Dyal HomeCourt NBA Fund Discloses $200 Million in Assets
Private equity fund Dyal HomeCourt has $200 million in assets under management, according to a recent investor presentation, the first disclosures that specify the size of Dyal’s fund.
Last year, Dyal HomeCourt became the first fund approved to own minority stakes in NBA franchises and bought into its first teams this summer. In a September presentation to investors, Dyal parent Blue Owl disclosed that HomeCourt has $200 million under management. A separate filing to the SEC said the fund had $155 million in assets, as of June 30. The strategy had no investors at the start of 2021, according to filings with regulators.
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The HomeCourt fund is one of the pioneers of an investment strategy built on acquiring equity stakes in pro sports teams. In 2019, the NBA approved a Dyal plan to purchase limited partner stakes in franchises in a deal that sees the league participate in HomeCourt’s upside. While other investment funds have since gained access to ownership stakes, Dyal HomeCourt still maintains privileged status: It is the only institutional investor that can own equity in more than five franchises. To date, Dyal has purchased a part of the Sacramento Kings and a small stake in the Phoenix Suns. No team can have more than 30% of its equity owned by PE funds.
In December, Dyal stated it was seeking $2 billion in capital to deploy in the NBA strategy. A source familiar with Dyal’s strategy had said in February that the firm was targeting $750 million in assets by the spring of this year. Representatives for Blue Owl and Dyal didn’t respond to request for comment.
It is likely that a change in custody between corporate parents complicated the fundraising pace for HomeCourt. The NBA strategy was championed by Dyal under its previous parent, Neuberger Berman. However, in December, Neuberger agreed to a deal in which a SPAC would combine Dyal, which has more than $31 billion in assets in many funds, and another investment firm, Owl Rock, into Blue Owl. That transaction closed in May.
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