Commentary

Letter from Tokyo (Second of a Series)

Last week we came to Tokyo for meetings with our investors and friends in the region, as well as participating in S&P’s stellar Structured Finance Seminar 2025. Along with almost 200 attendees we heard senior ratings analysts and leading CLO market participants discuss trends and outlooks for global leveraged finance, CLOs and other securitized strategies. …

Letter from Tokyo (First of a Series)

We began our visit to Tokyo this week attending S&P’s Structure Finance Seminar 2025. Along with almost 200 Japanese bankers and investors, we heard senior ratings analysts and leading CLO market participants discuss trends and outlooks for global leveraged finance, CLOs and other securitized strategies. Our panel was entitled, “Private Credit, Middle Market CLOs and…

There’s a New Tariff in Town (First of Two Parts)

This week we look at questions from clients and friends surrounding the issue of tariffs. Not surprisingly, as we’ve discovered in our recent travels,  interest in the topic has accelerated (see our Chart of the Week).  The origin of the word is obscure. By one account, it derives from the Arabic “ta‘rif,” meaning “notification” or…

Letter from Kuala Lumpur (Second of Two Parts)

APAC countries each have their own path to investing in alternatives and private capital. Most key Malaysian institutions began with private equity, venture capital, and real estate. Favored PE sectors include data centers, which in 2023 represented an astounding 90% of all privately funded deals in that arena.* Others were in the consumer, industrial, and…

Letter from Kuala Lumpur (First of Two Parts)

“Micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises contribute almost 40% of Malaysia’s GDP and almost 50% of its national work force, yet only 17% of these companies have access to bank financing.” – Sources: KSP, ADM Capital. Last month our travels took us to Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, a city of about 2 million. There we met…

Letter from Down Under (Second of Two Parts)

“Manager performance is the beta of private credit. The alpha is client support. Transparency and timeliness of information is critical, especially at the outset.” – Australian investor. As the Australian market has matured, it has geared a variety of private credit products to different investor types. These embrace institutions, family offices, high-net-worth, and ultra-high-net-worth individuals….

Letter from Down Under (First of Two Parts)

“When my 2-year-old opened up her toy chest, things tumbled out. She’s 15 now, so it’s a well-organized make-up box. That’s how private credit has matured here.” – Australian investor. In our travels last month to Perth, Melbourne, and Sydney, we had over twenty meetings with clients and friends that included superannuation funds, wealth management…

Letter from the Persian Gulf

It had been a while since our last MENA visit, so on a recent trip there with our teams, clients and friends, the difference in levels of activity and interest around private credit was palpable.  Most large sophisticated institutional investors in the Gulf, including sovereign wealth and pension funds, now have a dedicated allocation to…