Ares Management has entered into a definitive merger agreement with Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors to create Ares Kayne Management.

The combination of Ares, a global alternative investment manager with $87bn in assets under management, and Kayne, with $26bn mainly in energy and energy infrastructure investments, will invest across five asset classes. These are: tradable credit, direct lending, energy, private equity, and real estate. With a combined total of around 250 funds spread across these five categories, with over 450 investment professionals, the Ares Kayne merger is expected to be completed by Jan 1, 2016.

Robert Sinnott, current president of Kayne Anderson, will become chairman of the energy group at Ares Kayne, overseeing all of Kayne’s current energy-related investments. In an effort to reduce the stress of transition on existing funds, all of Kayne Anderson’s non-energy investment teams will join Ares’ equivalent groups and continue to manage their existing funds.

Combined, the two firms have a 5-year and 10-year AUM combined annual growth rate of 21% and 27% respectively showing solid growth throughout, except for Kayne’s slight contraction during 2008.