Blue Owl’s Logan Nicholson says the current market is creating better opportunities for private credit, but only for managers with disciplined underwriting, locked-up capital and portfolios built to absorb volatility.
Barings’ Bryan High says private credit still looks compelling, but only for lenders willing to miss deals, ignore hype and stay conservative.
Pantheon’s Victor Mayer says credit secondaries are coming into their own as liability mismatches, leverage and gated vehicles create a new source of opportunity.
Private credit is expanding rapidly, but its scope goes far beyond direct lending. Owen Libby of Blue Owl Capital argues that the real opportunity lies in asset-based finance, a segment tied directly to everyday economic activity.
Many portfolios feel diversified but aren’t, and the hidden cost of that comfort only reveals itself in the next market shock.
As upper middle market private credit quietly loads up on PIK toggles and weaker covenants, this op-ed shows advisers how the risk/return balance is really shifting, and why the more resilient opportunities may now lie further down the market-cap ladder.
Over the past decade, the landscape of commercial real estate lending in Australia has undergone a structural transformation. But not all of the commonly believed truisms that result hold water, argues Barwon Investment Partners’ Jonathan Pullin.
Investment-grade credit is having a moment. For Phil Strano, portfolio manager at Yarra Capital Management, the appeal lies not in hype or headlines, but in a confluence of fundamentals that are increasingly difficult for serious investors to ignore.
Investing in private credit can be a great option for investors, provided it matches their portfolio objectives and risk tolerance. However, having a solid understanding of how non-bank lending works can help investors gain comfort with this growing asset class.
A major transition is underway from “broken” buyout models towards growth capital with lower deal sizes and longer terms.
Direct lending has emerged as a crucial funding channel for mid-market companies, and has seen significant growth over the past 10 years, primarily due to a search for yield by lenders and investors. In some investors’ minds, it may have usurped the position of high-yield; we ask, are there good grounds for that?
Private credit may be booming, but according to Joe Unwin, head of portfolio management at Apostle Funds Management, the volume of capital flooding into the asset class is becoming a problem. Speaking at the Investment Leaders Forum in Byron Bay, Unwin warned that not all growth is healthy—and not all yield is worth chasing.
Across private wealth portfolios, private credit has become something of a buzzword – frequently cited, but often misunderstood. At the Investment Leaders Forum in Byron Bay, Justin Hooley, head of Australian private credit at Barings, brought clarity to the category with a deep dive into its structural complexity, sector segmentation, and the due diligence discipline required to navigate it well.
If there was any doubt that private credit has moved from the margins to the mainstream, John Valtwies dispelled it at the Investment Leaders Forum held at Crystalbrook in Byron Bay. Representing Blue Owl Capital—one of the world’s largest direct lending managers—Valtwies took delegates deep inside the mechanics of this fast-evolving segment, making a calm but powerful case for its relevance in diversified portfolios, especially in today’s yield-starved and liquidity-fractured environment.
With private credit garnering plenty of media attention lately, it’s important for investors to understand the underlying variations across this asset class. Lauren Ryan from non-bank lender Thinktank discusses some key points about private credit funds and how they work, as well as some key differences between them.
Private credit investing has seen exponential growth in recent years, fueled by structural shifts in financial markets and a growing demand for flexible, non-bank lending solutions. Private credit is no longer a niche – it’s a major force in the market.
The release of a landmark report by corporate and financial regulator the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) into the nation’s rapidly expanding private markets – and shrinking public markets – has brought this dichotomy into the spotlight, as indeed it has around the world.
All strategies work – until they don’t. But while private credit may not be everything it’s cracked up to be, the risks need to be weighed with a sense of pragmatism.
With many economists expecting the Reserve Bank to start cutting interest rates in early 2025, returns on term deposits could feel the pinch. Private credit is an alternative, but those pursuing this investment option will need to do their homework.
The respected property and investment research agency has given out its second-highest rating to Alceon’s property-based Debt Income Fund, which serves to highlight just how well the private debt sector can perform if done right.
