Apollo’s Athene Among Insurers Ramping Up Private Equity Lending

Apollo Global Management Inc. is at the forefront of a growing trend: insurers lending to private equity funds that want to borrow against their investments.

Athene, an Apollo unit, is one of several insurers ramping up their participation in net asset value financing, an increasingly popular form of borrowing for private equity funds that need liquidity amid a tough market for cashing out holdings.

Demand for these loans is climbing just as US regulators seek to impose higher capital requirements on the largest banks, leading some to be more selective in providing the debt. Enter insurance companies, which have different ...