First Eagle taps AlbaCore alum for alternative credit product sales
Edward Berry joins as a managing director in London and will help distribute the firm’s alternative credit products, including those under the Napier Park brand

ECB warns of private credit cross-border risks, opacity
Private credit in isolation poses limited risks to financial stability, but the European Central Bank says it is still concerned about spillover

Barings raises more than USD 19bn for global direct lending strategy
The firm raised capital from institutional, insurance and private wealth investors globally

Citi, HPS strike EUR 15bn private debt program
BlackRock-owned HPS and Citi are working together to offer private capital solutions to sponsor-backed and corporate-owned borrowers

A&E and dividend recap activity populates primary, with new-money deals also pre-marketed – Europe Loan Digest
Smiths Detection, Schülke in pre-marketing; Hanab, TMF flex down pricing on recap deals; Caldic, Envalior, BME performance in focus

Golub shakes up leadership with co-CEOs, co-Presidents appointments
The alternative credit manager will have three co-presidents after promoting Spyro Alexopoulos and hiring two new executives

Primary regains momentum amid high demand for paper – Europe Loan Digest
BASF Coatings doubles book on tight margin; Archroma widens final print after fraud disclosure; Cooper Consumer Health prices A&E with a dividend recap

Mubadala leans into private credit despite negative headlines
Other panellists during the 2026 Milken Institute Global Conference also said they expect the asset class to grow and support companies’ capital expenditure needs

Lazard to acquire Campbell Lutyens in private funds push
The USD 575m acquisition will create a third global division known as “Lazard CL” that will focus on fund placement, advisory on fund secondaries and GP capital advisory

NAV lending concerns abate, borrowing costs decline – survey
Survey respondents in the Haynes Boones fund financing report said pricing for net-asset-value loans and subscription lines has come down in 2025 compared to 2024 

Record 1Q for European ABS primary issuance despite geopolitical volatility
Primary issuance in the first quarter of 2026 reached a record EUR 25.4bn (excluding CLOs), marking a 34% increase on 1Q25, according to Debtwire's European ABS Activity Tracker

AI disruption fears and Middle East-driven macro volatility weigh on loan and bond issuance – 1Q26 LevFin Highlights
LevFin issuance across the US and European institutional loan and high-yield bond markets saw a strong start to the year before fears of artificial intelligence (AI) disruption and escalating macro volatility stemming from the US and Israel war with Iran weighed on market activity

Global issuance falls 22% QoQ and 12% YoY amid tech selloff and geopolitical insecurity – 1Q26 Loan Highlights
Loan issuance in the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific (APAC) regions reached USD 1.37tn in 1Q26, according to Debtwire data; this volume was 22% down compared to the previous quarter and 12% below 1Q25

Tikehau looks to develop Asia direct lending product via JV
The French alternative asset manager has struck a joint venture with Amova Asset Management, formerly known as Nikko Asset Management, to solidify its presence in Asia

M&A volume leap 20% to USD 1.38tn in first quarter of 2026
Even the Iran conflict has not arrested momentum among larger deals. A mammoth USD 122bn capital raise from OpenAI closed on the last day of the quarter, according to Mergermarket data

Iran conflict weighs on primary but cross-border European loan deal flow continues
Europe Loan Digest: Electronic Arts prices euro-dollar loan; Grifols launches refi

European direct lending opportunity grows as US faces headwinds—AlbaCore
EXCLUSIVE: Outflows from select US direct lending vehicles could result in European direct lending spreads, particularly on larger deals, widening even further, Luke Gillam, head of senior direct lending, told Creditflux

AI blockbuster deals surge as Middle East conflict test dealmaker confidence
Mergermarkets M&A Highlights 1Q26: Global M&A volume jumped 22% to the second highest start ever

Investors scrutinise AI disruption and opportunities in the European loan market
Lower EV, high leverage elevate credit risk and refi challenges; AI-driven sell-off creates selective buy opportunities

Majority of LPs expect to mix public and private credit despite liquidity challenges – BSP survey
Within the next five years, 59% of global institutional investors expect to take an integrated approach to public and private credit investments, new research from Benefit Street Partners shows 

ABS primary braves geopolitical uncertainty as spreads start to feel pressure – European ABS Weekly Digest
The European ABS primary market mostly shunned geopolitical risk this week as seven deals priced, two of which were pre-placed

Citi announces debt capital markets co-heads, including a hire from BofA
The new co-heads will fill the open spot left by head of global debt capital markets Rich Zogheb, who is retiring after 40 years in the industry

Unitranche deals take off in Europe, setting new record – Houlihan
The European private credit market completed 570 unitranche deals in 2025, marking an all-time high since Houlihan Lokey started publishing its quarterly report

Group.ONE TLB and Cision loan fall on continued AI selloff
Market Comment: Software leveraged loans are under pressure on continued AI fears

Fund performance – December 2025
All categories end 2025 positively as Pictet Alt takes 12-month crown