Key Takeaways
- • Crescent Capital Group, a Los Angeles-based alternative credit manager with $43B in assets under management (as of September 30, 2024), is establishing its first continental European office in Frankfurt, Germany in 2025.
- • Michael Sauerbrey, who joined Crescent in October 2024, has been appointed managing director and head of the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) to lead the new Frankfurt office.
- • The expansion reflects Crescent's strategic push to distribute its alternative credit strategies to institutional investors and family offices across Europe, leveraging its position within SLC Management, the institutional alternatives and traditional asset management business of Sun Life.
Summary
Crescent Capital Group announced plans to open a Frankfurt office in 2025 as part of a broader European expansion strategy. The move marks the firm's first ground presence on continental Europe and positions it to serve the DACH region—Germany, Austria, and Switzerland—where demand for specialized credit solutions among institutional allocators and family offices remains substantial.
The appointment of Michael Sauerbrey as managing director and head of the DACH region underscores Crescent's commitment to the expansion. Sauerbrey joined the firm in October 2024, indicating that leadership recruitment for the German office was already underway at the time of the announcement. As a Los Angeles-based subsidiary of SLC Management (Sun Life's institutional alternatives and traditional asset management division), Crescent brings institutional-grade credit capabilities and a track record spanning over 30 years in corporate credit markets.
The Frankfurt office will focus on offering Crescent's alternative credit investment strategies to European institutional clients and family offices seeking exposure to non-traditional credit markets. This expansion aligns with broader industry trends of U.S.-based alternative asset managers establishing European footholds to capture institutional capital deployed in the region.
The appointment of Michael Sauerbrey as managing director and head of the DACH region underscores Crescent's commitment to the expansion. Sauerbrey joined the firm in October 2024, indicating that leadership recruitment for the German office was already underway at the time of the announcement. As a Los Angeles-based subsidiary of SLC Management (Sun Life's institutional alternatives and traditional asset management division), Crescent brings institutional-grade credit capabilities and a track record spanning over 30 years in corporate credit markets.
The Frankfurt office will focus on offering Crescent's alternative credit investment strategies to European institutional clients and family offices seeking exposure to non-traditional credit markets. This expansion aligns with broader industry trends of U.S.-based alternative asset managers establishing European footholds to capture institutional capital deployed in the region.
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