In this respect, such strategic partnership will include the acquisition of a minority stake into Tikehau Capital Advisors, with subsequent UniCredit’s representation in the board company.

Tikehau was set up by a team of entrepreneurs in 2004, as an evergreen opportunistic investment vehicle. It is active on a large base of asset class such as credit, real estate and private equity through various investment platforms and direct investments.

Tikehau operates a credit-oriented alternative asset manager, Tikehau Investment Management, with experience in credit investing, with a particular bias for stressed, high yield situations and bank loans.

As of December 2010, Tikehau has EUR575m in assets under management.