Full steam ahead: Italian railway workers' pension fund seeks private debt exposure
Eurofer, the €1 billion Italian pension fund, for railway workers, is seeking debt managers, with a focus on infrastructure, real estate or unlisted real estate companies.

39% of private debt investors are underweight, but they're looking for opportunities
485 Investors have come together to reveal their thoughts about allocation, in a survey conducted by London-based investment consultant bfinance

Harbert European Growth Fund flourishes with €215 million final close
London-based Harbert Management Corporation has held a final close for its second European Growth Capital Fund with €215 million in capital commitments

Crossover users face waking up to much tighter index amid credit selection rule change
September could bring the biggest conceptual repurposing of the iTraxx Crossover index since its series 22 expansion, with IHS Markit set to overhaul rules governing how constituent credits are selected

Shetland Islands pension looks to terminate bonds and introduce direct lending
A UK pension fund is looking to terminate its bond mandate and introduce a 12.5% direct lending and 12.5% alternative funds asset allocation, according to board documentation seen by Creditflux

Barclays hires another senior EM trader as Turkey continues to roil markets
Barclays has made an experienced hire to its EM credit trading team in London

Credit drives strong returns for five of the largest asset managers in the business
Carlyle is close to hitting its ambitious fundraising target; direct lending has been kind to Ares; and Och-Ziff has decided to shed its US CLO risk retention stakes after exiting its financing agreements

Italian pension fund seeks direct lending managers
Previndai, the €11bn pension fund for managers of industrial companies, has issued a notice seeking global and European direct lending managers

Oaktree raises new special situations fund while CIO warns of direct lending risk
Oaktree Capital Management has released its second quarter 2018 results in which the Los Angeles-based firm reported $2.4 billion of new capital commitments in the quarter

Ares launches "largest ever" European direct lending fund with up to €10 billion to invest
Ares Management has held the final close on what it claims to be the largest European direct lending fund raise ever

Portfolio managers continue to be pessimistic on credit outlook, survey finds
A survey by the International Association of Credit Portfolio Managers states that 56% respondents believe average corporate default rates will increase over the next 12 months 

Investors eye alternative credit ahead of expected interest rate increase – report
Investments in alternative credit are set to rise among institutional investors over the next 12 months, according to an alternative credit report published by NN Investments Partners

Capital Dynamics registers debut direct lending fund
Zug-based Capital Dynamics is looking to launch Capital Dynamics US Middle Market Credit Fund after establishing a private credit business over the last 12 months

Global head of credit correlation leaves JP Morgan to launch new hedge fund
Market sources say that a high profile figure, known to have been responsible for unwinding JP Morgan's 'London whale' positions, has left the bank to start his own hedge fund

European institutional private debt appetite shows no signs of waning, finds Aviva survey
Institutional investors across Europe are set to increase their exposure to alternative income assets, according to a report by Aviva Investors.

IW launches first UK SME senior debt fund
London-headquartered IW Capital has launched its first  £4.5 million senior secured debt fund, which will invest in UK SMEs 

Patrimonium set to launch two European direct lending funds
Direct lender Patrimonium Asset Management is launching two new direct lending funds – with both funds anticipated to hold first closes at around €150 million in the coming week, according to market sources

65% of distressed managers plan new funds over the next year, survey finds
Distressed debt is proving to be a popular strategy for managers, with 65% intending to launch a distressed strategy in the next 12 months, according to a report by Creditflux’s sister publication Debtwire and law firm Ropes & Gray.     

Ares emerges as favourite to take over troubled direct lending fund
Following Oaktree’s wind-down request, the board of the Ranger Direct Lending Fund has chosen Ares as replacement manager - moves which could see the fund change its focus from peer-to-peer loan investments to asset-backed loans

Direct lenders pile into "turbocharged" market as fundraising skyrockets: report
Growth in the direct lending market in the 12 months to 31 December was “turbocharged,” growing robustly in the fourth quarter 2017 in particular due to a consistently growing Eurozone economy, according to Deloitte

Pennsylvania pension fund to commit €150 million to direct lending
The Public School Employees’ Retirement Board has recommended a €150 million investment in Intermediate Capital Group's ICG Europe VII fund

Capital Four fund soft closes at €350 million
Copenhagen-based Capital Four Invest has recommended a soft close for its Luxembourg-domiciled Credit Opportunities Fund following its growth to €350 million

Owl Rock BDC assets swell by $1.26 billion in 12 months
Owl Rock’s first business development company has increased its total assets by $1.26 billion and its net assets by $790 million in over just one year, filings indicate

EM manager crosses $2 billion fundraising mark across four debt funds
London-headquartered Ashmore Group has now raised more than $2.3 billion in total between four of its Luxembourg-domiciled emerging market debt funds, regulatory filings indicate

Minnesota pension fund looks to commit $535 million to 'private credit'
Minnesota State Board of Investments has recommended investments worth $535 million to private credit, according to board documentation seen by Creditflux