operations. Although KKR has owned insurance companies as investments in its funds in the past, KKR has never owned an insurance company as a majority-owned subsidiary. Acquiring Global Atlantic changes the risks to which we are subject and may give rise to new and unexpected operational risks that could offset some of the benefits we expected from the acquisition.
Inclusion of Global Atlantic's business as a consolidated subsidiary of KKR will result in certain incremental risks to KKR, which risks are expected to be material and could have a material adverse effect on our future results of operations and financial condition. The addition of Global Atlantic’s business may also exacerbate existing risks to KKR's business.
Following the acquisition, Global Atlantic operates its business as a consolidated subsidiary of KKR. KKR has not historically engaged in a business similar to Global Atlantic and Global Atlantic's business and structure pose incremental risks to KKR, many of which may be material. These risks include, but are not limited to:
•business operational risks, including macroeconomic changes, interest rate and credit spread fluctuations and the impact of such changes on interest-sensitive products, the competitive nature of the insurance and reinsurance industry, use of derivative instruments within its risk management strategy, the illiquidity of certain investment assets and the potential difficulty of selling and/or realizing full value on such assets if necessary, the performance of third-party service providers, the use of distribution partners rather than captive or proprietary distribution or direct sales, differences between policyholder behavior estimates, reserve assumptions and actual claims experience, volatility in net income under GAAP due to Global Atlantic's funds withheld coinsurance transactions and expected increased volatility in its GAAP financial statements due to the implementation of long-duration targeted improvements in 2022;
•risks related to Global Atlantic's growth strategy, which includes reinsurance of insurance obligations written by unaffiliated insurance companies, the ability to identify attractive insurance markets, reinsurance opportunities, or investments with returns as favorable as those obtained historically, and ability to effectively manage its growth;
•regulatory risks relating to the insurance and reinsurance industries, including capital regulations, laws or regulations which impose meaningful limitations on its business, fiduciary or best interest standards in connection with the sale of Global Atlantic's products, regulations relating to reserves and obligations to pay assessments through guaranty associations, changes in statutory accounting principles, heightened privacy regulations, and uncertainty regarding future changes in regulations;
•litigation and regulatory risks, including risks related to Global Atlantic's recently completed systems conversion of certain in-force life insurance policies that has caused disruptions in servicing such policies and resulted in policyholder complaints, class action lawsuits, regulatory fines and ongoing regulatory matters and scrutiny;
•tax risks, including those associated with The Global Atlantic Financial Group LLC's status as a non-U.S. taxpayer and challenges to such status and tax risks associated with Global Atlantic's corporate structure, including risks to retaining its non-U.S. taxpayer companies' exemption from corporate taxation in Bermuda;
•risks related to guarantees within certain of Global Atlantic's insurance products;
•any gaps in Global Atlantic's risk management policies and procedures, which may leave it exposed to unidentified or unanticipated risk;
•risks associated with the business Global Atlantic reinsures and business it cedes to reinsurers;
•risks associated with not owning 100% of the economic interests of a subsidiary while owning 100% of its voting interests.
Each of these risks could have material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
In addition, the Global Atlantic acquisition may heighten the potential adverse effects on our business, operating results, cash flows or financial condition described in other risk factors contained in this report, including, but not limited to:
•risks related to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on our business, as well as to other natural and man-made disasters and catastrophes;
•risks related to changes in general, economic, market and political conditions;
•risks related to adverse capital and credit market conditions;
•risks related to collection and retention of confidential information and compliance with related regulations; and
•regulatory risks across numerous jurisdictions.
Beginning with the first quarter of 2021, we intend to present Global Atlantic's financial results as a separate reportable segment. Accordingly, the risks applicable to Global Atlantic will impact our consolidated financial results our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Interest rate fluctuations and sustained periods of low or high interest rates could adversely affect Global Atlantic’s business, financial condition, liquidity, results of operations, cash flows and prospects.
Interest rate risk is a significant market risk for Global Atlantic, as fluctuations in market interest rates can expose Global Atlantic to the risk of reduced income in respect of its investment portfolio, increases in the cost of acquiring or maintaining its insurance liabilities, increases in the cost of hedging, or other fluctuations in Global Atlantic's financial, capital and operating profile which materially and adversely affect the business. Global Atlantic defines interest rate risk as the risk of a loss due to changes in interest rates. This risk arises from Global Atlantic's holdings in interest rate-sensitive assets and liabilities, which includes annuity products and long-duration life insurance policies, derivative contracts with payments linked to the level of interest rates or with market values which fluctuate based on the level of interest rates, and the fixed income assets Global Atlantic owns in its investment portfolio. Interest rate risk also includes adverse changes in customer behavior that may occur as a result of changes in interest rates. Both rising and declining interest rates can negatively affect Global Atlantic's business.
Higher interest rates may result in increased surrenders on interest-sensitive products, such as annuity contracts and certain life insurance policies, which may adversely affect Global Atlantic's earnings related to those products. This risk is present across most of Global Atlantic's insurance products, which can typically be surrendered for the cash value, less any applicable surrender charge, at any time. Higher policyholder surrenders may occur in response to rising interest rates as higher crediting rate investments might become available to policyholders in a higher rate environment. This increase in surrender outflows may create cash flow mismatches between cash received from Global Atlantic's investments versus cash needed to make policyholder liability payments. This mismatch could result in losses if assets must be liquidated at a loss to meet the increased policyholder obligations. An increase in surrenders or withdrawals also may cause Global Atlantic to accelerate the amortization of deferred acquisition costs ("DAC") and value of business acquired ("VOBA"), resulting in a decline in net income. Additionally, an increase in market interest rates could also have a material adverse effect on the value of Global Atlantic's investment portfolio by, for example, decreasing the fair values of the fixed income securities and other interest rate-sensitive securities within Global Atlantic's investment portfolio at a time when we may be forced to liquidate investments.
During periods of falling interest rates, Global Atlantic may face cash flow mismatches between interest earned on its investment portfolio and policyholder liabilities that may be crediting higher rates. Global Atlantic has the discretion, subject to contractual limitations and minimums, to reset the crediting rates on the majority of its general account products. However, Global Atlantic's ability to lower crediting rates is subject to several constraints. For instance, minimum crediting rates are filed with and approved by state regulators, and certain products contain interest rate guarantee periods and other characteristics that restrict this ability, among other restrictions. In addition, competition and other factors, including the potential for increases in surrenders and withdrawals, may limit Global Atlantic's ability to adjust or maintain crediting rates at levels necessary to avoid decreases in earnings under certain conditions. Continued low interest rates could challenge product development and product
attractiveness, and may also result in Global Atlantic earning lower margins on new business volumes than Global Atlantic has historically earned. Lower interest rates may reduce the demand for Global Atlantic's insurance products, leading to lower sales. In addition, lower interest rates may make the reinsurance solutions Global Atlantic is able to offer more expensive to potential clients, decreasing their interest in executing reinsurance transactions with Global Atlantic. In a period of declining interest rates, Global Atlantic's investment earnings may decline because new investments will likely bear lower interest rates, and Global Atlantic may not be able to fully offset the decline in investment earnings with lower liability costs on the products these investments support. In addition, the yield on Global Atlantic's floating rate assets will decline as interest rates decline, reducing Global Atlantic's investment income. During periods of declining interest rates, life insurance and annuity products also may be relatively more attractive to consumers due to minimum guarantees, resulting in a higher percentage of contracts remaining in force than originally estimated, causing greater claims costs and asset/liability cash flow mismatches. Conversely, management actions to reduce rates on inforce contracts in response to declining interest rates may result in greater surrenders than originally estimated, which may adversely affect Global Atlantic's earnings related to those products. While Global Atlantic seeks to cash-flow match its assets to its policy liabilities, the COVID-19 pandemic has created greater volatility and uncertainty making such matching more difficult. To the extent that Global Atlantic does not or is unsuccessful in cash-flow matching, Global Atlantic will face the risk of having to reinvest in lower-yielding assets, reducing investment income. Moreover, certain of Global Atlantic's life insurance policies have a longer duration than available investment assets, and, in a declining rate environment, as assets backing these policies mature, the proceeds may have to be reinvested in lower-yielding assets, reducing investment income.
The difference between shorter-term and longer-term rates (also known as the yield curve) may also impact Global Atlantic's business. Global Atlantic's investments are typically in longer-duration assets. Accordingly, the crediting rates offered on Global Atlantic's products typically appear more appealing when the yield curve is steeper, and Global Atlantic is better able to differentiate its products from shorter-term alternatives.
Global Atlantic's use of derivative financial instruments within its risk management strategy may not be effective or sufficient.
As part of Global Atlantic's risk management strategy, it employs derivative instruments to hedge certain market risks, including interest rate risk and equity price risk. Global Atlantic offers a variety of products that are exposed to market risks, such as fixed-indexed annuities, indexed universal life and variable annuities, in particular, products with guaranteed benefits. Global Atlantic's risk management hedge program seeks to mitigate economic impacts relating to its insurance products primarily from interest rate and equity price movements, while taking into consideration accounting and capital impacts by purchasing derivative financial instruments. Hedging to mitigate economic impacts may result in additional volatility in Global Atlantic's GAAP results or in adverse impacts on the level of statutory capital and the risk-based capital ("RBC") ratios of its insurance subsidiaries.
Hedging using derivative financial instruments may not effectively offset changes in the carrying value of insurance reserves due to, among other things, the time lag between changes in the value of such reserves and the changes in the value of the derivative financial instruments purchased by Global Atlantic, extreme changes in credit and/or equity market and/or interest rate levels or volatility, policyholder behavior that differs from expectations, and divergence between the performance of the underlying funds of such variable annuity products with guaranteed benefit features and the indexes utilized by Global Atlantic in estimating exposure to such guarantees.
Global Atlantic may also choose not to hedge, in whole or in part, risks it has identified, due to, for example, the availability and/or cost of a suitable derivative financial instrument or Global Atlantic's view of credit, equity and/or interest rate market levels or volatility. Additionally, the estimates and assumptions made in connection with Global Atlantic's use of any derivative financial instrument may fail to reflect or correspond to actual long-term exposure in respect of identified risks. In addition, Global Atlantic may fail to identify risks, or the magnitude thereof, to which it is exposed. Global Atlantic is also exposed to the risk that its use of derivative financial instruments within its risk management strategy may not be properly designed or may not be properly implemented as designed.
Global Atlantic is also subject to the risk that its derivative counterparties or clearinghouse may fail or refuse to meet their obligations to Global Atlantic under derivative financial instruments. If Global Atlantic's derivative counterparties or clearinghouse fail, refuse to meet their obligations in this regard or there is insufficient collateral to cover potential obligations, Global Atlantic's efforts to mitigate risks to which it is subject may prove to be ineffective or inefficient.
Global Atlantic operates in a highly competitive industry that includes a number of companies, many of which are larger and more well-known, which could limit Global Atlantic's ability to increase or maintain market share and/or margins.
Global Atlantic operates in highly competitive markets and competes with large and small industry participants. Global Atlantic faces intense competition, based upon price, terms and conditions, relationships with distribution partners and other clients, quality of service, capital and perceived financial strength (including independent rating agencies' ratings), technology, innovation, ease of use, capacity, product breadth, reputation and experience, brand recognition and claims processing.
Global Atlantic's competitors include other insurers, reinsurers and other financial institutions that offer investment products. Many of Global Atlantic's competitors are large and well-established, and some have greater market share or breadth of distribution, assume a greater level of risk while maintaining financial strength ratings, or have higher financial strength, claims-paying or credit ratings than Global Atlantic does or benefit, by offering various lines of insurance, from diversification of risks and possible positive impacts on capital requirements. Global Atlantic's competitors may also have lower operating costs than Global Atlantic, which may allow them to price insurance products, reinsurance solutions or acquisitions more competitively. Furthermore, Global Atlantic may face greater operational complexity when compared to competitors who offer a more limited range of products due to the breadth of Global Atlantic's product offering.
Competition in the industry could result in increased pressure on the pricing of certain of Global Atlantic's products and services, and could harm Global Atlantic's ability to maintain or increase profitable growth. For example, fixed annuity sales are materially impacted by the crediting rate offered on Global Atlantic's fixed annuities compared to that offered by its competitors. There can be no guarantee that Global Atlantic will be able or choose to set crediting rates at competitive levels, which may impact sales. Moreover, sales to fiduciaries may be materially impacted by Global Atlantic's ability and willingness to offer one of the most competitive crediting rates.
Global Atlantic believes that there is also increased competition with respect to service quality and ease of use of new business paperwork and processing and ongoing policy administration services. Poor service quality, including by Global Atlantic's third-party administrators, may impact its reputation and relationships and consequently Global Atlantic's sales, persistency and renewals. Global Atlantic is working to address this competition by expanding its digital capabilities. Global Atlantic's transition to digital, such as providing electronic statements or using online application processes, may be disruptive to Global Atlantic's operations. If such disruption negatively impacts policyholder experience or the receipt of accurate data, it could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's reputation, business, results of operations and financial condition.
In addition, Global Atlantic is aware that non-traditional firms have been entering the institutional channel, and traditional reinsurers have been expanding their areas of expertise, both of which could have a significant effect on competition in Global Atlantic's industry, as future opportunities in the reinsurance market may be more competitive due to the number of new entrants and their capital resources.
Because of the highly competitive nature of the insurance industry, there can be no assurance that Global Atlantic will maintain or grow its market share, continue to identify attractive opportunities in either the individual or institutional markets, or that competitive pressure will not have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Global Atlantic depends on the performance of its third-party service providers, including distribution partners and agents, and their failure to perform in a satisfactory manner could negatively affect Global Atlantic's business.
A number of elements of Global Atlantic's operations are managed on an outsourced basis. These arrangements create performance risks for Global Atlantic's business and, to a lesser extent, create the risk that Global Atlantic's operating expenses will increase. Failure in or poor performance by Global Atlantic's third-party service providers, including, for example, if the third party fails to meet contractual requirements, fails to comply with applicable laws and regulations, suffers a cyber-attack or other security breach, fails to provide Global Atlantic or its policyholders with timely and accurate information or fails to maintain adequate internal controls, could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition. If Global Atlantic elects to replace any of these third-party service providers due to such failures or poor performance, Global Atlantic may incur costs in connection with finding, retaining and operationalizing suitable replacement providers. In addition, the time and attention of senior management may be diverted away from ongoing business operations. Global Atlantic has settled policyholder and agent class action litigation matters and a number of regulatory matters stemming from service disruptions caused by its third-party administrator for life insurance policies Alliance-One Service, Inc. ("Alliance-One"). Global Atlantic and Alliance-One have agreed to amend Global Atlantic's administration contract with Alliance-One to mitigate the risk of other disruptions in the future, but there can be no guarantee these mitigation efforts will be successful. See "Legal Proceedings." Global Atlantic may continue to experience reputational impacts and heightened regulatory scrutiny as a result of these matters.
With respect to third-party service providers who perform policy administration and compliance services for Global Atlantic's registered investment adviser and broker-dealer subsidiaries, failures in, or poor performance by, these third-party administrators could result in an increase in customer complaints and regulatory intervention. Poor performance by third-party administrators may also have a negative impact on Global Atlantic’s wholesaler, agent and distribution partner relationships. If any of these third-party administrators or their employees are found to have made material misrepresentations to Global Atlantic's policyholders, violated applicable insurance, privacy or other laws and regulations or otherwise engaged in misconduct, Global Atlantic could be held liable for their actions, which could adversely affect Global Atlantic's reputation and business prospects, may lead to regulatory sanctions or litigation and could result in financial harm. The precautions Global Atlantic takes to prevent and detect this activity may not be effective in all cases. Although Global Atlantic employs controls and procedures designed to monitor agents and vendors and to prevent the taking of excessive or inappropriate risks, agents and employees of Global Atlantic's vendors may take such risks regardless of such controls and procedures.
Because Global Atlantic's products are distributed through unaffiliated distribution partners, Global Atlantic does not have direct supervision or control over the manner in which its products are distributed, resulting in compliance and operational risks. Global Atlantic relies on these intermediaries to describe and explain its products to potential policyholders. If such intermediaries are deemed to have acted on Global Atlantic's behalf, the intentional or unintentional misrepresentation of Global Atlantic's products and services in advertising materials or other external communications, or inappropriate activities by Global Atlantic's personnel or an intermediary could result in liability for Global Atlantic and have an adverse effect on its reputation and business prospects, as well as lead to potential regulatory actions or litigation. For example, FINRA and state insurance regulators scrutinize the suitability of annuity sales to policyholders and have in the past initiated industry litigation in situations where annuity sales have allegedly been unsuitable for the financial needs of seniors. If Global Atlantic's products are distributed by third parties in an inappropriate manner or to policyholders for whom such products are not suitable, Global Atlantic may suffer material adverse reputational and financial harm. For example, Global Atlantic and the broader life insurance industry have from time to time experienced, and may experience in the future, agents engaging in unlawful practices in the sale of life insurance policies, resulting in lower than anticipated profitability on such policies.
In addition, if any of Global Atlantic's service providers fails to provide Global Atlantic with timely and accurate data, the accuracy of Global Atlantic's financial reporting may be impacted. Global Atlantic also includes in its financial statements financial data received from third parties relating to certain investments accounted for under the equity method. Global Atlantic also relies on other providers for valuations related to its investment portfolio. Should any service provider fail to accurately record information pertaining to Global Atlantic’s investment portfolio, Global Atlantic may inadvertently include inaccurate information in its financial statements.
In many of Global Atlantic's reinsurance agreements, Global Atlantic relies on the ceding companies to whom it provides reinsurance, or the third-party administrators with whom they contract, to provide policy administration and policyholder services and to provide timely and accurate financial and operating information. Global Atlantic may experience inaccuracies in its earnings as a result of erroneous or untimely reporting from its reinsurance company clients or the third-party administrators with whom they contract. Global Atlantic cannot provide any assurances that erroneous information received from third parties will be identified and resolved such that the information is included without error, which may impact Global Atlantic's business and servicing quality.
Guarantees within certain of Global Atlantic's products may decrease Global Atlantic's earnings, increase the volatility of Global Atlantic's results, result in higher risk costs for Global Atlantic and expose Global Atlantic to increased counterparty risk.
Certain of Global Atlantic's retirement and life products include guaranteed minimum death benefits, guaranteed minimum income benefits or no-lapse guarantees. These guarantees are designed to protect policyholders against significant downturns in securities markets and interest rates, or to provide certain minimum levels of coverage. Changes in markets may result in the requirement to hold additional reserves with respect to these policies, which may negatively impact Global Atlantic's liquidity or require it to raise additional capital. Periods of significant and sustained downturns in securities markets, increased equity volatility, reduced interest rates, or deviations in expected policyholder behavior could result in an increase in the valuation of Global Atlantic's liabilities associated with those products. Global Atlantic conducts a review of the assumptions used to value its liabilities in the third quarter of each year. An increase in these liabilities would result in a decrease in Global Atlantic's net income. For example, Global Atlantic has reinsured and previously issued universal life policies, for which Global Atlantic provides a secondary, no-lapse guarantee to the policyholder. Global Atlantic holds an additional reserve in connection with these guarantees, which is calculated over a range of economic scenarios to incorporate the variability in the obligation that may occur under different environments. Market movements or changes in the demographics of Global Atlantic's no-lapse guarantee policyholders may cause quarterly volatility, which may be significant, in Global Atlantic's calculation of these reserves.
In addition, declining equity market prices, increasing equity market volatility and declining interest rates can result in an increase in the cost of providing variable annuity policy benefits and can increase required reserves, reducing Global Atlantic's
profitability. Declining market values for fixed income investments and equities also reduce the account balances of Global Atlantic's variable annuity contracts, which can have the effect of reducing Global Atlantic's profitability because it collects fees and risk charges based on these account balances. Lower variable annuity account balances also impact the profitability of variable annuity contracts that include a guaranteed minimum withdrawal feature that entitles the contract owner to withdraw a contractually determined amount each year that is a percentage of his or her benefit base or total guaranteed amount.
Global Atlantic uses risk management strategies, including hedging, to manage the economic exposure to interest rates and equity markets, with consideration of accounting and capital impacts. These strategies involve the use of reinsurance and derivatives, which may not be completely effective. For example, in the event that reinsurers or derivative counterparties are unable or unwilling to pay, Global Atlantic remains liable for the guaranteed benefits. In addition, hedging instruments may not effectively offset the costs of guarantees or may otherwise be insufficient in relation to Global Atlantic's obligations. Increased market volatility or implied volatility, declining equity market prices and other changes in capital markets may also subject Global Atlantic to increased hedging costs. Furthermore, Global Atlantic is subject to the risk that changes in policyholder behavior or mortality, combined with adverse market events, produce economic losses not addressed by the risk management techniques employed. These, individually or collectively, could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, financial condition and results of operations.
Global Atlantic may experience volatility in its net income under GAAP due to accounting standards for derivatives.
Pursuant to current accounting guidance (Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") Accounting Standard Codification Topic 815, Derivatives and Hedging), Global Atlantic's derivative instruments, including certain derivative instruments embedded in other contracts (such as policyholder or reinsurance contracts), are generally recognized on the balance sheet at their fair values and changes in fair value are recognized immediately in earnings. This affects certain revenues and expenses Global Atlantic reports for its business as described below. These fair values are sensitive to various factors including, but not limited to, interest rate movements, credit spreads, and various other factors. Because of this, changes in these fair values may cause increased levels of volatility in Global Atlantic's financial statements.
In particular, Global Atlantic must mark to market the options and other derivative instruments purchased or sold to hedge Global Atlantic's business based upon quoted market prices from counterparties, which incorporate many market factors. Global Atlantic records the change in fair value of these instruments as a component of Global Atlantic's revenues. The change in fair value of derivatives includes the gains or losses recognized at expiration of any instrument or upon its early termination and changes in fair value for open positions.
Global Atlantic's fixed-indexed annuity, variable annuity and indexed universal life products contain equity-indexed features, which are accounted for as embedded derivatives and are required to be measured at fair value. Global Atlantic calculates the embedded derivative as the present value of future projected benefits in excess of the projected guaranteed benefits. In addition, the fair value of the embedded derivative is reduced to reflect the risk of non-performance on Global Atlantic's obligation, referred to as Global Atlantic's own credit risk. The fair value of this embedded derivative component includes assumptions about future interest rates and interest rate structures, future costs for options used to hedge the contract obligations, projected withdrawal and surrender activity, and the level and limits on contract participation in any future increases in market indexes such as the S&P 500 Index. The fair value of the embedded derivative component of variable annuities with guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefits includes assumptions about contract values, performance of market indexes such as the S&P 500 Index, expectations of benefit utilization and timing of election, and expected survivorship. Changes in interest rates, future index credits, Global Atlantic's own credit risk, projected withdrawal and surrender activity, and mortality on fixed-indexed annuity and indexed universal life contracts can have a significant impact on the value of the embedded derivative. For example, to the extent that the market indexes such as the S&P 500 Index experiences high returns over a given time period, Global Atlantic would be required to increase reserves for its liabilities linked to that index. Accordingly, the application of this accounting guidance may cause substantial volatility in Global Atlantic's reported net income.
We may be required to accelerate the amortization of deferred revenues and expenses, including DAC and VOBA.
Global Atlantic incurs significant costs in connection with acquiring new and renewal insurance business. DAC consists of commissions and other costs that are directly related to (1) the successful acquisition of new or renewal insurance contracts and (2) the acquisition of blocks of business via reinsurance transactions. Deferrable sales inducements ("DSI") are generated by annuities that offer enhanced crediting rates or bonus payments to policyholders. VOBA represents the difference between the carrying value of the purchased in-force insurance contract liabilities at the time of the business combination and the estimated fair value of insurance and reinsurance contracts. Global Atlantic establishes an unearned revenue reserve ("URR") liability for revenues from certain universal life insurance products that are deferred to future periods and an unearned front-end load ("UFEL") for gross premium in excess of the benefit reserve plus additional insurance liability for certain preneed contracts. For payout annuities and as a result of a modification of two reinsurance agreements from funds withheld to coinsurance, a
deferred revenue liability ("DRL") that represents the gross premium less the net premium and the liability offset to the deferred gain arising from the amendment, respectively, is established. Each of DAC, VOBA, URR, UFEL and DRL requires significant estimates to establish and amortize. In conjunction with the Global Atlantic acquisition, purchase accounting required Global Atlantic to write-down intangibles including DAC and VOBA, and then reestablish the new VOBA at the fair value for Global Atlantic. These purchase accounting adjustments will impact Global Atlantic’s emergence of earnings in the future.
Global Atlantic periodically revises the key assumptions used in the calculation of the amortization of DAC, VOBA, URR, UFEL and DSI as part of the assumption review process. If estimates of future gross profits or margins are revised down, then the amortization of deferred revenues and expenses will be accelerated in the period of the change and will result in a charge to income, which could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's profitability.
Differences between Global Atlantic's policyholder behavior estimates, reserve assumptions and actual claims experience, in particular with respect to the timing and magnitude of claims and surrenders, may adversely affect Global Atlantic's results of operations or financial condition.
Global Atlantic holds reserves to pay future policy benefits and claims. Global Atlantic's reserves are estimated based on data and models that include many assumptions and projections, which are inherently uncertain and involve significant judgment, including assumptions as to the levels and/or timing of receipt or payment of premiums, benefits, claims, expenses, interest credits, investment results (including equity and other market returns), mortality, morbidity, longevity and persistency.
While Global Atlantic periodically reviews the adequacy of its reserves and the assumptions underlying those reserves. Global Atlantic cannot determine with precision the amounts that Global Atlantic will pay for, or the timing of payment of, actual benefits, claims and expenses or whether the assets supporting policy liabilities, together with future premiums, will grow to the level assumed prior to the payment of benefits or claims. For Global Atlantic's directly issued fixed-rate annuities reserves are equal to policyholder account balances before applicable surrender charges, and lapse, surrender rates and persistency assumptions are important assumptions used in calculating these reserves and drivers of profitability with respect to these products. Advances in technology, including predictive medical technology that enables consumers to select products better matched to their individual longevity or mortality risk profile and other medical breakthroughs that extend lives, could cause Global Atlantic's future experience to deviate significantly from actuarial assumptions, which could adversely impact the level of reserves and profitability. The resulting acceleration of expense amortization, reduced spread or increased payments could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, financial condition and results of operations.
If actual experience differs significantly from assumptions or estimates, certain balances included in Global Atlantic's balance sheet, may not be adequate, particularly DAC, VOBA, policy reserves and other actuarial balances. If Global Atlantic concludes that its reserves, together with future premiums, are insufficient to cover future policy benefits and claims, Global Atlantic would be required to increase Global Atlantic's reserves and incur income statement charges for the period in which it makes the determination, which could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, financial condition and results of operations. The increase in the statutory reserves of Global Atlantic's operating subsidiaries may negatively affect liquidity and capitalization.
Estimates used in the preparation of financial statements and models for insurance products may differ materially from actual experience.
GAAP requires the application of accounting guidance and policies that often involve a significant degree of judgment when accounting for insurance products. These estimates include, but are not limited to, premium persistency, future policy benefits and related expenses, valuation of embedded derivatives, valuation and impairment of investments and amortization of deferred revenues and expenses. These accounting estimates require the use of assumptions, some of which are highly uncertain at the time of estimation. These estimates are based on judgment, current facts and circumstances and, when applicable, internally developed models. Therefore, actual results could differ from these estimates, possibly in the near term. Inaccuracies could result in, among other things, an increase in policyholder benefit reserves or acceleration of the amortization of deferred revenues and expenses, such as DAC and VOBA, which would result in a charge to earnings, a restatement of Global Atlantic's historical financial statements or other material adjustments. Additionally, the potential for unforeseen developments, including changes in laws, regulations or accounting standards, may result in losses and loss expenses materially different from the reserves initially established.
In addition, Global Atlantic employs models to price products, calculate reserves and value assets, as well as evaluate risk and determine capital requirements, among other uses. These models rely on estimates and projections that are inherently uncertain, may use incomplete, outdated or incorrect data or assumptions and may not operate properly. As Global Atlantic's businesses continue to expand and evolve, the number and complexity of models it employs has grown, increasing exposure to error in the design, implementation or use of models, including the associated data input, controls and assumptions, and the controls in place to mitigate their risk may not be effective in all cases.
Global Atlantic's growth strategy includes reinsurance of insurance obligations written by unaffiliated insurance companies, and its ability to consummate these transactions on acceptable terms is uncertain. Even if Global Atlantic executes transactions on acceptable terms, the ability to realize the anticipated financial benefits from reinsurance transactions is uncertain.
Global Atlantic has grown its business through block reinsurance transactions, and Global Atlantic intends to grow its business through block reinsurance and adjacent markets in flow reinsurance, pension risk transfer and funding agreements. Global Atlantic routinely reviews potential block reinsurance transactions, some of which may be material. To the extent Global Atlantic is unable to consummate suitable reinsurance transaction opportunities on acceptable terms, its future growth may be negatively impacted. Even if Global Atlantic does find suitable opportunities on commercially acceptable terms, Global Atlantic may not be able to consummate these transactions because of the regulatory approvals required or other considerations. There is no assurance Global Atlantic will be successful in adjacent institutional markets.
Global Atlantic has experienced increased competition in the block reinsurance market, including from new entrants focused on reinsuring retirement blocks of business. In addition, competition in the reinsurance market, in particular with respect to transaction pricing, is making it more difficult to identify transactions with terms that are commercially acceptable based on Global Atlantic's objectives and analyses. Moreover, the NAIC is considering insurance business transfer laws that permit insurers to transfer blocks of business to other insurers by operation of law. Such transfers could become a viable alternative structure to block reinsurance transactions and consequently may materially and adversely impact Global Atlantic's ability to identify and enter into new block reinsurance transactions.
If Global Atlantic reinsures a block of business, there can be no assurance that the transaction will achieve the results expected at the time of the block's acquisition. Factors that can cause Global Atlantic's actual experience to vary from its estimates include, but are not limited to, macroeconomic, asset performance, business growth, demographic, policyholder behavior, regulatory and political conditions. In addition, Global Atlantic faces risks associated with managing reinsured blocks, such as maintaining adequate personnel and operational systems to manage such blocks. If, in connection with a reinsurance transaction, Global Atlantic converts a reinsured block of business to a new system, there could be disruption of servicing for policyholders. As a result of any such disruption, Global Atlantic may experience customer complaints, regulatory intervention, or other adverse impacts. As a result of the foregoing, Global Atlantic may realize materially less than the anticipated financial benefits from reinsurance transactions, or Global Atlantic's reinsurance transactions may be unprofitable or result in losses.
With respect to additional future block reinsurance transactions, there can be no assurance that opportunities will persist, and even if opportunities do persist, there can be no assurance that Global Atlantic will have sufficient capital available, or to the extent it does have sufficient capital, that such capital will be available in the necessary entities, to continue growing this part of Global Atlantic's business. In order to enter into reinsurance arrangements through Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries, Global Atlantic needs sufficient capital to be held by such subsidiaries. Global Atlantic's ability to move capital to its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries without adverse consequence may be limited by regulatory restrictions on dividends from Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries, restrictions on intercompany transactions more generally, tax consequences or other considerations.
In April 2020, Global Atlantic sponsored Ivy Co-Invest Vehicle LLC ("Ivy"), a co-investment vehicle with access to approximately $1.0 billion in capital that Ivy is committed to using by providing funds withheld quota share reinsurance to Global Atlantic on certain block reinsurance, and pension risk transfer transactions that Global Atlantic enters into during the five-year investment period. Global Atlantic will price and bid for transactions assuming Ivy will meet its participation obligations for such transaction. However, Global Atlantic does not control Ivy, and Global Atlantic is subject to the risk that Ivy fails or refuses to fund its portion of a particular transaction, in which case Global Atlantic would have contractual remedies against Ivy but not directly against Ivy's shareholders or lenders. Global Atlantic is also subject to the risk that Ivy fails to meet its obligations under any funds withheld reinsurance agreements with Global Atlantic.
Global Atlantic’s historical growth rates may not be indicative of its future growth, and Global Atlantic may not be able to identify attractive insurance markets, reinsurance opportunities or investments with returns that are as favorable as Global Atlantic’s historical returns and grow new business volumes at historical levels.
Global Atlantic’s historical growth rates may not reflect its future growth rates. While Global Atlantic anticipates that it will continue to grow by deepening existing and adding new distribution relationships in Global Atlantic's individual market, pursuing attractive reinsurance opportunities and expanding its funding agreement business in the institutional market, taking advantage of investment opportunities to support Global Atlantic's growth, developing new products and entering new markets and maintaining Global Atlantic's positive in-force earnings dynamic, Global Atlantic may not be able to identify opportunities to do so. With future growth, there can be no guarantee that Global Atlantic's net underwriting return will be as favorable as its historic returns. Weaker margins may challenge Global Atlantic's ability to grow profitably or at the returns targeted. Further, in
order to maintain or increase investment returns, it may be necessary to expand the scope of Global Atlantic's investing activities to asset classes in which Global Atlantic historically has not invested, which may increase the risk of Global Atlantic's investment portfolio. If Global Atlantic is unable to find profitable growth opportunities, it will be more difficult for Global Atlantic to continue to grow, and could negatively affect its results of operations and financial condition.
In addition, Global Atlantic's future growth depends on its ability to continue to offer and sell products that Global Atlantic's customers find attractive. Consumer preferences regarding annuities and life insurance are subject to change. In particular, due to market risks, consumers may not continue to view annuities as an attractive retirement savings product, which would impact Global Atlantic's ability to sell such products to its target consumers. In addition, there is no guarantee that younger generations will use life insurance products at the same rate as previous generations as a result of changes in savings habits and demographic shifts. Global Atlantic’s historical growth has been largely concentrated in fixed-rate annuities, fixed-indexed annuities and indexed universal life products. However, these products may not continue to grow at historical levels, and there can be no assurance that consumers will continue to prefer these products. Moreover, sales of Global Atlantic's products and continued future growth depend on its ability to offer competitive pricing and attractive policyholder benefits. For example, one factor impacting sales of fixed-rate annuities is the crediting rate Global Atlantic offers compared to that offered by its competitors. Global Atlantic sets its crediting rates based on expected investment returns, policyholder behavior assumptions and other factors that may be beyond Global Atlantic's control. Global Atlantic expects that overall sales of fixed-rate annuities will continue to be sensitive to changes in pricing, in particular when compared to pricing on comparable products such as bank certificates of deposit. If consumer preferences for Global Atlantic's products change, Global Atlantic's revenues and results of operations may be materially adversely impacted.
Gaps in Global Atlantic's risk management policies and procedures may leave it exposed to unidentified or unanticipated risk, which could negatively affect Global Atlantic's business.
Global Atlantic has devoted significant resources to develop its Enterprise Risk Management ("ERM") framework to identify, monitor and manage financial and nonfinancial risks effectively, but Global Atlantic cannot guarantee that this framework will allow it to efficiently price, identify and predict future risks. Developing an effective framework for assessing and managing risks is complex. No framework or strategy can completely insulate Global Atlantic from all risks, and Global Atlantic may be unable to identify all risks and limit its exposures based on its assessments. Furthermore, there can be no assurance that Global Atlantic can effectively review and monitor all risks or that all of Global Atlantic's employees will follow its risk management policies and procedures.
As part of Global Atlantic's ERM framework, Global Atlantic utilizes models, including its asset-liability cash flow matching platform, to assess risks believed to be applicable to Global Atlantic's business. In addition, Global Atlantic uses its ERM framework to manage strategic, operational and legal and compliance risks. However, Global Atlantic will need to continuously update these models, systems and its ERM framework based on Global Atlantic's business strategy, risk limits, the regulatory and capital environment, and other external and internal factors that may impact Global Atlantic's strategy, the market or industry environment in which Global Atlantic operates and realized or observed behavior. Many of Global Atlantic's methods for managing risk and exposures are based upon the use of observed historical market behavior to model or project potential future exposure. Models used by Global Atlantic's business are based on assumptions and projections. These models may not operate properly or Global Atlantic's inputs and assumptions may be inaccurate. A lack of controls and processes or failures in such controls and processes with respect to Global Atlantic's models may impair the integrity and reliability of these models and their outputs. As a result, these methods may not fully predict future exposures, which can be significantly greater than historical measures indicate. If Global Atlantic's processes, analysis and risk management do not accurately predict and appropriately respond to future risk exposures, such risks could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Global Atlantic's actual or perceived financial strength impacts its ability to sell its products, and a downgrade in Global Atlantic's ratings or in the ratings of its insurance subsidiaries could materially adversely affect Global Atlantic's ability to compete, raise equity or issue debt.
Financial strength ratings are published by various nationally recognized statistical rating organizations ("NRSROs") and similar entities not formally recognized as NRSROs. Rating organizations periodically review the financial performance and condition of insurers, including Global Atlantic's insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries. Rating organizations assign ratings based upon several factors. While most of the factors considered relate to the rated company, some of the factors relate to general economic conditions and other circumstances outside the rated company's control. The various rating agencies periodically review and evaluate Global Atlantic's capital adequacy in accordance with their established guidelines and capital models, which may themselves be subject to modification over time. Rating agencies change their standards from time to time. If Global Atlantic's capital levels are deemed insufficient, Global Atlantic could be required to reduce its risk profile in order to maintain its current ratings, by, for example, reinsuring and/or retroceding some of Global Atlantic's business, materially
altering its business and sales plans or by raising additional capital. Any such action could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Global Atlantic's business depends in part on strong financial strength ratings to compete effectively. Global Atlantic's clients and counterparties use its insurance financial strength ratings as one source to assess the financial strength and quality of Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries. Downgrades in Global Atlantic's credit ratings or changes to its rating outlook, or downgrades or changes in outlook to the financial strength ratings of Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries, could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition in many ways, including limiting access to distributors, restricting Global Atlantic's ability to generate sales, decreasing profitability, increasing policy lapse activity, limiting access to capital markets and potentially increasing the cost of debt, which could adversely affect liquidity. For example, Global Atlantic believes that a downgrade in the A.M. Best rating of Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries could materially impact their sales and access to new distribution relationships as Global Atlantic's distribution partners often view the A.M. Best rating as a key measure of an insurer's financial position. The ability of Global Atlantic's subsidiaries to engage in reinsurance transactions—and to do so absent substantial obligations to collateralize performance of their respective obligations—may depend in part on their financial condition and is influenced by their ratings. If an independent rating agency downgrades or withdraws any of Global Atlantic's ratings, Global Atlantic could be limited in, or prevented from, writing any new insurance and reinsurance contracts; some existing contracts may be terminated or may require Global Atlantic to enhance certain credit terms; the pricing terms Global Atlantic can obtain may be adversely affected; and Global Atlantic's ability to access the capital markets could be materially adversely impacted. Downgrades in credit or financial strength ratings may increase the regulatory scrutiny to which Global Atlantic and its insurance subsidiaries are subjected. There is no guarantee that Global Atlantic will be able to maintain its ratings in the future, and Global Atlantic cannot provide any assurances that actions taken by ratings agencies would not result in a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Global Atlantic's failure to comply with covenants contained in its current or future credit facilities or agreements could trigger prepayment obligations, which could materially adversely affect Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Global Atlantic's revolving credit facility and term loan agreement require Global Atlantic to comply with certain covenants, which include requirements to maintain a consolidated debt to total capitalization ratio, as defined under the agreements, of 35% or less and to maintain consolidated net worth determined in accordance with GAAP of no less than 70% of Global Atlantic’s net worth as of March 31, 2018, plus 50% of Global Atlantic's net income since March 31, 2018. Global Atlantic's failure to comply with these covenants could result in an event of default which, if not cured or waived within any applicable grace period, could result in the acceleration of amounts outstanding under the facility and of the term loan. In addition, if Global Atlantic defaults on its senior notes, any other debt with a principal amount of at least $75 million or any swap contract with a termination value in excess of $75 million, then Global Atlantic will also be in default under its revolving credit facility and on the term loan. Any default under these agreements, and any resulting acceleration of Global Atlantic's outstanding indebtedness, would have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic’s business, results of operations and financial condition. Default by Global Atlantic under these agreements may also cause a cross default under KKR's corporate revolving credit facility, which, if not cured or waived, could have a material adverse effect on KKR's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Global Atlantic does not have captive or proprietary distribution or engage in direct sales, and if Global Atlantic's products are not retained on or added to the platforms of its distribution partners, sales of Global Atlantic's products may be reduced.
Global Atlantic relies on banks, broker-dealers and independent insurance agencies to distribute its retirement and traditional life insurance products. Global Atlantic also relies on insurance agents associated with funeral homes to distribute its preneed insurance products to consumers, who choose to set aside funds to cover the predetermined costs of funerals before the need arises. Global Atlantic's distribution partners are not captive and may sell retirement and life insurance products of Global Atlantic's competitors. If Global Atlantic's competitors offer products that are more attractive, pay higher commission rates to the sales representatives or offer a better service experience, these representatives may concentrate their efforts in selling Global Atlantic’s competitors' products instead of Global Atlantic's products.
Global Atlantic competes with other insurance companies to place products with distribution partners. Key distribution partners may merge, change their business models in ways that affect how Global Atlantic's products are sold, or terminate their distribution contracts with Global Atlantic, or new distribution channels could emerge and adversely impact the effectiveness of Global Atlantic's distribution efforts. Distribution partners, in particular banks and broker-dealers, typically have limited availability for multiple similar products from several insurance companies. An increase in bank and broker-dealer consolidation activity may result in Global Atlantic's products being dropped from a platform, increase competition for access to distributors and impair Global Atlantic's ability to market products through these channels. Consolidation of distributors and/or other industry changes may also increase the likelihood that distributors will try to renegotiate the terms of any existing
selling agreements to terms less favorable to Global Atlantic. Distribution partners may also stop offering one or more of Global Atlantic's products, for a period of time or permanently, for a variety of reasons, including Global Atlantic's financial strength and the pricing and servicing Global Atlantic offers. If any one of such distributors were to terminate its relationship with Global Atlantic or reduce the amount of sales which it produces, Global Atlantic's results of operations may be adversely affected.
In addition, some of Global Atlantic's distribution partners and potential partners use proprietary or third-party scoring systems in determining which products to sell. These ratings are primarily based on an insurance company's statutory filings and provide a quantitative comparison of one insurance company against another. If Global Atlantic's scores fall to levels unacceptable to its distribution partners, they may no longer distribute Global Atlantic's products to their customers, which would have a negative impact on Global Atlantic's business and results of operations. Other distributors use proprietary scoring systems that typically incorporate NRSRO credit or financial strength ratings or other industry ratings, and Global Atlantic's ability to access distribution channels may be impacted if it does not have a certain score under those proprietary methods. If Global Atlantic is unable to place its products or retain its products on the platforms of distribution partners, Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and liquidity may be negatively affected.
Global Atlantic faces risks associated with business it reinsures and business it cedes to reinsurers and which could cause a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
As part of Global Atlantic's overall risk management strategy, it cedes business to other insurance companies through reinsurance. Global Atlantic's inability to collect from its reinsurers (including reinsurance clients in transactions where Global Atlantic reinsures business net of ceded reinsurance) on its reinsurance claims could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition. Although reinsurers are liable to Global Atlantic to the extent of the reinsurance coverage it acquires, Global Atlantic remains primarily liable as the direct insurer on all risks that it writes; therefore, Global Atlantic's reinsurance agreements do not eliminate its obligation to pay claims. As a result, Global Atlantic is subject to the risk that it may not recover amounts due from reinsurers. The risk could arise primarily in two situations: (1) Global Atlantic's reinsurers may dispute some of its reinsurance claims based on contract terms, and, as a result, Global Atlantic may receive partial or no payment or (2) Global Atlantic's reinsurers may default on their obligations. While Global Atlantic may manage these risks through transaction-related diligence, contract terms, collateral requirements, hedging, and other oversight mechanisms, Global Atlantic's efforts may not be successful. A reinsurer's insolvency, or its inability or unwillingness to make payments due to Global Atlantic under the terms of the relevant reinsurance agreements, could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Global Atlantic also bears the risk that the companies that reinsure its mortality risk on a yearly renewable term, where the reinsurer may reset the premium and other terms each year, increase the premiums they charge to levels Global Atlantic deems unacceptable. If that occurs, Global Atlantic will either need to pay such increased premiums, which will affect margins and financial results, or alternatively, Global Atlantic will need to limit or potentially terminate reinsurance, which will increase the risks that Global Atlantic retains.
Conversely, certain of Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries assume liabilities from other insurance companies. Changes in the ratings, creditworthiness or market perception of such ceding companies or in the administration of policies reinsured to Global Atlantic could cause policyholders of contracts reinsured to Global Atlantic to surrender or lapse their policies in unexpected amounts. In addition, to the extent such ceding companies do not perform their obligations under the relevant reinsurance agreements, Global Atlantic may not achieve the results intended and could suffer unexpected losses. In either case, Global Atlantic has exposure to its subsidiaries' reinsurance clients, which could materially and adversely affect Global Atlantic's business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Global Atlantic is exposed to risks related to natural and man-made disasters and catastrophes, diseases, epidemics, pandemics, malicious acts, war, cyber-attacks, terrorist acts and climate change, which could adversely affect Global Atlantic’s business and financial results.
A natural or man-made disaster or catastrophe, including a severe weather or geological event such as a storm, tornado, fire, flood or earthquake, disease, epidemic, pandemic (such as COVID-19), malicious act, cyber-attack, terrorist act, or the occurrence of climate change, could adversely affect Global Atlantic's mortality, morbidity or other experience, and have a significant negative impact on Global Atlantic's operations and results. In addition, claims arising from the occurrence of such events or conditions could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition. Such events or conditions could also have an adverse effect on lapses and surrenders of existing policies, as well as sales of new policies. In addition, such events or conditions could result in significant physical damage and destruction to, and a decrease or halt in economic activity in, large geographic areas, adversely affecting Global Atlantic's business within such geographic areas and/or the general economic climate. Such events or conditions could also result in additional regulation or restrictions on the conduct of Global Atlantic's business. Global Atlantic's risk management efforts, insurance and other
precautionary plans and activities may not adequately predict or offset the impact of such events on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Any failure to protect the confidentiality of client information could adversely affect Global Atlantic’s reputation and have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition and results of operations.
Pursuant to federal and state laws, various government agencies have established rules protecting the privacy and security of personal information. In addition, most states have enacted laws, which vary significantly from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, to safeguard the privacy and security of personal information. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 imposes privacy requirements on financial institutions, including obligations to protect and safeguard consumers' nonpublic personal information and records, and limits the ability to share and reuse such information. Global Atlantic is also subject to the New York State Department of Financial Services cybersecurity regulation, to a limited extent the California Consumer Privacy Act and certain other state privacy laws and regulations. Many regulators have indicated an intention to take more aggressive enforcement actions regarding cybersecurity and data privacy matters, and private litigation resulting from such matters is increasing and resulting in progressively larger judgments and settlements.
Many of Global Atlantic's employees have access to, and routinely process, personal information of clients through a variety of media, including information technology systems. Global Atlantic relies on various internal processes and controls to protect the confidentiality of client information that is accessible to, or in the possession of, Global Atlantic and its employees. It is possible that an employee could, intentionally or unintentionally, disclose or misappropriate confidential client information or Global Atlantic's data could be the subject of a cybersecurity attack. Global Atlantic's third-party administrators and their employees also have access to, and routinely process, personal information of clients, and Global Atlantic is also dependent on such third parties and their systems to protect such data. Global Atlantic is aware of instances in which one of its employees or one of its third-party administrators' employees unintentionally shared confidential client information. While Global Atlantic offered remediation, such as credit monitoring, to the impacted clients, and trained the individuals involved in the situations it was aware of, if Global Atlantic fails to maintain adequate internal controls or if its employees fail to comply with Global Atlantic's policies and procedures, misappropriation or intentional or unintentional inappropriate disclosure or misuse of client information could occur. Such internal control inadequacies or noncompliance could materially damage Global Atlantic's reputation or lead to civil or criminal penalties. Global Atlantic's third-party service providers, including third parties to whom Global Atlantic outsources certain functions, are also subject to the risks outlined above, any one of which could result in damage to Global Atlantic's reputation, Global Atlantic incurring substantial costs and other negative consequences. If Global Atlantic or any of its third-party service providers fails to protect the confidentiality of client information, it could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, financial condition and results of operations.
In addition, Global Atlantic analyzes customer data to better manage its business. There has been increased scrutiny, including from regulators, regarding the use of "big data," such as using "big data" to set product pricing. Global Atlantic's ability to use data to gain insights into and manage its business may be limited in the future by regulatory scrutiny regarding "big data." Global Atlantic cannot predict what, if any, actions may be taken with regard to "big data," but such inquiries could cause reputational harm and could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Changes in accounting standards could adversely impact Global Atlantic's reported results of operations and reported financial condition.
Global Atlantic's financial statements are subject to the application of GAAP, which is periodically revised, reinterpreted and/or expanded. Accordingly, from time to time Global Atlantic is required to adopt new guidance or interpretations, or could be subject to existing guidance as Global Atlantic enters into new transactions or business lines, which may have a material effect on Global Atlantic's results of operations and financial condition that is either unexpected or has a greater impact than expected. Upon the closing of the Global Atlantic acquisition, Global Atlantic is establishing a new accounting basis for purchase accounting, under which all identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed are measured and recorded at fair value as of the date of the closing. In addition, certain accounting standards applicable to public entities became applicable to Global Atlantic. Global Atlantic continues to evaluate the impact that purchase accounting and the adoption of accounting standards applicable to public companies will have on its financial statements, business condition, results of operations and capitalization.
In August 2018, the FASB issued new guidance for insurance companies that issue or reinsure long-duration contracts such as life insurance and annuities. The objective of this guidance is to improve, simplify, and enhance the financial reporting of long-duration contracts by providing financial statement users with useful information in a timely and transparent manner. The new guidance is effective for public business entities for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022, including interim periods within those fiscal years. Global Atlantic is currently preparing for the adoption of this standard and continuing to evaluate the impact on its consolidated financial statements. Based on Global Atlantic's preparation to date, Global Atlantic
believes that the new standard will increase volatility in its consolidated financial statements, in particular due to the requirement to measure market risk benefits at fair value.
In June 2016, FASB issued new guidance on the measurement of credit losses on financial instruments, including reinsurance recoverables, under GAAP. This guidance replaces the incurred loss impairment methodology with a requirement to reflect current expected credit losses in amortized cost instead of recognizing losses as incurred. Following the closing of the Global Atlantic acquisition, this standard became applicable to Global Atlantic and required increases in expected credit losses on financial instruments measured at amortized cost including loan receivables and reinsurance recoverables which are recognized as a charge to earnings.
The changes for long-duration contracts, the measurement of credit losses on financial instruments, application of purchase accounting in connection with the closing of the Global Atlantic acquisition or other changes in accounting standards could affect the way Global Atlantic accounts for and reports significant areas of its business, could impose special demands on Global Atlantic in the areas of governance, employee training, internal controls and disclosure, and will likely affect how Global Atlantic manages its business. As a result, the required adoption of future accounting standards could have a material adverse impact on Global Atlantic's results of operations and financial condition.
The NAIC has approved Statutory Accounting Principles for U.S. insurance companies that have been implemented by the domiciliary states of Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries. The NAIC from time to time considers amendments to the Statutory Accounting Principles and is currently considering various amendments to the Statutory Accounting Principles that impact investment transactions, including, for example, definitions of affiliated and related party transactions, capital treatment of principal protected notes and capital charge determinations for loan-backed and structured securities. In addition, the NAIC has expressed concerns and is considering changes related to filing exempt status for certain securities or loans, which generally allows the use of an NRSRO rating for purposes of capital assessment as opposed to requiring review by the Securities Valuation Office. In addition, the NAIC Accounting Practices and Procedures Manual, or the "Accounting Manual," provides that state insurance departments may permit insurance companies domiciled therein to depart from the Statutory Accounting Principles by granting them permitted accounting practices. Global Atlantic makes use of permitted practices today and may seek approval to use additional permitted practices in the future. Permitted practices do not preempt legislative or regulatory changes to the Statutory Accounting Principles. Accordingly, there is a risk that Global Atlantic may not be able to continue to use a previously granted permitted practice. In addition, Global Atlantic cannot predict whether or when the insurance departments of the states of domicile of its competitors may permit Global Atlantic's competitors to utilize advantageous accounting practices that depart from the Statutory Accounting Principles, the use of which is not permitted by the insurance departments of the states of domicile of Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries. Any change in the Statutory Accounting Principles or permitted practices could have a material adverse impact on the capital Global Atlantic is required to hold in its business and consequently on its profitability and ability to grow.
Global Atlantic’s Bermuda insurance subsidiaries are licensed to conduct insurance business by the BMA. In 2016, the BMA made significant changes to Bermuda's regulatory and supervisory regimes, to achieve equivalence with the European Union's Directive 2009/138EC, as amended (Solvency II). On March 24, 2016, and (retroactively) effective as of January 1, 2016, a number of changes were instituted for commercial insurers and insurance groups to enhance statutory and prudential reporting requirements. In that regard, the BMA implemented the Economic Balance Sheet ("EBS") framework ("EBS Framework"), which is now used as the basis to determine an insurer’s enhanced capital requirement ("ECR"). The BMA also revised the basis on which statutory financial statements for Bermuda-licensed commercial insurers are prepared. Under the changes, Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries' financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP act as the basis on which statutory financial statements are prepared, subject to application of certain prudential filters. These financial statements, in turn, form the starting basis for the preparation of the EBS. The statutory financial statements also form the basis for assessing each Bermuda insurance subsidiary’s ongoing liquidity position, Minimum Margin of Solvency and class of registration as an insurer in Bermuda. The EBS Framework is now embedded in the BMA's legislative and regulatory regime.
Global Atlantic can give no assurances that (1) the impact of purchase accounting, (2) future changes to GAAP or any interpretation thereof, (3) future changes to SAP or components of SAP, (4) the grant of permitted accounting practices to Global Atlantic's competitors or (5) future changes to Bermuda legal, accounting or financial regimes, including changes to the EBS Framework, will not have a negative impact or material adverse effect on Global Atlantic.
Global Atlantic may experience volatility in its net income under GAAP due to its funds withheld coinsurance transactions.
Global Atlantic assumes certain policy risks written by other insurance companies via reinsurance that may be on a funds withheld coinsurance basis. In these arrangements, Global Atlantic is subject to the investment performance on the withheld assets, although Global Atlantic does not directly control them. Global Atlantic helps to set, and monitor compliance with, the investment guidelines followed by the applicable ceding company. However, to the extent that such investment guidelines are
not appropriate, or to the extent that the ceding companies do not adhere to such guidelines, Global Atlantic's risk of loss could increase, which could materially adversely affect its GAAP results, financial condition and results of operations.
Funds withheld coinsurance differs from coinsurance and certain other forms of reinsurance in that the assets equal to the net statutory reserves are withheld and legally owned by the ceding company, while the related investment risk is transferred to the reinsurer. Under GAAP accounting these funds withheld coinsurance contracts create an embedded derivative for the reinsuring company and the embedded derivative must be measured at fair value. The valuation of the embedded derivative is sensitive to the market environment, including credit spreads of the assets held by the ceding insurer, and can generate significant volatility depending on market conditions. The change in the fair value of the embedded derivative is recorded in investment related gains/(losses) on the consolidated statements of income.
We could be forced to sell investments at a loss to cover policyholder benefits, withdrawals, recaptures or collateralization requirements of Global Atlantic’s reinsurance commitments or other events.
Many of the products in Global Atlantic's in-force book allow policyholders to withdraw their funds under defined circumstances. In addition, certain of Global Atlantic's reinsurance agreements include provisions requiring that under certain circumstances Global Atlantic provides collateral to support performance of its reinsurance commitments, including trust balances. Global Atlantic's operating subsidiaries manage their liabilities and configure their investment portfolios to provide and maintain sufficient liquidity to support anticipated withdrawal demands, contract benefits and maturities.
While Global Atlantic's operating subsidiaries own a significant amount of liquid assets, a portion of their assets are considered less liquid. Unanticipated withdrawal or surrender activity or liquidity demands in connection with recaptures or collateralization requirements could, under some circumstances, require Global Atlantic's operating subsidiaries to dispose of assets on unfavorable terms, which could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition. Moreover, reinsurance agreements may provide for recapture rights on the part of Global Atlantic's ceding company clients, and a substantial portion of Global Atlantic's reinsurance agreements require that Global Atlantic hold or provide collateral to support performance of Global Atlantic's reinsurance commitments. See "—Certain of Global Atlantic's reinsurance agreements contain triggers that permit the reinsurance client to recapture some or all of the reinsured portfolio, which, if triggered, may have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition." We may be forced to sell investments as a result of a recapture of its reinsurance business or as a result of the need to hold additional collateral that meets the associated investment guidelines.
Global Atlantic holds a significant portion of its reinsurance assets in trust, which may restrict Global Atlantic's ability to invest those assets and also may permit the ceding company to withdraw those assets from the trust in certain circumstances.
In certain reinsurance transactions where Global Atlantic is the reinsurer, it must provide collateral to the ceding company. A significant portion of the collateral that Global Atlantic provides to its reinsurance clients is provided in the form of assets held in a trust for the benefit of the counterparty. Global Atlantic's investment of assets held in trust is restricted based on the terms of the trust agreement and associated investment guidelines. As such, Global Atlantic may not have flexibility to invest such assets as it otherwise might, and Global Atlantic's investment returns on such assets may therefore be less than if they were not held in trust. In addition, in certain circumstances the ceding company may be allowed to withdraw assets from the trust if Global Atlantic fails to pay amounts due under the applicable reinsurance agreement.
Certain of Global Atlantic's reinsurance agreements contain triggers that permit the reinsurance client to recapture some or all of the reinsured portfolio, which, if triggered, may have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Certain of Global Atlantic's reinsurance agreements contain triggers that if breached may result in the reinsured party having the right to recapture the business or also to terminate the reinsurance agreement. A recapture trigger permits the ceding company to reassume under certain circumstances all or a portion of the risk ceded to Global Atlantic. For reinsurance transactions in which the ceding company cedes all or a portion of the risk to Global Atlantic, Global Atlantic's reinsurance agreements typically include a recapture right that is triggered if, for example, Global Atlantic fails to maintain certain minimum levels of capitalization or certain minimum levels of reserves to support the business reinsured. These reinsurance agreements also typically include provisions that provide for termination of the agreement and recapture of the business upon the occurrence of insolvency, rehabilitation, non-payment of amounts due, material breach of contract provisions or failure to provide the ceding company with the ability to take reserve credit. The economic, financial and liquidity impact from the loss of the recaptured business, in addition to Global Atlantic's economic hardships at the time of recapture, may have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic’s business, results of operations and financial condition.
The determination of the amount of impairments and allowances for credit losses recognized on Global Atlantic's investments is highly subjective and could materially affect its results of operations or financial condition.
The determination of the amount of impairments and allowances for credit losses is based upon Global Atlantic's periodic evaluation and assessment of known and inherent risks associated with the respective asset class and the specific investment being reviewed. Such evaluations and assessments are revised as conditions change and new information becomes available. Management updates its evaluations regularly and reflects changes in allowances and impairments in its financial results as such evaluations are revised. Impairments result in a non-cash charge to earnings during the period in which the impairment charge is taken. Changes in allowances for credit losses can result in either a charge or credit to earnings.
For example, an allowance is recognized on Global Atlantic's fixed maturity securities when the fair value of the security is less than its amortized cost basis and credit related losses are deemed to have occurred. The determination of the allowance requires assessment of the security's expected future cash flows, which depend on a variety of macroeconomic factors and security-specific considerations. Similarly, the determination of the allowance on Global Atlantic's mortgage and other loan receivables requires an assessment of expected credit losses that considers current, historical and forecasted macroeconomic data and loan-specific factors. As expectations change based on macroeconomic data and individual investment considerations, the associated allowance for credit losses can be adjusted, up or down.
There can be no assurance that management has accurately determined the amount of impairments and allowances for credit losses recognized in Global Atlantic's financial statements and their potential impact on regulatory capital. Furthermore, additional impairments and allowance provisions may be taken in the future.
Global Atlantic's membership in Federal Home Loan Banks subjects Global Atlantic to potential liquidity and other risks.
Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries Accordia, FLIC and CwA are members of the Federal Home Loan Banks of Des Moines, Indianapolis and Boston, respectively, which allows those companies to borrow against certain of their investments, such as commercial mortgage loans, eligible under the applicable Federal Home Loan Bank definition to be posted as collateral. If those sources of borrowing by those companies were to no longer be available to them, for example, because the Federal Home Loan Banks change their definition of eligible collateral, the value of the collateral pledged for these borrowings declines due to changes in interest rates or credit ratings and the companies need to post additional collateral in the form of cash or other eligible securities or if the Federal Home Loan Banks issue a capital call on the preferred shares owned by Global Atlantic's insurance companies, the liquidity of such insurance subsidiaries could be materially adversely affected. Additionally, if the applicable insurance subsidiary's creditworthiness falls below the minimum required or if legislative or other political actions cause changes to the Federal Home Loan Bank mandate or to the eligibility of life insurance companies to be members of the Federal Home Loan Bank system, Global Atlantic may lose access to this funding and be required to find other sources to replace it.
From time to time, Global Atlantic participates in repurchase and reverse repurchase transactions that subject Global Atlantic to liquidity risks.
Global Atlantic currently has a committed repurchase facility and from time to time participates in a repurchase transaction. Under these repurchase agreements, Global Atlantic may sell fixed income securities to third-party counterparties, primarily major brokerage firms and commercial banks, with a concurrent agreement to repurchase those same securities at a determined future date.
These repurchase agreements are required to be secured by collateral. Throughout the term of the repurchase agreement, Global Atlantic must post cash or securities as collateral to its counterparties equal to Global Atlantic's repurchase obligation plus any applicable over-collateralization amount. On the maturity date of the applicable repurchase agreement, Global Atlantic must pay the repurchase price, or Global Atlantic and its counterparty must agree to extend the applicable repurchase agreement by entering into a new repurchase agreement. If the value of the securities posted as collateral declines below the repurchase price plus any applicable over-collateralization amount, Global Atlantic will need to post additional cash or securities as collateral. Global Atlantic's ability to enter into a new repurchase agreement instead of settling a repurchase transaction on the repurchase date may be limited by market conditions. Therefore, Global Atlantic's liquidity may be negatively impacted when it is required to post additional collateral or when it is unable to extend an expiring repurchase agreement by entering into a new repurchase agreement.
In addition, Global Atlantic invests in securities the cash it receives from its repurchase counterparties. Those securities may decline in value during the term of the repurchase agreements. If Global Atlantic sells those securities at a loss, Global Atlantic may not have enough cash to fund the obligation that it has to its counterparties under the repurchase agreements. Under adverse capital market and economic conditions, liquidity may broadly deteriorate, further restricting Global Atlantic's ability to sell the securities and fund the obligation that it has to its counterparties.
Global Atlantic may also from time to time participate in reverse repurchase agreements whereby Global Atlantic purchases fixed income securities from third parties in exchange for cash, with a concurrent obligation by such third parties to repurchase those same securities from Global Atlantic at a determined future date. In the case of default by such third party in a reverse repurchase agreement, Global Atlantic runs the risk that such third party may not repurchase the security when required. In the event of the bankruptcy or other default of such third party in a repurchase agreement, Global Atlantic could experience both delays in liquidating the underlying security and losses, including but not limited to (1) a possible decline in the value of the collateral received from Global Atlantic's counterparties during the period while Global Atlantic seeks to enforce its rights therein, (2) possible subnormal levels of income and lack of access to income during this period and (3) expenses of enforcing Global Atlantic's rights.
Tax Risks Related to Global Atlantic
Unless the context otherwise requires, the term "Bermuda insurance subsidiaries" as used in "—Tax Risks Related to Global Atlantic" refers to (1) Global Atlantic Assurance Limited and (2) Global Atlantic Re Limited with respect to any period ending prior to January 1, 2018, the effective date of the election made pursuant to Section 953(d) of the Code (the "953(d) election") to treat Global Atlantic Re as a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
The IRS could contend that Global Atlantic or its non-U.S. subsidiaries are or were engaged in trade or business within the United States and subject to U.S. federal income taxes.
Certain Global Atlantic subsidiaries, including Global Atlantic Financial Limited (“GAFL”) and its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries, are non-U.S. companies that are treated as corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes. GAFL and its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries have conducted and intend to conduct substantially all of their operations outside the United States and to limit their U.S. contacts with the intention that GAFL and its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries not be treated as engaged in trade or business within the United States. However, there is considerable uncertainty as to when a non-U.S. corporation is engaged in trade or business within the United States, and there can be no assurance that the IRS will not contend that GAFL or its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries, are or were engaged in trade or business within the United States. If GAFL, or any of its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries, were considered to be engaged in trade or business within the United States, such company could be subject to U.S. corporate income taxes and branch profits taxes on the portion of its earnings and profits that is or was effectively connected to such trade or business within the United States. If the IRS were to contend successfully that GAFL, its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries, Global Atlantic or any of its other non-U.S. subsidiaries are or were engaged in trade or business within the United States, Global Atlantic’s results of operations and financial condition could be materially adversely affected.
There is U.S. federal income tax risk associated with reinsurance transactions, intercompany transactions and distributions between U.S. companies and their affiliates.
The 2017 Tax Act introduced the Base Erosion and Anti-Abuse Tax (the "BEAT") on certain U.S. companies that make deductible payments to related non-U.S. companies in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017. The BEAT is imposed at a rate of 5% for 2018, 10% through 2025 and 12.5% thereafter. Under the terms of 2017 Tax Act, the BEAT applies to "any premium or other consideration" paid or accrued to a related foreign reinsurer. To mitigate the effect of the BEAT, Global Atlantic Re Limited filed the 953(d) election to treat Global Atlantic Re Limited as a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes effective as of January 1, 2018. The BEAT applies only to related-party transactions with non-U.S. persons and hence would not apply to Global Atlantic's U.S. insurance subsidiaries' affiliate reinsurance transactions with Global Atlantic Re Limited. There can be no assurances that Global Atlantic Re Limited will continue to meet the requirements for an effective 953(d) election or that Global Atlantic will otherwise be successful in mitigating the effect of the BEAT.
In addition, the Code permits the IRS to reallocate, recharacterize, or adjust items of income, deduction or certain other items related to a reinsurance agreement between related parties to reflect the proper "amount, source or character" for each item. Further, the tax treatment of certain aspects of reinsurance ceded to a non-U.S. reinsurer on a funds withheld coinsurance basis is uncertain. If the IRS were successfully to challenge Global Atlantic’s intercompany reinsurance arrangements between its subsidiaries or Global Atlantic’s tax treatment of funds withheld coinsurance with non-U.S. reinsurers (including Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries), Global Atlantic's financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
There are significant cross-border transactions in place among Global Atlantic's affiliates, some of which Global Atlantic treats as loans or swaps for tax purposes, and Global Atlantic may expand the scope of its cross-border intercompany transactions in the future. If the IRS were successfully to challenge these transactions, or if legislation were enacted, or administrative guidance promulgated, that altered the expected tax treatment of such transactions, Global Atlantic's financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
Dividends paid by GAFL's direct subsidiaries Global Atlantic Re Limited and Global Atlantic (Fin) Company ("Finco") to GAFL will be subject to a 30% U.S. federal withholding tax. Therefore, Global Atlantic may be limited in its ability to move cash efficiently between Finco (and its subsidiaries) and Global Atlantic Re Limited and GAFL.
Changes in U.S. tax law could affect the products that Global Atlantic's subsidiaries sell.
Many of the products Global Atlantic's subsidiaries sell benefit from one or more forms of tax-favored status under current U.S. federal and state income tax regimes. For example, Global Atlantic's subsidiaries sell and reinsure annuity contracts that allow the policyholders to defer the recognition of taxable income earned within the contract. In addition, current U.S. federal income tax law permits the exclusion from taxation of death benefits paid under life insurance contracts. Changes in U.S. tax laws that alter the tax benefits or treatment of certain products could result in a material reduction in demand for Global Atlantic's subsidiaries' products and could affect policyholder behavior with respect to existing annuity products in ways that are difficult to predict, for example increasing the expected lapse rate or, if the treatment of existing contracts is grandfathered, reducing the rate at which existing contracts are surrendered or rolled over.
The IRS may successfully challenge GAFL's status as a non-U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
Under U.S. federal income tax law, a corporation is generally considered for U.S. federal income tax purposes to be a tax resident of the jurisdiction of its organization or incorporation. Because GAFL is a Bermuda-incorporated exempted entity, it would generally be classified as a non-U.S. corporation (and, therefore, a non-U.S. tax resident) under these rules. However, Section 7874 of the Code ("Section 7874") provides an exception to this general rule under which a non-U.S. incorporated entity may, in certain circumstances, be treated as a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
On April 1, 2016, Global Atlantic completed a reorganization of GAFL (the "GAFL Reorganization"). Under Section 7874, if GAFL's direct parent owned (within the meaning of Section 7874) 80% or more (by vote or value) of GAFL's common shares after the GAFL Reorganization (the "Section 7874 ownership percentage"), GAFL would be treated as a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Based on the terms of the GAFL Reorganization and the rules for determining share ownership under Section 7874, Global Atlantic does not believe that GAFL's direct parent received 80% or more of GAFL's common shares (either by vote or value).
However, the rules under Section 7874 are relatively complex and there is limited guidance regarding their application. In particular, ownership for purposes of Section 7874 is subject to various adjustments under the Code and the U.S. Treasury regulations promulgated thereunder, and there is limited guidance regarding Section 7874. As a result, the determination of the Section 7874 ownership percentage is complex and is subject to uncertainty. There can be no assurance that the IRS will agree with the position that GAFL should not be treated as a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
If GAFL were to be treated as a U.S. corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes under Section 7874 or for any other reason, GAFL would be subject to substantial additional historic and future U.S. federal income tax liability, including current taxation of all of Global Atlantic’s Bermuda insurance subsidiaries’ subpart F income and global intangible low-taxed income, as defined under Section 951A(b) of the Code, which could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic’s financial condition and results of operations.
Section 7874 may limit Global Atlantic's ability to utilize certain U.S. tax attributes or otherwise adversely affect GAFL's tax position and may limit GAFL's flexibility to engage in acquisition transactions.
As a result of the GAFL Reorganization, Section 7874 will limit the ability of Global Atlantic's U.S. holding company and its U.S. affiliates to utilize certain U.S. tax attributes (including net operating losses and certain tax credits) to offset, during the ten-year period following the GAFL Reorganization, their U.S. taxable income, or related income tax liability, resulting from certain (1) transfers to related foreign persons of stock or other properties of Global Atlantic's U.S. holding company and its U.S. affiliates, and (2) licensing to related foreign persons of any property by Global Atlantic's U.S. holding company and its U.S. affiliates.
Future potential changes to the tax laws could result in the application of certain adverse U.S. federal income tax rules to GAFL and its U.S. affiliates as a result of the GAFL Reorganization. Any changes could have prospective or retroactive application, and may apply even though the GAFL Reorganization has been consummated. In addition, U.S. Treasury regulations could limit GAFL's flexibility to engage in acquisition transactions involving U.S. targets.
The effect of Bermuda's commitment to the OECD to eliminate harmful tax practices is uncertain and could adversely affect Global Atlantic's tax status in Bermuda.
The effect of Bermuda's commitment to the OECD to eliminate harmful tax practices is uncertain and could adversely affect Global Atlantic's tax status in Bermuda. The OECD has published reports and launched a global dialogue among member and non-member countries on measures to limit harmful tax competition. These measures are largely directed at counteracting
the effects of income tax havens and preferential income tax regimes in countries around the world. According to the OECD, Bermuda is a jurisdiction that has substantially implemented the internationally agreed tax standard and as such is listed on the OECD "white list." However, Global Atlantic is not able to predict whether any future changes will be made to this "white list" classification or whether any such changes will subject Global Atlantic and its Bermuda-domiciled subsidiaries to additional taxes. See "—Risks Related to Our Business—Changes in relevant tax laws, regulations or treaties or an adverse interpretation of these items by tax authorities could adversely impact our effective tax rate and tax liability" for discussions of the OECD's BEPS project.
Global Atlantic is subject to the risk that Bermuda tax laws may change and that GAFL may become subject to new Bermuda taxes following the expiration of current exemptions after 2035.
The Bermuda Minister of Finance, under Bermuda's Exempted Undertakings Tax Protection Act 1966, as amended, has provided written assurance that if any legislation is enacted in Bermuda that would impose tax on profits or income, or computed on any capital asset, gain or appreciation, or any tax in the nature of estate duty or inheritance tax, then the imposition of any such tax will not be applicable to GAFL or any of its operations or common shares, debentures or other obligations until March 31, 2035, except insofar as such tax applies to persons ordinarily resident in Bermuda or to any taxes payable by GAFL in respect of real property owned or leased by GAFL in Bermuda. Similar assurances have been provided to each of GAFL's Bermuda-domiciled subsidiaries. Given the limited duration of the Bermuda Minister of Finance's assurances, Global Atlantic cannot provide any assurances that GAFL or its Bermuda-domiciled subsidiaries will not be subject to any Bermuda tax after March 31, 2035.
Regulatory Risks Related to Global Atlantic
Global Atlantic's businesses are heavily regulated across numerous jurisdictions and changes in regulation could reduce Global Atlantic's profitability.
Global Atlantic's insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries are highly regulated by, among others, insurance regulators in the United States and Bermuda, and changes in regulations affecting Global Atlantic's businesses may reduce Global Atlantic's profitability and limit its growth.
Global Atlantic has insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries that operate in all 50 U.S. states, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia, as well as Bermuda. The insurance and reinsurance industry is generally heavily regulated and Global Atlantic's operations in each of these jurisdictions are subject to varying degrees of regulation and supervision. The laws and regulations of the jurisdictions in which Global Atlantic's insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries are domiciled or deemed to be commercially domiciled may require these companies to, among other things, maintain minimum levels of statutory capital, surplus and liquidity, meet solvency standards, submit to periodic examinations of their financial condition, and restrict payments of dividends and distributions of capital. Global Atlantic's insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries also are subject to laws and regulations that may restrict the ability of these companies to write insurance and reinsurance policies, make certain types of investments and distribute funds. With respect to investments, Global Atlantic's insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries must comply with applicable regulations regarding the type and concentration of investments it may make. These restrictions are set forth in investment guidelines that KKR's investment management subsidiary must comply with when providing investment management to these Global Atlantic entities. These restrictions may limit Global Atlantic's ability to invest and KKR's ability to earn fees on those investments. In addition, Global Atlantic’s insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries are subject to laws and regulations governing affiliate transactions. The investment management agreements between the KKR investment manager and Global Atlantic entities were approved by applicable insurance regulators, and any changes of such agreements, including with respect to fees, must receive applicable approval. These affiliate transaction rules are particularly important to Global Atlantic given (1) its relationship with KKR and (2) the fact that its business strategy involves reinsuring business among its subsidiaries.
In connection with the conduct of Global Atlantic's various businesses, Global Atlantic believes it is crucial to establish and maintain good working relationships with the various regulatory authorities having jurisdiction over its businesses. If those relationships and that reputation were to deteriorate, Global Atlantic's businesses could be materially adversely affected. For example, Global Atlantic requires various consents and approvals from its regulators, both with respect to transactions Global Atlantic enters into and in the ordinary course of the conduct of its businesses. If Global Atlantic fails to maintain good working relationships with its regulators, it may become more difficult or impossible for Global Atlantic to obtain those consents and approvals, either on a timely basis or at all.
In addition to the regulations of the jurisdictions where Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries are domiciled, Global Atlantic also must obtain licenses to sell insurance in other states and U.S. jurisdictions and, in the case of Global Atlantic Re Limited, a certified reinsurer in Indiana, Iowa and Massachusetts, comply with U.S. state laws governing certified reinsurer status. Most state regulatory authorities are granted broad discretion in connection with their decisions to grant, renew or revoke
licenses and approvals that are subject to state statutes. If Global Atlantic is unable to renew the requisite licenses and obtain the necessary approvals or otherwise does not comply with applicable regulatory requirements, the insurance regulatory authorities could stop, or temporarily suspend Global Atlantic from conducting some or all of its operations as well as impose fines.
At the United States federal level, the Dodd-Frank Act established the FIO within the U.S. Department of the Treasury to monitor all aspects of the insurance industry and of lines of business other than certain health insurance, certain long-term care insurance and crop insurance. Although the FIO currently does not directly regulate the insurance industry, under the Dodd-Frank Act, a covered agreement may preempt a state law if the FIO determines that the state law is consistent with a covered agreement's terms and treats a non-U.S. reinsurer or insurer less favorably than a U.S. reinsurer or insurer. A covered agreement is an agreement between the United States and one or more foreign governments, authorities or regulatory entities, regarding prudential measures with respect to insurance or reinsurance. Pursuant to this authority, in September 2017, the United States and the European Union signed a covered agreement to address, among other things, reinsurance collateral and insurance group supervision requirements (the "E.U. Covered Agreement"), and the United States released a "Statement of the United States on the Covered Agreement with the European Union" (the "Policy Statement") providing the United States' interpretation of certain provisions in the E.U. Covered Agreement. The Policy Statement provides that the United States expects that the group capital calculation, which the NAIC has developed, will satisfy the E.U. Covered Agreement's group capital assessment requirement. In addition, on December 18, 2018, the Bilateral Agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom on Prudential Measures Regarding Insurance and Reinsurance (the "U.K. Covered Agreement") was signed in anticipation of the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union.
U.S. state regulators have until September 1, 2022 to adopt reinsurance reforms removing reinsurance collateral requirements for E.U. and U.K. reinsurers that meet the prescribed minimum conditions set forth in the applicable E.U. Covered Agreement or U.K. Covered Agreement or state laws imposing such reinsurance collateral requirements may be subject to federal preemption. The NAIC has adopted revisions to the Credit for Reinsurance Model Law and Model Regulation that would, if adopted into law by state legislatures, implement the reinsurance collateral provisions of the E.U. Covered Agreement and U.K. Covered Agreement. Global Atlantic cannot predict with any certainty whether the E.U. Covered Agreement and the U.K. Covered Agreement will be implemented, what the impact of such implementation will be on Global Atlantic's business and whether the interpretation of the provisions of the E.U. Covered Agreement and the U.K. Covered Agreement will change. In addition, as required under the Dodd-Frank Act, the Director of the FIO has submitted a report to Congress regarding how to modernize and improve the system of insurance regulation in the United States, another report on the impact of Part II of the Nonadmitted and Reinsurance Reform Act of 2010, and a third report on the global reinsurance market and the regulation of reinsurance. Such reports could ultimately lead to changes in the regulation of insurers and reinsurers in the United States, which could negatively impact Global Atlantic's business and financial results.
Regulations applicable to Global Atlantic and interpretations and enforcement of such regulations may change. Insurance regulators have increased their scrutiny of the insurance regulatory framework in the United States, and some state legislatures have considered or enacted laws that alter, and in many cases increase, state authority to regulate insurance holding companies and insurance and reinsurance companies. Global Atlantic is unable to predict whether, when or in what form the domiciliary states of its U.S. insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries will enact legislative and regulatory changes, and Global Atlantic cannot provide any assurances that more stringent restrictions will not be adopted from time to time in other jurisdictions in which Global Atlantic's insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries are domiciled.
In February 2020, Bermuda was moved to the European Union’s "whitelist" of cooperative tax jurisdictions having delivered on the commitments made to the European Union in 2019 to further enhance its regulatory and transparency framework. The European Commission has proposed sanctions against non-cooperative tax jurisdictions, including restrictions on certain European sovereign wealth funds channeling funds through entities domiciled in non-cooperative jurisdictions. If, in the future, Bermuda's classification changes and Bermuda is included on the European Union's noncooperative jurisdictions list, the ability of certain European sovereign wealth funds (and the willingness of other European members) to invest in Global Atlantic's business may be limited as a result of such sanctions. In the future, individual E.U. member states may also apply sanctions against non-cooperative jurisdictions. If, in the future, Bermuda's classification changes and Bermuda is included on the non-cooperative jurisdictions list and these or other sanctions are implemented in the future, Global Atlantic cannot guarantee that such sanctions will not have a material and adverse impact on Global Atlantic's business.
The cost of compliance with existing laws and regulations is high and the cost of compliance with any new regulatory requirements could have a significant and negative effect on Global Atlantic's business. Global Atlantic may not be able to comply fully with, or obtain desired exemptions from, any such new laws and regulations that govern the conduct of Global Atlantic's business. Failure to comply with, or to obtain desired authorizations and/or exemptions under, any applicable laws could result in restrictions on Global Atlantic's ability to do business or undertake activities that are regulated in one or more of the jurisdictions in which Global Atlantic operates, could impact Global Atlantic's potential growth and could subject Global Atlantic to fines and other sanctions. In addition, changes in the laws or regulations to which Global Atlantic's insurance and
reinsurance subsidiaries are subject, or in the interpretations thereof by enforcement or regulatory agencies, could have a material adverse effect on Global Atlantic's business, results of operations and financial condition.
Capital regulations applicable to Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries may impose meaningful limitations on Global Atlantic's business.
All of Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries are subject to minimum capital and surplus requirements. In the United States, Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries are subject to RBC standards and other minimum capital and surplus requirements imposed by state laws. The RBC standards are based upon the Risk-Based Capital for Insurers Model Act promulgated by the NAIC as adopted by Global Atlantic's domiciliary insurance regulators. Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries are subject to Bermuda Solvency Capital Requirements ("BSCR") standards and other minimum capital and surplus requirements imposed by the BMA. See "—Global Atlantic’s Bermuda insurance subsidiaries are subject to regulation by the BMA that may restrict their operations." Any failure to meet applicable requirements or minimum statutory capital requirements could subject Global Atlantic to examination or corrective action by regulators, including limitations on Global Atlantic's writing additional business or engaging in finance activities, supervision, receivership or liquidation.
RBC ratios of U.S. life and annuity companies like Global Atlantic are impacted by factors beyond Global Atlantic's control, such as the statutory federal tax rate. Future changes in federal corporate tax rates could similarly impact RBC ratios. In addition, the NAIC is currently considering changes to factors used in calculating RBC, including factors governing the risk of an asset's default (C-1 asset risk factor). It is also considering potential changes to RBC formulas to reflect longevity risk and reinsurance ceded to unauthorized reinsurers not supported by collateral. The NAIC has also developed a group capital calculation. It is unclear how the group capital calculation will interact with existing capital requirements for insurance companies in the United States and with international capital standards and it is also unclear how being a subsidiary of KKR will impact the determination of Global Atlantic's "group." It is possible that Global Atlantic may be required to hold additional capital as a result of these developments. In Bermuda, the revised BSCR became effective January 1, 2019 and the BMA continues to consider further revisions. Global Atlantic cannot predict the likelihood of future changes to the BSCR, whether such changes will have an impact on RBC ratios or whether Global Atlantic will need to raise additional capital in response to such changes. If such further revisions materially increase the ECR, it could materially and adversely affect Global Atlantic's BSCR ratio and, correspondingly, Global Atlantic's capital in excess of BMA requirements. An increase in RBC or minimum capital requirements may require Global Atlantic to increase its statutory capital levels, which Global Atlantic might be unable to meet.
Moreover, the determination of RBC is based on the NAIC designation of the assets in which Global Atlantic invests. NAIC designation for certain investments depends on the applicable NRSRO rating. If there are changes in an NRSRO's methodology that impacts the rating of a certain type of asset, Global Atlantic's ability to invest in such assets may be impacted and Global Atlantic's investment results may be adversely impacted or Global Atlantic may need to increase its required capital.
Changes to comply with new and potential laws or regulations which impose fiduciary or best interest standards in connection with the sale of Global Atlantic's products could materially increase Global Atlantic's costs, decrease its sales and result in a material adverse impact on its business.
Regulators continue to propose or adopt fiduciary rules, best interest standards and other similar laws and regulations applicable to the sale of annuity and life insurance products. These rules, standards, laws and regulations generally require advisers providing investment recommendations to act in the client's best interest or put the client's interest ahead of their own interest. Global Atlantic faces uncertainty regarding the adoption of these rules and regulations, including that the SEC, Department of Labor and state insurance departments may adopt potentially conflicting or overlapping standards. These new and proposed regulations may fundamentally change the way financial advisors, agents, and financial institutions do business. These rules may impact the way in which Global Atlantic's products are marketed and offered by its distribution partners, which could have an impact on customer demand, impact the margins Global Atlantic makes on its products or increase compliance costs and burdens.
These rules and potential rules could cause a material decline in sales of Global Atlantic's products in the individual channel, such as variable annuities and fixed-indexed annuities. Regulators in enforcement actions and private litigants could also find it easier to attempt to extend fiduciary status to, or to claim fiduciary or contractual breach by, advisors who would not be deemed fiduciaries under current regulations. Such laws and regulations may have a material adverse impact on the industry and may have a material adverse impact on Global Atlantic's business.
Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries are subject to regulation by the BMA that may restrict their operations.
The BMA regulates and supervises each of Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries on a stand-alone basis in Bermuda. The Bermuda Insurance Act and the policies of and/or other codes issued by the BMA relevant to insurers require each of Global Atlantic's Bermuda reinsurance subsidiaries to, among other requirements, to maintain a minimum level of
capital and surplus, comply with restrictions on dividends, make financial statement filings, prepare a financial condition report, maintain a head office in Bermuda from which each of Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries' insurance business will be directed and managed and allow for the performance of certain periodic examinations of its financial condition.
These statutes and regulations may restrict Global Atlantic's ability to write insurance and reinsurance policies, distribute funds and pursue its investment strategy. Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries will be exposed to any changes in the political environment in Bermuda. In addition, while each of Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries is currently classified as a Class C and Class 3A insurer under the Bermuda Insurance Act, Global Atlantic Assurance Limited is considering registering as a Class E insurer that would be subject to increased regulation and oversight.
The Bermuda insurance and reinsurance regulatory framework is subject to scrutiny from many jurisdictions. As a result of such overseas scrutiny, the BMA has implemented and imposed additional requirements on the licensed insurance companies it regulates to achieve equivalence under Solvency II, the solvency regime applicable to the E.U. insurance sector. As such, Bermuda's reinsurance industry operates in a legal and regulatory environment that is deemed to be equivalent with that of the European Union. The BMA's additional requirements resulting from Solvency II equivalence include enhanced solvency and governance requirements imposed on insurers and reinsurers. As part of the additional requirements, the BMA has also established a group solvency framework that could further enhance the required capital and solvency requirements if the BMA is deemed to be the group regulator. There is a risk that if Solvency II were amended in any way, Bermuda may be required to amend its regulatory regime to maintain its equivalence under Solvency II, which could lead to changes in the regulatory regime administered by the BMA.
The BMA continues to consider further revisions to the Bermuda capital ratio, called BSCR, and may propose further updates, to certain aspects of the EBS Framework. If any such updates materially increase the capital Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries must hold.
Global Atlantic may not be able to mitigate the reserve strain associated with statutory accounting rules, potentially resulting in a negative impact on Global Atlantic's capital position or in a need to increase prices and/or reduce sales of term or universal life products.
The application of certain statutory accounting rules for term life insurance policies with long-term premium guarantees and universal life policies with secondary guarantees requires Global Atlantic to maintain reserves at a level that exceeds what Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries' actuarial assumptions for the applicable business would otherwise require. Global Atlantic has special purpose financial captive insurance company subsidiaries ("captives") domiciled in Vermont and Iowa that provide reinsurance to Accordia in order to facilitate the financing of the redundant reserve requirements associated with these statutory accounting rules. These arrangements are subject to review by state insurance regulators and rating agencies.
Further changes in such statutory accounting rules will likely make it difficult for Global Atlantic to establish new captive financing arrangements on a basis consistent with its current captives. As a result of these restrictions on financing redundant reserves, the implementation of new captive structures in the future may be less capital-efficient, may lead to lower product returns and/or increased product pricing, or may result in reduced sales of certain products.
Certain of the reserve financing facilities Global Atlantic has put in place will mature prior to the run-off of the liabilities they support. As a result, Global Atlantic cannot provide any assurances that it will be able to continue to implement actions either to mitigate the strain of redundant reserves on future sales of term and universal life insurance products or maintain collateral support related to Global Atlantic's captives or existing third-party reinsurance arrangements to which one of Global Atlantic's captive reinsurance subsidiaries is a party. If Global Atlantic is unable to continue to implement those actions or maintain existing collateral support, it may be required to increase statutory reserves or incur higher operating costs than currently anticipated.
It is also unclear what additional actions and regulatory changes will result from the continued scrutiny of captive reinsurers and reform efforts by the NAIC and other regulatory bodies. The NAIC is evaluating changes to accounting rules regarding surplus notes with linked assets, a structure used in certain captive reserve financing transactions, and Global Atlantic is monitoring for any changes that may impact its statutory financial statements. If state insurance regulators determine to restrict Global Atlantic's use of captive reinsurers, it could require Global Atlantic to increase statutory reserves, incur higher operating or tax costs or reduce sales. If Global Atlantic is unsuccessful or unable to finance these noneconomic reserves, its competitiveness, capital and financial position and results of operations may be adversely affected.
Insurance supervisors in the United States or elsewhere may review Global Atlantic's activities and assert that its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries are subject to additional licensing requirements.
Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries are subject to regulation and supervision in Bermuda by the BMA. In general, Bermuda insurance statutes, regulations and the policies of the BMA are less restrictive than U.S. insurance statutes and regulations. Global Atlantic cannot provide any assurances that insurance supervisors in the United States or elsewhere will not review Global Atlantic's activities and assert that its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries are subject to a U.S. jurisdiction's licensing requirements. In addition, Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries may be subject to indirect regulatory requirements imposed by jurisdictions that may limit Global Atlantic's ability to provide reinsurance. For example, Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries' ability to write reinsurance may be subject, in certain cases, to arrangements satisfactory to applicable supervisory bodies, and proposed legislation and regulations may have the effect of imposing additional requirements upon, or restricting the market for, non-U.S. reinsurers such as Global Atlantic. Reinsurance between Global Atlantic's U.S. and Bermuda insurance subsidiaries is subject to approval by the applicable U.S. domiciliary state insurance department, and there can be no guarantee such approval will be obtained. Furthermore, Global Atlantic Re Limited reinsures substantially all of Global Atlantic's variable annuity business. If Global Atlantic Re Limited were no longer able to reinsure such business or if Global Atlantic had to recapture variable annuity business reinsured to Global Atlantic Re Limited due to changes in laws or regulations applicable to Global Atlantic Re Limited, Global Atlantic would likely experience increased fluctuations in its RBC ratio attributable to the sensitivity of variable annuities to changes in equity and interest rate markets.
If in the future Global Atlantic's Bermuda insurance subsidiaries were to become subject to regulation under the laws of any state in the United States or the laws of the United States or of any other country, Global Atlantic may consider various alternatives to or restructuring of its operations. If Global Atlantic attempts to license its Bermuda insurance subsidiaries in another jurisdiction, for instance, Global Atlantic may not be able to do so and the modification of the conduct of its business or the noncompliance with insurance statutes and regulations could significantly and negatively affect Global Atlantic's business and results of operations.
Changes in regulations relating to reserves, such as implementation of principle-based reserving and implementation of revised mortality tables, could adversely impact Global Atlantic's results of operations.
Under principle-based reserving, reserves for life insurance products are no longer required to remain constant and may be updated over time. As a result, principle-based reserving may cause fluctuations to the amount of reserves held. Global Atlantic implemented principle-based reserving for term and universal life with secondary guarantee products sold after January 1, 2017, which resulted in a reduction in the reserves required for these products. Global Atlantic implemented principle-based reserving for all other universal life products effective as of January 1, 2020. Global Atlantic also implemented the 2017 CSO Table, the standard mortality table, to calculate reserves on all products issued on or after January 1, 2020. The NAIC's Life Actuarial Task Force is considering changes to the statutory reserve credit for yearly renewable term reinsurance related to life insurance products being reserved using a principles-based approach. There can be no guarantee as to whether these changes will be implemented or their impact on Global Atlantic’s reserves.
Failures elsewhere in the insurance industry could obligate Global Atlantic to pay assessments through guaranty associations, and proposed changes to life insurance guaranty associations could result in increased assessments.
All 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands have insurance guaranty association laws that require insurance companies doing business in the state to participate in various types of guaranty associations or other similar arrangements. The laws are designed to protect policyholders from losses under insurance policies issued by insurance companies that become impaired or insolvent. Typically, these associations levy assessments, up to prescribed limits, on member insurers on the basis of the member insurer's proportionate share of the business in the relevant jurisdiction in the lines of business in which the impaired or insolvent insurer is engaged. Some jurisdictions permit member insurers to recover assessments that they paid through full or partial premium tax offsets, usually over a period of years. It is possible that a large insolvency could require extraordinary assessments on Global Atlantic's insurance subsidiaries. Global Atlantic cannot predict the amount, nature or timing of any future assessments or legislation, any of which could have a material and adverse impact on Global Atlantic’s results of operations and financial condition.
For purposes of guaranty association assessments, long-term care insurance is typically classified as a health insurance product. In December 2017, the NAIC adopted amendments to the Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Association Model Act to provide a fifty-fifty split between life and health insurers for future long-term care insolvencies. A number of states are now considering, or have adopted, legislation to codify the NAIC changes into law, and more states are expected to propose legislation. If these changes become law, the effect may be an increase in future assessments against life insurers such as Global Atlantic’s insurance subsidiaries.