History
Lone Star was founded by John Grayken.[9] From 1993 to 1995, Mr. Grayken was chairman and CEO of Brazos Partners L.P., a joint venture between the Robert M. Bass Group and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation,[10] that resolved approximately 1,300 “bad bank” assets resulting from the U.S. savings and loan crisis in the early ‘90s.[11] During this period, Brazos Advisors LLC was formed to provide asset-management and related services to Brazos Partners.
Following Brazos Partners, Grayken organized institutional capital to continue investing in distressed assets, closing Brazos Fund, L.P. in 1995 with approximately $250 million of capital commitments.[12]
Lone Star Opportunity Fund, L.P. followed in 1996, with approximately $396 million of capital commitments.[13] At that time Brazos Advisors, LLC was renamed Hudson Advisors LLC.[14]
After an expansion into Canada in 1995 and 1996, Grayken pursued the launch of a global platform for Lone Star in 1997.[15] Since then, Lone Star has invested extensively in North America, Europe and East Asia.[16] Lone Star invested primarily in East Asia, including Japan, Korea, Indonesia and Taiwan, following the 1997 Asian financial crisis.[17] In the mid-2000s, following the establishment of the Eurozone, Lone Star increased its investment focus in Europe.[11][9]
Through its credit affiliate, LStar Capital (officially LSC Film Corporation), the company entered the motion picture financing sector when they signed a $200 million deal with Sony Pictures in early 2014. The deal gives them a financial stake in nearly all of Sony's upcoming films.[18] However, due to the poor box-office performance of Sony's movies, the two firms severed ties on July 17, 2017, two years before the deal was set to end.[19]
In July 2015, Lone Star acquired the UK property investment and development company Quintain for £700 million.[20]
In March 2017, the Portuguese Central Bank announced that Lone Star Funds will acquire 75% of third largest Portuguese bank, Novo Banco, in return for a capital injection of €1bn.[21] The other 25% will be retained by the Portuguese bank's resolution fund. In October 2017 the deal was closed and Lone Star Funds started controlling 75% of Novo Banco.[22]
In March 2026, it was announced that Lone Star was one of several private equity firms in the running to acquire Irish banker Permanent TSB (PTSB).[23][24]
