Joint venture with Canyon Partners, Japan's Dai-ichi Life marks early push into ABF market and portfolio diversification
Korea Investment Financial Group announced Monday it will join the establishment of Canyon ABF Partners (CAP), a dedicated global asset-backed finance (ABF) investment firm, as an anchor investor. An anchor investor is a lead investor that drives key management decisions — including fundraising and investment policy — for the investee company.
Korea Investment Financial Group conducted an in-depth study of the ABF market before committing to the investment.
ABF is a financial product through which companies raise funds or attract investment using the value of specific assets as collateral. It draws on the cash flows of a wide range of real-economy assets — including consumer finance, real estate, physical assets, patents and royalties — as its underlying base. The asset class is gaining recognition as a new mega-trend in advanced financial markets, distinguished by its high barriers to entry and relatively low volatility.
Korea Investment Financial Group plans to secure a competitive edge through collaboration with trusted global partners before pursuing full-scale operations in the ABF market.
CAP is a joint venture formed by global alternative asset manager Canyon Partners, Japan's Dai-ichi Life Insurance and Korea Investment Financial Group. Jay Kim, a globally recognized expert in structured finance, will serve as chief executive. CAP plans to supply liquidity to US specialty lenders and regional banks, backed by an annual lending capacity of more than $5 billion (approximately 7.5 trillion won).
The investment is part of a strategic push for global expansion rather than a purely financial play. Korea Investment Financial Group aims to deepen its expertise and deal-sourcing capabilities in the global ABF market, generate business synergies with partners through identifying and distributing quality investment products, and diversify its existing overseas investment portfolio beyond its current focus on private credit.
According to global private equity fund manager KKR, the global ABF market has nearly doubled in size, growing from $3.1 trillion in 2006 to $6.1 trillion in 2024.
"ABF is an attractive market that large global institutional investors are increasingly incorporating as a core asset, yet it remains in its early stages of adoption in South Korea," a Korea Investment Financial Group official said. "This equity participation goes beyond short-term profit generation — it is part of a strategic exploration to gain firsthand experience with advanced financial trends and elevate our global alternative investment capabilities to the next level."
jiyun@heraldcorp.com
