Blackstone Acquires a Majority Stake in Stearns Holdings, LLC, parent of Stearns Lending

Stearns Holdings, LLC, parent company of Stearns Lending, LLC, a leading national mortgage lender with wholesale, retail, correspondent, and strategic alliance business channels, announced today that its partnership transaction with Blackstone (NYSE: BX), a leading global asset manager, has officially closed. Funds managed by the private equity group of Blackstone acquired a majority stake in the mortgage company. Founder Glenn Stearns will retain a significant ownership stake.

“I am very excited for the future of Stearns and look forward to the continued growth and success of our company with Blackstone as a partner,” said Glenn Stearns. “Aligning with a strong financial partner provides us with the resources to continue executing our strategic plan as we aim to increase profitable market share growth. I am very proud of what our employees have accomplished over the past 26 years.”

“We are excited to partner with an industry leader and are eager to work with Glenn, CEO Brian Hale and the entire Stearns team as the Company enters its next stage of growth,” said Nadim El Gabbani, a Managing Director at Blackstone.

“My leadership team and I look forward to the future with support from Nadim and the Blackstone team as we continue to build a preeminent residential mortgage lender in the U.S., and an employer of choice,” said Brian Hale, Chief Executive Officer of Stearns. “We are glad to finish 2015 with Blackstone by our side and even more excited to march into 2016 with this new partnership.”

J.P. Morgan Securities LLC served as exclusive financial advisor to Stearns Holdings, LLC. BofA Merrill Lynch is serving as exclusive financial advisor to Blackstone.

About Stearns Lending, LLC

Stearns Lending, LLC is a leading provider of mortgage lending services in Wholesale, Retail, Correspondent and Strategic Alliances sectors throughout the United States where licenses are held. Currently ranked as #1 Wholesale Lender nationwide*, Stearns Lending continues to expand as a company overall, making the Inc. 5000 list of Fastest Growing Private Companies in America in 2013, 2014 and 2015**, based on revenue growth of 250% over a three-year period. In 2015, Inside Mortgage Finance also recognized Stearns as #9 in the Top 10 Direct Lenders in Q1*.

Stearns Lending is an equal housing lender and is licensed to conduct business in 49 states and the District of Columbia. Additionally, Stearns Lending is an approved HUD (United States Department of Housing and Urban Development) lender; a Single Family Issuer for Ginnie Mae (Government National Mortgage Association); an approved Seller/Servicer for Fannie Mae (Federal National Mortgage Association); and an approved Seller/Servicer for Freddie Mac (Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation). Stearns Lending is also approved as a VA (United States Department of Veterans Affairs) lender, a USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) lender, and is an approved lending institution with FHA (Federal Housing Administration). Stearns Lending, LLC is located at 4 Hutton Centre Drive, 10th Floor, Santa Ana, CA 92707. Company NMLS# 1854.

For more information, visit www.stearns.com.

References

*http://www.insidemortgagefinance.com/

• Top Direct-Funded Originators. Rep. no. 3M2015. Inside Mortgage Finance, May. 2015. Web. 1 Jun. 2015.
• Top Purchase-Mortgage Producers. Rep. no 3M2015. Inside Mortgage Finance, Jun. 2015. Web. 5 Jun. 2015
• Top Broker Channels. Rep. no. 9M2015. Inside Mortgage Finance, Dec. 2015. Web. 2 Dec. 2015.

**http://www.inc.com/profile/stearns-lending

• "The 2013 Inc. 5000." The 2013 Inc. 5000. Inc.com, Aug. 2013. Web. 18 Mar. 2015.
• "The 2014 Inc. 5000." The 2014 Inc. 5000. Inc.com, Aug. 2014. Web. 18 Mar. 2015.
• “The 2015 Inc. 5000." The 2014 Inc. 5000. Inc.com, Aug. 2015. Web. 31 Nov. 2015.

About Blackstone

Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment firms. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, and the communities in which we work. We do this by using extraordinary people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. Our asset management businesses, with over $330 billion in assets under management, include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, non-investment grade credit, real assets, and secondary funds, all on a global basis. Blackstone also provides various financial advisory services, including financial and strategic advisory, restructuring and reorganization advisory, and fund placement services. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com. Follow us on Twitter @Blackstone.

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