Sumitomo Mitsui Banking agreed to acquire a stake in Ares Management for $384m. As part of this multi-faceted partnership, SMBC will purchase 12.1m shares of Class A common stock from Ares at a price per share of $31.64 based on the volume weighted average price over the last 30 trading days prior to this announcement. Following the investment, SMBC will own a 4.9% equity stake in Ares Management and the Co-Founders. "Beyond the growth opportunity that this partnership presents for both of our firms, the strategic investment by SMBC coupled with Ares’ existing strong balance sheet and liquidity position and our proven ability to grow through periods of extreme market dislocation provides an opportunity for our firms to jointly capitalize on compelling risk-adjusted investments in this period of market volatility," Michael McFerran, Ares Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer.