Guaranteed Rate, Inc. entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Stearns Holdings, LLC from funds managed by The Blackstone Group Inc. (NYSE:BX) on January 5, 2021. Pursuant to the acquisition, Blackstone will have an interest in Guaranteed Rate and Blackstone will continue to support the integration and growth of the Guaranteed Rate vision. In the future, Guaranteed Rate plans to integrate and rebrand Stearns Holdings' retail operation as Guaranteed Rate. The Stearns's wholesale and partnership businesses will remain as stand-alone operations, with current Stearns Chief Executive Officer David Schneider continuing to lead those operations. The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021. Aaron Rigby, Chris Abbinante, Tom Cunningham, John Schaff, Ben Rosemergy, Kate Roberts, Jim Huizinga, Mark Werner, Elizabeth Chen and Dusan Clark from Sidley Austin LLP acted as legal advisor to Guaranteed Rate, Inc. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) acted as financial advisor to The Blackstone Group Inc. and Stearns Holdings, LLC. Allison Schneirov, Christopher Barlow, Victor Hollender, Regina Olshan, Shalom Huber, Jose Esteves, Laura Kaufmann Belkhayat and Anne Villanueva from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP acted as legal advisor to The Blackstone Group Inc. and Stearns Holdings, LLC. Guaranteed Rate, Inc. completed the acquisition of Stearns Holdings, LLC from funds managed by The Blackstone Group Inc. (NYSE:BX) on March 1, 2021.