Danish pension's credit portfolio gains 7.7% in 2019
Danish pension fund Arbejdsmarkedets Tillægspension (ATP) generated a return of DKK 2.7 billion ($401.2 million) on its credit portfolio in the first half of 2019, increasing the market value of credit investment to DKK 35 billion, according to H1 results

Silicon Valley pension to invest $20 million in private debt
San Jose Federated City Employees Retirement System and Health Care Trust is set to make commitments of $20 million in private debt, as part of its fiscal year 2019-2020 pacing plan, according to documents seen by Creditflux  

Local connections pay off as UK pension backs Tosca
Tosca Debt Capital has begun marketing Tosca Debt Capital Fund III and secured a commitment from the Greater Manchester Pension Fund, according to documents seen by Creditflux

UK's Tameside borough backs senior loan fund
The Tameside Metropolitan Borough in Manchester, UK has decided to commit $200 million in Churchill Middle Market Senior Loan Fund II, according to documents seen by Creditflux.  

UK direct lending deal flow picks up with 99 deals in H1, finds GCA Altium
While loan volumes in the UK were much higher than expected, activity in Germany was lower compared to H1 last year, according to the GCA Altium MidCap Monitor Q2 2019

Hamilton Lane holds $760 million final close for private credit fund
Hamilton Lane has held a $760 million final close for its latest global private credit fund, collecting slightly less capital than the manager’s predecessor fund. 

Alcentra reaches €5.5 billion close for European direct lending fund
Alcentra says that it has raised €5.5 billion for its latest European direct lending strategy

UK pension pool to launch maiden private credit offering
Border to Coast Pensions Partnership is launching its first private credit offering in early Q4, Creditflux has learned

HIG closes European small-cap special situations fund at $1.5 billion
HIG's distressed debt and special situations unit has closed held a final close for H.I.G. Bayside Loan Opportunity Fund V

Private debt should alleviate the next downturn, says Paul Hastings
Private debt should soften the next downturn and not exacerbate it, according to a note published by law firm Paul Hastings

Los Angeles pension fund narrows down global direct lending search to four managers
Los Angeles City Employees Retirement System (Lacers) has listed the finalists for a private credit mandate, according to an agenda document seen by Creditflux.  

Direct lender hires head of credit as it closes in on European mid market CLO
BeSpoke Capital has made a big hire as part of a reorganisation of the direct lender’s business

Robus lifts soft-close from credit fund after capitalising on late-2018 correction
The soft close for Robus Mid-Market Value Bond Fund has been in place since October 2017

EQT extends push into Nordic direct lending with Nordea hire
The hire follows increased activity for EQT Credit in the region with three recent direct lending deals announced in the Nordic region 

Prospect's $500 million CLO fund merges with Stira Alcentra global credit fund
Prospect Capital Management’s $500 million closed-end CLO fund has officially merged with a global credit fund managed by Alcentra and Stira

UK pension fund appoints manager for private debt portfolio
Hampshire County Council Pension Fund has appointed JP Morgan Alternative Asset Management as a private debt portfolio manager.

The Last Tranche: awards season is upon us [podcast]
A look at 2018 award offerings and finalist, plus some insight on direct lending and b-wics

Jefferies subsidiary and Stonyrock plan mid-market alternative manager stake acquisitions
The new joint venture will invest in private equity, credit, hedge funds, real estate, venture, and infrastructure firms

Maryland pension carves out private debt bucket
The Baltimore pension fund has also mandated a total of $25 million to one direct lending fund and one distressed debt fund 

Direct lending deal activity in France grows 20% year-on-year
Private debt activity in France continued to grow in 2018, with the number of transactions up 20% from 2017, according to a report published by France Invest (Association of Investors for Growth) and Deloitte

Capzanine appoints Emisys co-founder to lead new Milan office
Following offices in Spain and Germany, the firm has opened a Milan office - and hired three former Emisys Capital officials

Direct lending challenges in 2019: competition, lack of quality assets and high transaction multiples
Results from Proskauer Rose's survey show these are not putting off 75% of respondents, who are fundraising for a debt fund

Danish pension fund eyes niche credit opportunities
PensionDanmark is preparing for more volatility in 2019 by casting its eye towards niche opportunities in the special situations and distressed debt market. The Copenhagen-based pension fund last month merged its alternatives and private debt platforms

US pension backs Vista credit fund
Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) has approved a $50 million commitment to Vista Credit Partners Fund III, according to documents from the March board of trustees meeting  

Beechbrook hires head of DACH to lead new Frankfurt office
Beechbrook Capital, a lower mid-market direct lender, has hired an investment director for the DACH region (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) from German bank Mainzer Volksbank to lead a new office