BlackRock raises UK fund with large private credit allocation
BlackRock has announced the first close of an alternatives fund with a large allocation to private credit

Michigan pension goes back for more of manager's direct lending fund
The State of Michigan Retirement Systems made a secondary purchase of a US direct lending fund

Crestline targets low-teen returns for direct lending follow-up
Texas-based alternatives manager Crestline Investors has begun marketing its second mid market fund, according to documents seen by Creditflux

Cerberus outlines CLO-based mid-market financing strategy
Cerberus claims not to be a CLO manager (not in the traditional sense anyway), but the firm is targeting two more mid-market CLOs this year

Cov-lites have invaded the US mid-market, investors hear
Covenant-lite documentation has made strong inroads into US mid-market loans in the past year

Private credit manager eyes merger amid tough fundraising conditions
A direct lender operating a in one of the sparsely-populated parts of the market is open to a strategic partnership with a fund manager after scrapping a fund launch 

HSBC partners with Bain for landmark unitranche loan to UK firm
Bain Capital Credit and HSBC have partnered to extend a unitranche loan to environmental services firm Adler & Allan - the first deal of its kind for HSBC

US credit firm hires CLO portfolio manager and head of private debt
A US credit manager has announced two major hires to its direct lending and CLO management businesses in New York

HIG raises new fund as head reveals secret sauce in direct loan origination
HIG WhiteHorse has announced that it has closed its debut direct lending fund, the HIG WhiteHorse Direct Lending Fund, after making a big push into the strategy last year

Pemberton to take flexible approach with new direct lending strategy
Direct lender Pemberton will have the ability to provide junior financing to performing companies as part of a new initiative

Think outside the box
While the US market credit is the most liquid and the UK is considered the home of European direct lending, there are opportunities further a?eld

Hayfin raises €2.2 billion for special opportunities strategy
Hayfin Capital Management yesterday announced that it has completed fundraising for its new special opportunities strategy

Direct lenders find value in non-sponsor loans
Sourcing non-sponsored loans for direct lending funds is no easy task. But it could be well worth the effort

Points up front: Private equity is the enemy
Damien Dwin of Brightwood Capital Advisors was one of the most talked about speakers at Credit?ux’s Private Credit conference last month in New York, raising a laugh with his forthright comments about private equity ?rms.

Managers take baby steps into retail loans
Retail loans have been out of favour among fund managers for some time, and although this sentiment persists, CLO-i data shows that there is an active two-way market for certain names

Private credit responds to pressure
“Everything that can be stretched gets stretched,” so says NewStar founder Timothy Conway as talk at Creditflux’s Private Credit conference turned to deal terms getting stretched 

Oaktree set to buy mid-market specialist Fifth Street, reports WSJ
Oaktree Capital Management is leading the chase to buy middle-market US lender Fifth Street Asset Management, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal

Global raters dodged a bullet from the “Catalan Madoff”
At least one global rating agency dodged a bullet by declining to rate a Spanish fund backed by small and mid-market loans that is now being put into liquidation

Dyal takes minority equity stake in private credit manager
Dyal Capital has acquired a minority stake in private credit manager Atalaya Capital Management

Twin Brook adds $110 million loan as it builds mid market portfolio
Angelo Gordon’s Twin Brook Capital has made one of its biggest loans to date, according to well placed sources, as it ramps up a recently launched US mid-market credit fund

Carlyle poaches credit specialist from HPS in New York
Carlyle Group is continuing to pump resources into credit with the firm announcing that it has hired a head of credit opportunities based in New York

US pension fund turns to mid-market credit to diversify in fixed income
The Westfield Retirement System  is looking for a mid market manager to oversee a new $10 million fixed income strategy

Beechbrook UK fund hits 51% deployment mark
Beechbrook Capital’s UK direct lending fund is now 51% invested with the London-based manager noting that it has now deployed £77 million ($98 million) from its UK SME Credit I fund

Credit investors see “cascade of stupidity” over US earning definitions
Borrowers and sponsors are becoming much more aggressive in redefining earnings in order to attract financing, attendees at the Creditflux Private Credit conference heard yesterday