Värde targets $1 billion for inaugural dedicated credit dislocation fund
Värde is seeking to raise $1 billion for its dislocation and distressed debt fund, according to an investor presentation seen by Creditflux. The firm is targeting a first close this month

LP round up: Pimco gets the Disco started as distressed managers win allocations
Insitutional investors allocated just over $1 billion to credit funds last week, according to board documents seen by Creditflux, with special situation funds from Farallon, Pimco and SSG taking the bulk of these commitments

BNP Paribas unit holds final close on special opportunities fund of funds
BNP Paribas Capital Partners has held a final close on its European special opportunities fund of debt funds

Patrimonium launches two private debt funds
The Swiss-based direct lender its targeting  €800 million for its second co-investment fund with Credit Suisse and has developed a new credit opportunities strategy

Fund performance: CLO tranches move up
April returns managed a partial bounce back after a tumultuous March. 82% of funds listed in the Creditflux database made positive returns, showing at least small signs of recovery after 90% of all funds listed posted negative returns in March

Alcentra's 'significant personnel changes' lead pension to terminate private credit contract
Los Angeles City Employees Retirement System has plans to rescind and terminate its private credit contract with Alcentra "based on significant and unexpected turnover of senior personnel”, according to documents seen by Creditflux. The pension is instead looking to redeploy commitments to Crescent Capital

Apollo earmarks $20 billion for dislocation fundraising over 12 months
Apollo's returns for corporate credit, structured credit and direct origination in the first quarter were down 8.3%, 14.7% and 4.8%, respectively, but the firm is looking to launch various credit strategies, including capital solutions, dislocation strategies and distressed strategies, that it “expects to accumulate $20 billion over the next year”

KKR deploys 10% of $2 billion coronavirus dislocation credit fund
KKR Credit has plans to launch a $2 billion dislocated corporate and asset backed credit fund to take advantage of coronavirus-induced volatility. And the New York-based manager has wasted no time swooping on opportunities after deploying $212 million by 9 April

HPS raises $1.5 billion SME credit fund in Europe
HPS Investment Partners has closed a $1.5 billion SME credit fund known as the European Asset Value Fund II

Credit Rendezvous: recovery begins, but is it U, V or even W?
Investing in credit is not as easy as ABC. The coronavirus crisis has crushed valuations and although most assets will eventually pull to par, no one is sure how the recovery will pan out

Global direct lending fundraising plummets in Q1
Global direct lending fundraising figures plummeted in the first quarter as coronavirus-related volatility kicked in. Managers raised just $9.4 billion raised across 11 funds compared to $18.6 billion across 15 in Q1 2019, according to Creditflux's fund database

Border to Coast bolsters 'alternatives' business with PM hire
The pension fund has hired a portfolio manager for alternative investments, including private credit, private equity and infrastructure  

Muzinich subsidiary launches €417 million Italian credit fund
Springrowth, a subsidiary of Muzinich, has held a €417 million final close on an Italian direct lending fund in which Muzinich partners with local banks for origination. The Milan-based firm is also fundraising for a Rescue Financing fund to support companies affected by the coronavirus crisis

Crescent closes second European direct lending fund at €1.6 billion
Crescent Capital has raised €1.6 billion for its second European direct lending fund, exceeding the original €1 billion target size, according to an announcement

Bardin Hill pulls in $300 million for first close of opportunistic credit fund
Bardin Hill has held a first close on an opportunistic credit fund at around $300 million, according to sources familiar with the matter

Sacramento pension earmarks $150 million for private credit in 2020
The pension fund expects to commit to two direct lending funds and one credit fund it describes as 'opportunistic'

European unitranche deal flow increased 11% last year, finds GCA
European direct lending unitranche deals completed in 2019 increased by 11%, according to GCA Altum's Q4 2019 MidCap Monitor, marking a record year for the industry 

Alcentra makes big hires from Fosun and Park Square as Delaney-Smith retires
Alcentra’s European direct lending team is going through an overhaul with the co-head of this business, Graeme Delaney-Smith, retiring from the firm and two well known names joining

Banco Sabadell joins forces with Amundi
Banco Sabadell and Amundi have announced a long-term strategic partnership, in a bid to boost fund business in Spain  

UK charities join forces on hunt for ESG managers
Three UK based charities are joining forces in the hunt for a manager to oversee a £32 million ($41.6 million) portfolio with a strong focus on environment, social and governance (ESG) criteria as well as impact investing  

Global mid market CLO league tables: Golub and Natixis lead by a distance
Golub Capital and Natixis dominated the mid market CLO space in 2019 in the manager and arranger league tables, respectively

Private debt tops the private markets agenda for insurers, finds Schroders
Insurers currently allocate the largest proportion of their private assets’ portfolio to private debt, followed by real estate, according to study published by asset manager Schroders