In 2013, UK pensions giant Legal & General spent about £70M, plus £35M of debt, buying a half share of Cala, a housebuilder that emerged from the financial crisis in decent shape, but in need of more capital. It was an interesting purchase, but not a hugely notable one, other than being the first deal for a new division, Legal & General Capital. The intent was to invest directly in companies and assets it thought would provide good returns because there wasn’t enough money in certain sectors of the economy. L&G said at the time it saw this direct investment as a good area for growth. That turned out to be quite the understatement. 
In the past decade, LGC has grown into a business that controls £3.7B of the firm’s money, manages almost £16B of external client money and was the second-largest part of L&G’s business last year, turning a profit of more than £450M.Its aim today is to grow that profit to £600M-£700M…  Read the full story here. | 
