Kohlberg Leans Into Loans

Kohlberg & Co. was founded in 1987 by Jerome Kohlberg, a founder of the famed private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis & Roberts. He founded his firm, now run by his son James, just before KKR did its buyout of RJR Nabisco. That transaction remains the largest LBO in history.

While KKR continues to hunt big game, such as hospital operator HCA (HCA Quote), Kohlberg & Co. specializes in buying companies valued at between $100 million and $500 million. It has invested in three companies since 2004, and its most recent fund has $800 million under management.

Kohlberg Capital will use the cash from the IPO to buy a part of Katonah Debt Advisors, an asset manager owned by Kohlberg & Co. that specializes in managing collateralized debt funds.

Lehman Brothers(LEH Quote), Merrill Lynch(MER Quote), BMO Capital Markets and Bank of America(BAC Quote) will underwrite the deal.