Green Tree Servicing Agrees to Be Acquired by Investor Group Led by Centerbridge Partners
Wednesday June 27, 5:45 pm ET
SAINT PAUL, Minn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Green Tree Servicing (“Green Tree”), a specialty consumer finance company, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by an investor group led by Centerbridge Partners, L.P. and its affiliates (“Centerbridge”). The investor group, along with existing management, is buying 100% of the company’s equity from funds managed by affiliates of Fortress Investment Group and from affiliates of Cerberus Capital Management. The acquisition is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2007, subject to customary closing conditions. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
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Through this investment, Green Tree expects to grow its loan servicing volume and invest in new loan portfolios. Green Tree will use its current platform to continue to develop new business initiatives while expanding and diversifying its current operations.
Keith Anderson, Chief Operating Officer of Green Tree Servicing, said, “This is great news for our organization. The new ownership group will provide capital resources, market expertise and strong strategic alliances that will enable us to focus on near-term growth initiatives. This will also empower Green Tree to develop long-term growth strategies, develop new products and expand into different markets within the consumer finance industry.”
Lance N. West, a Centerbridge Senior Managing Director, said, “Green Tree’s world-class senior management team, and its employees’ strong commitment to servicing, make the company a uniquely attractive consumer finance platform. We look forward to working with the management team to grow the business and maintain Green Tree’s passion for servicing excellence.”
About Green Tree:
Green Tree is a specialty consumer finance company that focuses on servicing the mortgage and manufactured housing markets. The company is one of the largest servicing platforms in the U.S., servicing over 700,000 accounts with approximately $20 billion in assets, including the nation’s largest portfolio of manufactured housing loans. The company also services home equity, home improvement and consumer installment loans, and offers insurance products through its insurance agency affiliate.
About Centerbridge:
Centerbridge Capital Partners, L.P. (the “Fund”), which will make Centerbridge’s investment in Green Tree, is a $3.2 billion multi-strategy private investment fund. Centerbridge is dedicated to partnering with world-class management teams to invest across multiple stages of a company’s life cycle and to employ various strategies to help companies achieve their operating and financial objectives. The Fund’s limited partners include many of the world’s most prominent financial institutions, university endowments, pension funds, and charitable trusts.
Contact:
For Green Tree Servicing:
Barbara Didrikson, 651-293-3497
Senior Vice President
or
For Centerbridge:
Brunswick Group
Steve Lipin or Melissa Daly, 212-333-3810
This will change things a bit!! Probably not for our benefit.
Greg Meade