Ares Management and CAL Automotive form joint venture for vehicle leases

Ares Management (ARES) and Certified Automotive Lease, or CAL Automotive, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Auto Lender’s Liquidation Center, announced that CAL Automotive and Ares have entered a joint venture to purchase and invest up to $1.5B in prime new vehicle leases originated by CAL. With over 40 years of experience in the consumer vehicle leasing market, Auto Lenders launched CAL Automotive in 2016 as a sourcing model with the ability to generate profit throughout a vehicle’s life. CAL Automotive expects to realize strong residual value performance for off-lease vehicles sold to Auto Lenders. The joint venture will seek to capitalize on CAL Automotive’s position as an independent consumer auto lessor and serve as a complementary strategy alongside the company’s current bank partnerships. In addition, Ares and Ares Alternative Credit portfolio managers have pledged to donate at least 5-10% of the performance fees earned from Alternative Credit’s flagship funds to support global health and education charities.