Investcorp Strategic Capital Group's Anthony Maniscalco - the evolution of GP stakes

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast.

We sat down with Anthony Maniscalco, the Managing Partner and Business Head of Investcorp Strategic Capital Group (ISCG).

We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as private equity industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin.

With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers.

Investcorp has been a pioneer in private equity. Since its founding in 1982, the firm has grown from a “boutique Gulf firm” into a global and diversified alternative asset manager. 

Investcorp launched its Strategic Capital Group (SCG) (GP stakes) business long after its founding in 1982. But the firm brought in a pioneer to launch and build SCG into a leading GP stakes firm, which now has over $2.2B of AUM. 

Anthony has been involved in GP stakes from the industry’s early days. He was a founding member of Blackstone Strategic Capital Holdings, a $3.3B private, permanent capital vehicle focused on acquiring minority interests in alternative asset manager GPs. He was also a Managing Director of the Hedge Fund Solutions business at The Blackstone Group. Prior to joining Investcorp, Anthony was a Managing Director and Co-Head of Credit Suisse Anteil Capital Partners. 

Launched in 2019, Investcorp’s SCG acquires minority interests in alternative asset managers, particularly GPs that manage longer-duration private capital strategies. SCG has completed 12 investments since inception.

Anthony and I had a fascinating conversation about the evolution of GP stakes and the benefits of GP stakes for investors. We covered:

Why have stakes shifted from hedge funds to alternative asset managers?Why the features of the alternative asset management business model (contracted management fees, locked-up capital, less key-person risk) can make for a good GP stake investment.Why a GP would sell an equity stake in its firm to finance its growth.Unpacking the middle-market GP landscape and where middle-market GPs need help growing their firm.The evolution from fund to firm and what’s next for GP stakes.

Bio

Anthony Maniscalco is the Managing Partner and Business Head of Investcorp Strategic Capital Group (ISCG), based in New York. ISCG is focused on providing capital solutions to the GPs of mid-sized private market alternative asset managers. ISCG closed its inaugural fund in the Spring of 2022 and currently manages over $2.2 billion of AUM. In his current role, Mr. Maniscalco is focused on managing the overall business, sourcing new investment opportunities, advising portfolio GPs and is the chairperson of the Investment Committee.

Prior to his current role, Mr. Maniscalco was a Managing Director and Co-Head of Credit Suisse Anteil Capital Partners. Prior to this, he was Managing Director of the Hedge Fund Solutions business at The Blackstone Group. At Blackstone, he was a founding member and on the investment committee of Blackstone Strategic Capital Holdings, a USD 3.3 billion private, permanent capital vehicle focused on acquiring minority interests in alternative asset manager GPs.

Prior to Blackstone, Mr. Maniscalco was Head of Alternative Asset Management Banking at Barclays (and its predecessor Lehman Brothers) within its Financial Institutions Group. Prior to this role, Mr. Maniscalco was head of the Media and Telecom vertical within Lehman Brothers’ Leveraged Finance Group.

Early in his career, he worked at Bank of America and its predecessor Continental Bank in Chicago, focused on high-yield, mezzanine, syndicated bank loans, and interim financing products.

Anthony holds a B.S. from Indiana University (2026 College Football National Champions!) and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago.

Thanks, Anthony, for sharing your expertise, wisdom, and passion about GP stakes and the business of alternative asset management.

Show Notes

00:00 Live From Berlin

00:15 Meet Anthony Maniscalco

02:56 Early Staking Was Hedge Funds

03:05 Banks And Prime Brokerage

03:40 Private Equity Hits A Wall

03:53 Shift To Private Equity Stakes

04:30 Why Stakes Are Attractive

04:54 Locked In Fee Streams

05:31 Carry And Diversification

06:06 How LPs Classify Stakes

06:59 Three Allocation Buckets

07:55 Strategic Access Flywheel

09:05 Tougher Fundraising Today

09:19 Why Middle Market

09:05 Fundraising Help For GPs

10:55 Underwriting Growth Readiness

12:15 Primary Capital Use Of Proceeds

12:49 Why Equity Is Worth It

14:46 Talent Retention And Next Gen

15:46 Wealth Channel Fit

18:23 Portfolio Construction Framework

19:36 Why Venture Is Harder

23:23 From Fund To Firm

24:34 Liquidity And Exit Paths

27:35 Prefs, Debt, And New Solutions

38:41 Continuation Vehicles Flywheel

41:02 Closing Thoughts