Fifth Street Finance Corp. Announces the Upsizing of Its Joint Venture With Kemper Corporation

GREENWICH, CT, Oct. 8, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fifth Street Finance Corp. FSC ("FSC") today announced an increase in the commitment to Senior Loan Fund JV I, LLC ("SLF JV I"), its joint venture with Trinity Universal Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Kemper Corporation KMPR ("Kemper"). As a result of upsizing the joint venture, the commitment from both FSC and Kemper has doubled to $200 million from $100 million. FSC will continue to own 87.5% of SLF JV I alongside a 12.5% contribution from Kemper.

Inclusive of its initial funding in July 2014, SLF JV I has invested $179.3 million in a range of one-stop and senior secured loans to 20 portfolio companies. The diversified group of assets, sourced through Fifth Street Management LLC's origination platform, is funded with leverage provided by Deutsche Bank AG, New York Branch DB ("Deutsche Bank") with a ratio of approximately two times debt-to-equity.

"The expansion of SLF JV I further demonstrates the strength of FSC's long-standing relationship with the investment team at Kemper. The additional capacity allows FSC to continue leveraging the Fifth Street origination platform to provide an array of financing solutions to support the needs of our private equity clients," stated FSC's Chief Executive Officer, Leonard M. Tannenbaum, adding, "Growing SLF JV I and other similar joint ventures should be a key component in driving future earnings growth. I am pleased that FSC is generating a mid-teens return on its investment in SLF JV I."

"Funding the joint venture's initial portfolio of attractively structured high-yielding investments in a timely manner gave us the confidence to double our commitment to the joint venture with FSC. We have expanded our investment partnership several times during our eight-year relationship, as the Fifth Street platform continues to prove its position as one of the more experienced originators, underwriters and managers of middle market credits," commented John M. Boschelli, Kemper's Chief Investment Officer, adding "We look forward to our continued partnership with FSC."

About Fifth Street Finance Corp.

Fifth Street Finance Corp. is a leading specialty finance company that provides custom-tailored financing solutions to small and mid-sized companies, primarily in connection with investments by private equity sponsors. The company originates and invests in one-stop financings, first lien, second lien, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. FSC's investment objective is to maximize its portfolio's total return by generating current income from its debt investments and capital appreciation from its equity investments. The company has elected to be regulated as a business development company and is externally managed by Fifth Street Management LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser and leading alternative asset manager with over $5 billion in assets under management. With a track record of more than 16 years, Fifth Street's nationally recognized platform has the ability to hold loans up to $250 million and structure and syndicate transactions up to $500 million. Fifth Street received the 2014 ACG New York Champion's Award for "Senior Lender Firm of the Year" and was named both 2013 "Lender Firm of the Year" by The M&A Advisor and "Lender of the Year" by Mergers & Acquisitions. FSC's website can be found at fsc.fifthstreetfinance.com.

About Kemper Corporation

Kemper Corporation, with $8 billion in assets, is one of the nation's leading insurers. The Kemper family of companies specializes in property and casualty insurance and life and health insurance for individuals, families and businesses. Kemper employs 6,000 associates who are dedicated to providing first-rate service to its customers. Servicing six million policies, Kemper's businesses collectively are represented by 20,000 independent agencies which sell insurance in 47 states and the District of Columbia.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements, including statements with regard to the future performance of the company. Words such as "believes," "expects," "estimates," "projects," "anticipates," and "future" or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to the inherent uncertainties in predicting future results and conditions. Certain factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements, and these factors are identified from time to time in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.