What Ares Management does

Ares Management Corporation is a publicly traded (NYSE: ARES) alternative asset manager founded in 1997 that operates across five core businesses: Credit, Real Estate, Infrastructure, Private Equity, and Secondaries. As of March 31, 2026, the firm managed $644 billion in assets under management, supported by approximately 4,400 employees across 60+ global offices. The platform serves a broad institutional client base consisting of 3,500+ institutional investors, 480+ insurance company relationships, and approximately 2,900 direct institutional accounts, with additional distribution through publicly listed vehicles (e.g., ARCC, ACRE, ARDC) and non-traded perpetual capital vehicles (e.g., ASIF, APMF, AREIT, AIREIT, ACI, AGCIF, ADCF).

The investment platform combines direct origination, secondary market transactions, and capital solutions across the capital structure. Ares has built particular scale in real estate secondaries (189 transactions completed in 2025 with $20.3 billion NAV) and established a Credit Secondaries platform in 2023, which had grown to $4.9 billion AUM by December 31, 2025. The Secondaries Group as a whole managed $42.2 billion AUM at the same date. Distribution spans direct institutional sales, insurance general-account partnerships, and intermediated retail and wealth channels.

Ares generates revenue through management fees on assets under management and performance-related compensation including carried interest and incentive fees across commingled funds, separately managed accounts, and perpetual capital vehicles. Co-founder Michael Arougheti serves as CEO and Jarrod Phillips serves as CFO. The firm has been listed on the NYSE under the ticker ARES since its May 2004 IPO.

Name

Ares Management

Legal name

Ares Management LLC

Website

https://ares.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Ares Management Corporation is a publicly traded (NYSE: ARES) alternative asset manager that manages $644 billion across credit, real estate, infrastructure, private equity, and secondaries strategies for 3,500+ institutional investors and 480+ insurance companies globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Alternative Asset Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Open-End Investment Funds (525910), Management of Companies and Enterprises (55111)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Investors, Nec (6799), Real Estate Investment Trusts (6798)

akta.pro primary industry

Institutional Separate Accounts & SMAs (Mandates) (FSAAAGAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Insurance General Accounts (Institutional Asset Owners) (FSAAAGAG), Office Real Estate Asset Management (BPAJAMAG)

Keywords

• Alternative asset management
• Private credit lending
• Institutional investment management
• Private equity funds
• Real estate investment

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Asset Management Fees: Ares generates management fees from its approximately $644 billion in assets under management across credit, real estate, infrastructure, private equity, and secondaries strategies. Fees are typically charged as a percentage of AUM on its various fund vehicles.
2. Performance Fees / Carried Interest: The firm earns performance-based fees and carried interest from its investment funds when returns exceed specified thresholds, aligning manager and investor interests.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Ares Management is a global alternative asset manager that invests across credit, real estate, infrastructure, private equity, and secondaries. It manages approximately $644 billion in assets under management through private funds, publicly listed vehicles (such as Ares Capital Corporation and Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation), evergreen/perpetual strategies, and interval funds. The firm provides direct lending, asset-based finance, real estate debt and equity, infrastructure investments, private equity, and secondary market liquidity solutions to institutional investors, insurance companies, and wealth management clients.

Product overview

Ares Management is an alternative asset manager offering a diversified platform of investment products across five core businesses: Credit, Real Estate, Infrastructure, Private Equity, and Secondaries. The platform operates through multiple structures including publicly listed companies (ARES, ARCC, ACRE), interval funds, evergreen/perpetual strategies, and specialized SPACs. Key publicly traded vehicles include Ares Capital Corporation (BDC) and Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation, while the evergreen suite includes products like Ares Private Markets Fund, Ares Real Estate Income Trust, Ares Strategic Income Fund, and Ares Core Infrastructure Fund. The Secondaries business provides liquidity solutions across all asset classes. The firm manages $644 billion in AUM serving approximately 3,500 institutional investors, insurance companies, and high-net-worth individuals through direct relationships and wealth management channels.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ares Secondaries Group: Leader and innovator in secondary markets for three decades across private equity, real estate, infrastructure and private credit, managing approximately $42.2 billion in assets as of December 31, 2025.
• Ares Credit Secondaries
• Ares Capital Corporation (ARCC)
• Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (ACRE)
• Ares Dynamic Credit Allocation Fund (ARDC)

Products and services

• Credit Ares' Credit business provides direct lending, corporate credit, and asset-based finance solutions to middle-market companies and institutional borrowers. Includes direct origination, holding loans to maturity, and asset-based finance strategies.
• Real Estate Ares' Real Estate business manages comprehensive public and private equity and debt strategies across property types, utilizing a vertically integrated platform with a thematic investment approach for institutional and wealth management clients.
• Infrastructure Ares' Infrastructure business invests in essential assets including digital networks, energy transition, transportation, and utilities supporting the new economy, with both core and value-add strategies.
• Private Equity Ares' Private Equity business focuses on a growth-oriented approach investing in industries with approximately 5% underlying growth, targeting portfolio companies expected to grow 20%+ annually through operational value creation.
• Secondaries Ares' Secondaries Group provides liquidity solutions across private equity, real estate, infrastructure and private credit through GP-led transactions, continuation vehicles, and LP-led sales. Manages approximately $42.2 billion in assets as of December 31, 2025.
• Ares Capital Corporation (ARCC) Business Development Company (BDC) and publicly listed company on NASDAQ, focused on debt and equity investments in middle-market companies.
• Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (ACRE) Publicly listed mortgage REIT focused on commercial real estate debt investments.
• Ares Dynamic Credit Allocation Fund (ARDC) Publicly listed closed-end interval fund providing dynamic credit allocation strategies across diversified credit markets.
• Ares Acquisition Corporation III (AACIII) Special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) pursuing acquisition opportunities.
• Ares Strategic Income Fund (ASIF) Evergreen perpetual strategy providing diversified exposure to private credit and strategic lending opportunities.
• Ares Private Markets Fund (APMF) Perpetual strategy providing diversified private markets exposure across multiple asset classes.
• Ares Sports, Media and Entertainment Opportunities (SME Opps) Evergreen strategy focused on sports, media and entertainment sector investments.
• Ares Real Estate Income Trust (AREIT) Non-traded REIT focused on income-generating real estate investments.
• Ares Industrial Real Estate Income Trust (AIREIT) Non-traded REIT focused on industrial real estate properties including logistics and warehouse facilities.
• Ares Real Estate Exchange (AREX) Platform providing liquidity solutions for non-traded real estate investments.
• Ares Core Infrastructure Fund (ACI) Perpetual strategy focused on core infrastructure assets including digital, energy and transportation infrastructure.
• Ares Global Credit Income Fund (AGCIF) Global diversified credit strategy providing income through mixed credit instruments.
• Ares Diversified Credit Fund (ADCF) Diversified credit strategy spanning multiple credit sectors and geographies.
• CION Ares Diversified Credit Fund Joint interval fund with CION Investments providing diversified credit exposure.
• Ares Credit Secondaries Established in 2023, focuses on credit secondaries including continuation vehicle transactions, with $4.9 billion AUM as of December 31, 2025.

Quantifiable outcome

• Approximately 1% annual net realized loss rate in corporate private credit over two decades, comparing favorably to 1.5% for high-yield bonds and matching the 1% annual net charge-off rate for syndicated bank loans.
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Brookfield Asset Management: Brookfield is a global alternative asset manager with material overlap in real estate, infrastructure (including renewables), credit, and private equity, and it owns Oaktree — a direct credit-focused peer to Ares's credit franchise.
• TPG Inc. TPG is a publicly listed alternative asset manager with overlapping credit, real estate, private equity, and impact investing strategies that competes for institutional and wealth-channel allocations.
• Bain Capital: Bain Capital operates a comparable multi-strategy alternatives platform with credit, private equity, real estate, and secondaries strategies competing for institutional capital and insurance general account allocations.
• KKR & Co. KKR is a broad alternative asset manager with overlapping credit, real estate, infrastructure, private equity, and capital markets businesses serving institutional, insurance, and wealth clients — a comparable scaled multi-strategy platform.
• Blackstone: Blackstone is the largest alternative asset manager with a broader portfolio across private equity, real estate (BREIT), credit, and secondaries, and a leading wealth-distribution franchise that Ares competes against for private wealth and institutional mandates.
• Carlyle Group: Carlyle is a global alternative asset manager with comparable business lines in private credit (Carlyle Credit), real estate, infrastructure, private equity, and secondaries, serving similar institutional and insurance clients.

Others

• StepStone Group: StepStone is a global private markets investment and advisory firm that operates fund-of-funds, co-investment, and separate account programs — comparable as a secondaries and multi-manager platform adjacent to Ares's institutional and secondaries businesses.

Direct peers

• Blue Owl Capital: Blue Owl is a credit-led alternative asset manager with direct lending, GP strategic capital, and real estate strategies — a newer but rapidly scaled competitor in the same private credit and alternative wealth product categories as Ares.
• Oaktree Capital Management: Oaktree (now part of Brookfield) is a direct credit-focused alternative manager specializing in distressed debt, private credit, and special situations — a structurally similar credit-led platform that competes head-to-head with Ares for institutional and insurance mandates.
• Apollo Global Management: Apollo is the closest direct peer to Ares — both are alternative asset managers anchored by a massive private credit franchise (Ares Capital/ARCC and Apollo Credit) with adjacent real estate, private equity, and hybrid strategies serving institutional and insurance clients globally.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Subsidiaries11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments2 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ares Management