Before GreenOak, there was SLC Management, BGO, Crescent Capital Group and InfraRed. Under Steve Peacher's leadership, an effort began to build a diversified asset management business through strategic acquisitions and expansion. The journey would take more than a decade.
Steve Peacher
If you think back to the beginning of SLC, I think it's really rooted in Sun Life's priorities. It wanted to do more in asset management.
Kevin Strain
We looked at where the markets were going and what was happening around the world, and we could see the growth in alternative asset management. We identified it just in time. I think if we had identified that ten years later, we would have been too late. Even five years later, we might have been too late.
Steve Peacher
I was the CIO at the time and so on, the executive team and I was asked to go and think about that and come back to the board with a recommendation.
Tom Murphy
SLC was a glint in Steve's eye, I would say. He had talked to the board about strategy. He talked to about a series of asset classes, that alternative capabilities he wants to put together. And he had a plan and he had the support of the board, and he had some cash from Sun Life. And then off he went.
Steve Peacher
When you look back at our original intent, it was to build a diversified asset manager across fixed income, alternative credit, real estate and infrastructure. But we knew we'd have to make acquisitions if we wanted this to be big enough to be a meaningful competitor in the market. And also be to me to be a meaningful profit contributor to Sun Life.
Kevin Strain
And so we went through a ten year process really, buying different companies, and bringing all these capabilities together so we could meet the need of third parties.
Steve Peacher
We needed to go out and make sure we could find managers that we thought would be a good cultural fit, that had strong management teams, that had a great investment track record, that had high quality, client bases. And that takes a while.
Kevin Strain
I watched as we acquired these companies and we saw the different cultures and the different perspectives and the different global views.
Chris Wright
We have varying backgrounds and varying experience sets, and we've operated under different cultures historically.
Kevin Strain
I think that was an eye opener to all of us, because the asset management business to say the least, is different than the insurance business.
Chris Wright
I'd lie if I didn't say I was a little worried at the time. What Steve was proposing or what we were talking about with Sun Life would have had the biggest impact, potentially on the operations. And so was probably the biggest change that we were thinking about.
Jack Paris
Steve was very good about entrusting that some life was really not going to change the business.
Chris Wright
And what he said which resonated, was he understood, what made Crescent successful. He understood what made asset managers successful, and he was not going to touch that.
Cliff Corso
To me, it was always very Important. The alignment of Interest is there, because it takes staying power, you know, the frustrations to see something like this through.
Sonny Kalsi
We never would have done our deal with Sun Life if it weren't for Steve. He's the reason we did the deal. I've heard the Crescent founders say the same thing. I've heard the InfraRed founders say the same thing. So anyways, I hope Steve blushes when he hears all this.
Steve Peacher
it was really proving that we could acquire these businesses and they could be successful, that we could keep our people, that we could keep our clients, that we could grow. And I think if you looked up in 2018 and look backwards, I think we had done that.
Kevin Strain
So if you think about it, in 2014, we had $0 in third party assets. And at the end of last year, we're one of the largest alternative asset management companies in the world.
Steve Peacher
Interestingly, years later, one of the directors, Sun Life directors, who was there at the time said to me, we all thought it was a good idea, but none of us thought it would go anywhere. And I think that didn't reflect a lack of confidence in hopefully in me or in the organization, but it's hard to build something new.
Important Information
GreenOak is the brand name under which Sun Life Capital Management (U.S.) LLC in the United States, and Sun Life Capital Management (Canada) Inc. in Canada operate. The GreenOak brand is also used by BentallGreenOak (U.S.) Limited Partnership, BentallGreenOak (Canada) Limited Partnership, Crescent Capital Group LP, Infrared Capital Partners Limited, Advisors Asset Management, Inc. and their worldwide affiliates, including other regulated legal entities. Each regulated legal entity under the GreenOak brand provides products and services only where permitted under applicable law.
The commentary expressed herein is provided solely for informational purposes. It should not be relied upon as a recommendation to purchase any security or as a solicitation of investment advice. The views expressed are those of the speaker and are subject to change at any time.
Investing involves risks, including the potential loss of principal. No strategy of investment can eliminate risk or guarantee returns. This content may present materials or statements which reflect expectations or forecasts of future events. Such forward-looking statements are speculative in nature and may be subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Do not place undue reliance on such statements, as actual results could differ significantly.
Ranking Source: Thinking Ahead Institute and Pensions & Investments, The World’s Largest 500 Asset Managers 2025. Ranking issued in November 2025 based on total discretionary assets under management (USD) as of December 31, 2024. Thinking Ahead Institute is a not-for-profit research and innovation network whose paid members may include Sun Life Financial or its affiliates. Rankings are based on manager survey responses and publicly available information. For additional information, see
© 2026, GreenOak. All rights reserved.
After years of investment and expansion, Sun Life has built an asset management platform few competitors fully appreciate.
Kevin Strain
I'll tell you a funny story. So you wouldn't believe the number of our competitors that phone me up because they want to be a manager of our insurance assets. They don't even realize that we're in the alternatives business. And I started to tell them, well, you know, we own crescent and BGO and InfraRed and they don't even know. Five years ago. We identified that we wanted to be one of the best insurance and asset management companies in the world, and that was a big step for us.
Randy Brown
One of the things we looked at was the fact that the largest revenue segment of Sun Life collectively was coming from asset management. Kevin figured that out. And so the ambition went from being largest or best insurance company in asset manager to being asset manager and insurance company a change in wording that was actually, you know, important in terms of signaling, and really not lost on the, on the broader market.
Kevin Strain
And in fact, last year we changed it from being one of the best to being the best insurance company, an asset management company in the world. As a Canadian company, to give up that little bit of humbleness to say we wanted to be the best was hard.
Steve Peacher
If you look at the growth drivers that Sun Life is betting on for the next five plus years, SLC is one of those, for sure.
Tom Murphy
I think the SLC buy-ups has created an impetus and a catalyst that made us all stand back and say, how do we now really accelerate the growth of this platform?
Steve Peacher
We're connected to an insurance company. And that has been the magic sauce that a lot of firms have been trying to create. and I've seen examples of this in the marketplace where people have looked up and said, oh my gosh, where'd you guys come from?
Sonny Kalsi
There are many asset managers that are intelligently using insurance assets to grow their business. A lot of them.
Tom Murphy
And they have become absolute experts at using their insurance assets in a strategic way to fuel growth that the asset management business.
Sonny Kalsi
So there is a huge amount of synergy between these businesses. The symbiotic relationship here is if again, and Sun Life does more than insurance, but on the non-asset management side, if they keep doing what they do and they keep doing a great job of it. And on the asset management side, we keep doing a great job and then figure out how to leverage one another.
Tom Murphy
There's still a lot of work to be done. Like, we're, you know, we're we're we're to some extent, maybe a a new starting line. But we're now among the right peer group. I think we have to act and think like they do.
Steve Peacher
It’s hard and there are risks. There are risks, too. I mean, this is a super competitive business. We are up against big players. I mean, everyone knows the names Blackstone, Aries, Apollo, they're big players. They've had a lot of success. They're well-funded. They're very focused. They move very quickly. And that's who we're competing with every day.
Jen Volinski
You're competing with the big guys now. How do you feel about that?
Tom Murphy
How do I feel about being in the first Division? I feel pretty good about that. That's exactly where we should be, quite frankly. It's a bit like saying you had an aspiration to get to the promised land and now you're here. How do you feel? I hope the answer is we feel bloody good.
Kevin Strain
I think in three years, even five years for sure, the CEOs of Apollo and Aries and KKR and Blackstone are not going to be calling me, asking, get our general account assets they're going to know over there and that we're a big player. We have all the right ingredients to make that happen.
Important Information
GreenOak is the brand name under which Sun Life Capital Management (U.S.) LLC in the United States, and Sun Life Capital Management (Canada) Inc. in Canada operate. The GreenOak brand is also used by BentallGreenOak (U.S.) Limited Partnership, BentallGreenOak (Canada) Limited Partnership, Crescent Capital Group LP, Infrared Capital Partners Limited, Advisors Asset Management, Inc. and their worldwide affiliates, including other regulated legal entities. Each regulated legal entity under the GreenOak brand provides products and services only where permitted under applicable law.
The commentary expressed herein is provided solely for informational purposes. It should not be relied upon as a recommendation to purchase any security or as a solicitation of investment advice. The views expressed are those of the speaker and are subject to change at any time.
Investing involves risks, including the potential loss of principal. No strategy of investment can eliminate risk or guarantee returns. This content may present materials or statements which reflect expectations or forecasts of future events. Such forward-looking statements are speculative in nature and may be subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Do not place undue reliance on such statements, as actual results could differ significantly.
Mentions of third-parties are included as a general reference point in respect to market landscape. Inclusion does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation of products or services.
© 2026, GreenOak. All rights reserved.
The platform has reached an inflection point. As the industry evolves, so must the business.
Steve Peacher
You've got to evolve. So, yeah, the stakes are very high. It's been 12 years, it's been a long journey. Our goal over the last 12 years was to build it. Grow it. And not take a step backward. And now I think we're at a really important inflection point where we take all of these things that we've put together and hopefully nurtured in a positive way over the last 12 years and say, now that we've got it together and how do we start to operate as a platform? How do we strike the balance between maintaining the feel and the uniqueness of the different entities that make up SLC, but start to work together as and present ourself in the marketplace and also internally as one platform.
Sonny Kalsi
Steve and the team did a really good job putting together these various businesses, you know, kind of with a view that one day we would get to this point, this inflection point where we'd have these different businesses, which would really become one.
Jen Volinski
Do you feel like the stakes are high for this? For getting it right?
Jonathan Harari
Super high. That's what makes it really exciting. Who gets excited about low stakes?
Jacqueline Gallant
Stakes are very high. The stakes are high because our ambition is to be a global player. And I think we’re all realizing that our success in the market means, you know, showing up in the market as one And I think the brand can really help accelerate that ambition.
Sonny Kalsi
Yeah, we have to land this. You know we can't. It's not practical. You can't have a 30 minute meeting with someone. You spent 15 minutes talking about who you are. Right? So that's got to be right off the bat: this is who we are, this is why we think it's cool, this is why we think it's meaningful. So, we have to land it, and we will land it. I'm actually, I have zero concerns about landing it. We're going to land it, right? The plane is descending right now.
Important Information
GreenOak is the brand name under which Sun Life Capital Management (U.S.) LLC in the United States, and Sun Life Capital Management (Canada) Inc. in Canada operate. The GreenOak brand is also used by BentallGreenOak (U.S.) Limited Partnership, BentallGreenOak (Canada) Limited Partnership, Crescent Capital Group LP, Infrared Capital Partners Limited, Advisors Asset Management, Inc. and their worldwide affiliates, including other regulated legal entities. Each regulated legal entity under the GreenOak brand provides products and services only where permitted under applicable law.
The commentary expressed herein is provided solely for informational purposes. It should not be relied upon as a recommendation to purchase any security or as a solicitation of investment advice. The views expressed are those of the speaker and are subject to change at any time.
Investing involves risks, including the potential loss of principal. No strategy of investment can eliminate risk or guarantee returns. This content may present materials or statements which reflect expectations or forecasts of future events. Such forward-looking statements are speculative in nature and may be subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Do not place undue reliance on such statements, as actual results could differ significantly.
© 2026, GreenOak. All rights reserved.
In a market increasingly dominated by larger players, scale matters. Success depends on moving forward as one.
Jacqueline Gallant
If you look around, there are quite a few asset managers in this business. But there's only a few that are at the top. So, we've been very deliberate in our strategy. We've made seven acquisitions. The first few companies that we acquired, we integrated those brands in the first few years. With the last four acquisitions, however, those companies have remained independent and operated their brands independently. And that was very deliberate.
Jonathan Harari
The average competitor used to be, you know, size of x. Now it's five x. So we have to be able to compete with very, very large players as one platform.
Julie Wong
It's creating an energy and a positive association that we are one unit, that it's one whole entity.
There's just more strength in numbers.
Veronique Lauziere
Being in the market as one is going to help us as a firm get our clients more comfortable. They will get to know us better as well. They will understand what we offer and really see us as a as a large player. And I think our clients are looking for that.
Steve Peacher
Clients are looking to work with fewer managers because it's easier for them. So they're looking to work with managers to do more for them. Each of our brands today is well known in the institutional market. But as we evolve into one platform, I want people to think of us both institutionally but also in the wealth market under one name.
Lindsay DeGrazia
In today's world, attention spans can be pretty short. Without a unified brand, with a number of affiliates and entities you do kind of have to march through this story. So I do a lot of storytelling.
Sonny Kalsi
In the institutional market, everyone knows Crescent, they know BGO, they know InfraRed. We've all been around for a long time. They're going out to the wealth channels and they're trying to pitch us. So they have to go into the deck. They said it takes some ten minutes to get through who's Sun Life. And then there's this SLC and then there’s AAM. And then they got this affiliate here and all that.
Lindsay DeGrazia
I think it's a great story. We have an opportunity to refine the story and to really make it impactful, and to make it more reputable and acknowledged across financial services. There's just a tremendous amount of opportunity for asset managers to deliver to an underpenetrated market segment. And we're talking about $20s and $40s of trillions of dollars in play. We are just, like, really on the precipice of something truly monumental.
Important Information
GreenOak is the brand name under which Sun Life Capital Management (U.S.) LLC in the United States, and Sun Life Capital Management (Canada) Inc. in Canada operate. The GreenOak brand is also used by BentallGreenOak (U.S.) Limited Partnership, BentallGreenOak (Canada) Limited Partnership, Crescent Capital Group LP, Infrared Capital Partners Limited, Advisors Asset Management, Inc. and their worldwide affiliates, including other regulated legal entities. Each regulated legal entity under the GreenOak brand provides products and services only where permitted under applicable law.
The commentary expressed herein is provided solely for informational purposes. It should not be relied upon as a recommendation to purchase any security or as a solicitation of investment advice. The views expressed are those of the speaker and are subject to change at any time.
Investing involves risks, including the potential loss of principal. No strategy of investment can eliminate risk or guarantee returns. This content may present materials or statements which reflect expectations or forecasts of future events. Such forward-looking statements are speculative in nature and may be subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Do not place undue reliance on such statements, as actual results could differ significantly.
© 2026, GreenOak. All rights reserved.
After helping build the platform, Steve Peacher looks ahead to GreenOak's future and the leader who will guide its next phase of growth.
Steve Peacher
When I joined Sun Life as Chief Investment Officer, this wasn't part of the plan. It just came about. If somebody had said to me in May of 2013, when I was in front of the board with this idea that we'd be sitting where we are in 2026, I would have said I don't believe it never going to happen. And it's and yet here we are.
Kevin Strain
I've known Steve since he joined the company. It's been amazing to watch as he came in as CIO, but he really brought this strategic thinking to asset management. He was able to bring that broad strategy together, caring about the business but also caring about the people.
Sonny Kalsi
I think one thing everyone loves about Steve, as they know he genuinely cares, he's a genuine, transparent straight shooter. Always honors his word. When he has to change something, he explains it. And whatever else you know, he’s just a good person.
Kevin Strain
Sonny has a lot of that in him as well. He knows the business really well. He cares about the people. He cares about clients.
Sonny Kalsi
I think one of the mistakes people make with asset management is they always think it's all about the money and the AUM. And I've always personally had the view, it's all it's about the people. It's the people who work on your team. It's people you do business with, people who invest with you. Right? That all comes together and only holds together if there's trust, Steve and I unite very hard on that.
Steve Peacher
You know, we dress a lot differently. He walks around in sweatsuits and I, you know, I got the traditional blazer on and everything.
Sonny Kalsi
I don't own a blue sports coat. I might be a bit more of an extrovert than him.
Steve Peacher
But I actually think from working standpoint, we're actually, you know, very similar,
Sonny Kalsi
We've now been partners for seven years. It's been great.
Steve Peacher
I think different types of leaders are appropriate at different phases in an organization's evolution. I think every business is on a journey, and at different times in that journey, you know, you need different things. And I think Sonny is a perfect person to take it on that next phase. He's charismatic, he's totally energetic. He's an experienced investor, he's entrepreneurial, which is important because we're entering an entrepreneurial phase.
Kevin Strain
He also brings a very strong playing to win mentality. We're not the largest of the alternative asset management players. And so if we don't go in there with this playing to win attitude, with this belief that we can win, it will be hard because we're competing with the largest asset management companies in the world. And I think that Sonny is the exact right guy to bring that passion to it. And we wouldn't have been able to pull this all together without Steve building those really strong relationships.
Steve Peacher
It's been the most exciting thing I've done in my career, it has been fantastic. It took so many people to make all this all happen. So I felt like it was a team effort that I get to be part of. I'm super proud of it. I never thought I'd get to do it.
Sonny Kalsi
I'm very glad that he's entrusted me with this opportunity. I think that Steve has been very consistent about that. And I really appreciate that. We don't always agree on everything. We don't always get along, but we always figure it out. And by the way, Steve's not going anywhere, right. So, a big condition for me, for him, for me doing this was he ain't allowed to leave anytime soon.
Steve Peacher
I think about where we are as kind of the end of the beginning. That's the phrase I use because it's taken us over ten years to build this. And I, you know, I'm proud of where we are. We've had this platform, Now we're about to start a new phase. And I think it's about harnessing that platform. I think it's about growth. How do we take maximum advantage of it. This business is set up for the next phase, and I feel really good about that.
Important Information
GreenOak is the brand name under which Sun Life Capital Management (U.S.) LLC in the United States, and Sun Life Capital Management (Canada) Inc. in Canada operate. The GreenOak brand is also used by BentallGreenOak (U.S.) Limited Partnership, BentallGreenOak (Canada) Limited Partnership, Crescent Capital Group LP, Infrared Capital Partners Limited, Advisors Asset Management, Inc. and their worldwide affiliates, including other regulated legal entities. Each regulated legal entity under the GreenOak brand provides products and services only where permitted under applicable law.
The commentary expressed herein is provided solely for informational purposes. It should not be relied upon as a recommendation to purchase any security or as a solicitation of investment advice. The views expressed are those of the speaker and are subject to change at any time.
Investing involves risks, including the potential loss of principal. No strategy of investment can eliminate risk or guarantee returns. This content may present materials or statements which reflect expectations or forecasts of future events. Such forward-looking statements are speculative in nature and may be subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Do not place undue reliance on such statements, as actual results could differ significantly.
© 2026, GreenOak. All rights reserved.
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