Alts firm closes second mortgage fund at $750 million hard cap
The Minneapolis manager's fund will seek investments in newly originated loans, secondary loan trading and other structured securities backed by mortgage assets. The last fund in the series closed at $500 million

Credit Suisse and Carmignac team up to launch emerging markets fund
Credit Suisse has partnered with the French asset manager to launch a new multi-asset fund which has about two-thirds of its holdings in bonds

Alternatives firm hits $1.3 billion for opportunistic credit hedge fund
Alternative investments firm Varde Partners is on a roll: it has raised at least $1.29 billion for its opportunistic credit fund Varde Investment Partners, Creditflux has learned

Missouri pension fund selects Brightwood and Monroe for private debt mandate
The St Louis Public School Retirement System has committed $22 million to private debt, according to board documents seen by Creditflux

Minneapolis manager hits $1.5 billion in sales for credit strategy
The firm has reached $1.5 billion in sales for a credit fund, indicating sales of $500 million in a single year

Angel Oak's new fund to invest in CLOs and structured credit
Atlanta-based Angel Oak Capital Advisors has launched a new mutual fund, the Angel Oak UltraShort Income Fund, which will invest  in residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities, CLOs, US treasuries and agency debentures, and corporate credit

Strategic Partners' infrastructure fund closes at $1.75 billion
Blackstone’s secondary and fund solutions business, Strategic Partners Fund Solutions, has announced the final closing on the hard cap of $1.75 billion for Strategic Partners Real Assets II

Chinese real estate specialist closes latest fund at $276.5 million
Hong Kong-headquartered real estate specialist Starcrest Capital has announced the final close of Starcrest China Real Estate Fund II at $276.5 million

Quant giant AQR launches first fixed income fund
Quant specialist AQR Capital Management has entered the fixed income world, launching a new product called the Core Plus Bond Fund

GSO raises $7 billion for third stressed/distressed fund
GSO Capital Partners on Thursday announced the final closing of GSO Capital Solutions Fund III at its hard cap of $7 billion

AlbaCore closes debut direct lending fund at €1.5 billion
AlbaCore Capital has held a successful final close of its debut fund, AlbaCore Partners I, at €1.458 ($1.79) billion. The fund exceeded its €1 billion target, the firm announced on Thursday

Patrimonium joins forces with Credit Suisse for unique private credit fund
Direct lender Patrimonium Asset Management has teamed up with Credit Suisse to launch a new fund that will invest in corporate loans

BlackRock raising $2.5 billion for direct lending fund: report
BlackRock is seeking to raise $2.5 billion for a private credit fund – and has already hit the $1.5 billion mark in sales, according to a Bloomberg report

New Hampshire pension makes $50 million commitment to direct lending
The New Hampshire Retirement System has approved a $50 million commitment to BlueBay’s Direct Lending Fund III (USD unlevered), according to documents seen by Creditflux

NN launches emerging market debt fund
Dutch asset manager NN Investment Partners has launched a new fund that invests in debt instruments issued in hard currency (USD-denominated) by emerging market sovereign and corporate issuers

New Mexico investment council approves commitment to Silver Point strategy
Special situations credit firm Silver Point is set to receive $100 million from a US state investment fund for its latest distressed credit stratregy

Canadian real estate specialist reveals a year-on-year drop in assets
Terra Firma Capital Corporation has released its 2017 end-of-year financial statements, which reveal an overall drop in assets from CAD$146.7 ($114) million to $143.5 ($111.5) million at the end of 2016 and 2017, respectively

Barings raises at least $372 million for real estate credit
Barings has raised at least $372 million for its latest real estate credit fund, Barings Real Estate Credit Strategies VII, according to regulatory filings

Canada’s Fiera generates 10% AUM growth in 2017
Montreal-based asset manager Fiera Capital Corporation has increase its assets under management by 10% year-on-year and grown its annual revenues by 33% on a year-over-year basis, its latest financial report reveals

Columbia unveils new Luxembourg-domiciled global credit strategy
Columbia Threadneedle has unveiled its newest credit fund, which will emulate the investment approach taken by its €2 billion predecessor fund

Distressed credit specialist rakes in $781 million for global debt fund
Balbec Capital's latest global credit fund has a $1 billion target

Hong Kong's Tor raises $150 million for latest credit fund
A Hong Kong-based firm’s recently launched credit fund has raised sales of $150 million, hitting the halfway mark of its anticipated fundraising, according to a market source

Texas pension fund approves two new CLO manager mandates
The Texas Municipal Retirement System has approved the appointment of GSO Capital Partners LP and Octagon Credit Investors as CLO managers on its non-core fixed income strategy

Ohio pension backs BlackRock multi-asset and BlueBay direct lending funds
BlackRock and BlueBay have each won commitments from a $14.7 billion Ohio pension fund

London direct lender hits $100 million in sales for direct lending fund
UK direct lending firm Prestige Funds has raised more than $100 million for its Luxembourg-domiciled direct lending fund, Commercial Finance Opportunities