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Annaly Capital Management
Annaly Capital Management was founded in 1997 by Michael A.J. Farrell and Wellington Denahan in New York.
Annaly Capital Management
Annaly Capital Management was founded in 1997 by Michael A.J. Farrell and Wellington Denahan in New York. The firm structured itself from the start as a publicly traded real estate investment trust, choosing transparency and permanent equity capital over the private fund structures common in mortgage investing. Farrell ran the firm for nearly two decades before stepping down in 2017, handing leadership to Kevin Keyes and, later, David Finkelstein and Michael Weil. Annaly's strategy deploys capital across three broad verticals. The agency portfolio invests primarily in agency mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae, using leverage that hedges duration risk through interest-rate swaps and Treasury futures. The residential credit business acquires whole loans and non-agency securities, often outbidding bank portfolios for seasoned performing and re-performing mortgage pools. In commercial real estate finance, Annaly originates senior secured loans on stabilized properties, with borrowers ranging from national office REITs to regional industrial developers. Confirmed positions have included significant allocations to Fannie Mae DUS securities and floating-rate commercial real estate loans across Sunbelt markets (per the firm's quarterly filings, 2024). The firm manages approximately $90 billion in total assets as of its most recent disclosures, making it the largest non-bank owner of agency MBS in the United States. In 2023, Annaly completed its acquisition of MFA Financial's commercial real estate loan portfolio, a transaction that added roughly $2 billion in senior mortgage loans concentrated in multifamily and industrial properties (per the firm, November 2023). The firm operates from its New York headquarters and maintains no external private fund vehicles, choosing instead to retain all assets on a single public balance sheet. Annaly's structural differentiator is its status as the only mortgage REIT large enough to influence agency MBS spreads through its own portfolio allocation decisions. Unlike private mortgage funds that raise capital in episodic vintages, Annaly's permanent equity base and investment-grade credit rating give it the ability to hold assets through rate cycles rather than selling into dislocated markets. This public-company architecture, combined with its position as a top-five holder of agency residential securities, makes Annaly a reference point that other mortgage investors — private or institutional — track quarterly.
General information
Firm type
Asset Manager
Year founded
1997
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
New York
Corporate office
New York, NY, United States
Principals
Michael J. Weil
Chief Executive Officer
David L. Finkelstein
Chief Investment Officer
Michael J. Haylon
Chairman of the Board
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Annaly Capital Management?
Chief Investment Officer David Finkelstein leads portfolio strategy, overseeing allocations across the agency MBS, residential credit, and commercial real estate lending books. CEO Michael Weil manages firm-level corporate strategy, capital raising, and public-market relationships. The investment committee includes senior managing directors across asset classes and operates with formal duration and credit-risk limits approved by the board.
How does Annaly source agency MBS deals at scale?
Annaly's agency portfolio purchases newly issued and seasoned agency mortgage-backed securities through primary dealer relationships and the to-be-announced market. As one of the largest non-bank buyers of agency MBS, Annaly receives allocations directly from broker-dealers at issuance. The firm's size means its trading desk can negotiate tighter spreads on large blocks than smaller mortgage REITs or private funds.
Is Annaly structured as a family office or a traditional asset manager?
Annaly is a publicly traded real estate investment trust listed on the New York Stock Exchange under ticker NLY. It is not a family office or a private fund manager. The firm raises permanent equity capital from public shareholders and institutional investors, then deploys it solely into mortgage-related assets on its own balance sheet.
What investment stages does Annaly typically target in commercial real estate?
Annaly's commercial real estate business originates senior secured loans on stabilized, income-producing properties. The firm does not typically finance ground-up construction or speculative development. Loan sizes range from roughly $50 million to over $300 million, secured by properties in the multifamily, industrial, office, and retail sectors across major US markets.
Which sectors does Annaly explicitly avoid?
Annaly does not invest in corporate credit, equities, or non-real-estate private placements. Within real estate, the firm has publicly stated it avoids hotel and hospitality lending, as those assets carry operating-business risk incompatible with its senior-lien credit model. The firm also avoids construction lending across all verticals.
How does Annaly manage interest-rate risk given its leveraged MBS portfolio?
Annaly employs a dedicated risk management team using interest-rate swaps, Treasury futures, and options to hedge the duration gap between its assets and liabilities. The firm targets a net duration within a board-mandated range, adjusted quarterly. CIO David Finkelstein and his team actively reallocate between fixed-rate agency MBS and floating-rate credit assets depending on the rate environment (per Annaly's quarterly investor letters, 2024).
Does Annaly co-invest alongside external GPs or participate in fund commitments?
No. Annaly invests entirely from its own balance sheet and does not participate in third-party fund commitments or co-investment vehicles. The firm occasionally acquires loan portfolios from other lenders, as with the MFA Financial commercial real estate portfolio acquisition in 2023, but these are proprietary whole-loan purchases, not LP-style commitments.
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