Credit Crunch Q125 Recap

What Raised, What Closed, What Mattered

👋 Hey, Nick here. A special welcome to the new subscribers at The Private Market Forum, Rothschild & Co, and CalSTRS. It’s great to have you. Reach out and say hi. This is the 108th edition of my weekly newsletter. Each week, I write about private credit insights and fundraising announcements. You can read my previous articles here and subscribe here.

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📊 2025 Fundraising Recap

With Q1 behind us, here are my top insights for the quarter. This recap isn’t exhaustive, and with a bit of luck, it’s enough to keep you ahead of 99% of your peers.

Key Q1 stats 📈

• Number of fundraising announcements covered: 67 (Up 70% YoY)

• Amount raised: $119 billion (Up 42% YoY)

• Number of fund managers covered: 56 (Up 37% YoY)

• Number of Countries where funds were based: 14 (Up 27% YoY)

Private Credit Raised Nearly 50% More YoY

Turns out, LPs like their cash back.

Global capital, American fees 🌎

🇺🇸 US private credit funds continue to raise the most capital, with 33 funds raising $83 billion in Q1.

The total amount raised in the US was three times greater than in any other country.

$21 billion of the European-focused funds was raised by Blackstone and Ares.

Nothing says ‘European strategy’ like a Delaware LP and a Palm Beach IC.

📕Nick’s Top Articles of the Quarter

Your cheat sheet for sounding informed without reading the full deck.

1. Hamilton Lane’s Market Overview

2. In the Gaps Winter 2025

3. Oaktree and the LME Wave

4. Building the Infrastructure of the Future

5. Why Overlooking Europe is a Mistake

2025 is the year everyone rebranded as “opportunistic.”

Even the mid-market guys.

Opportunity funds raised $29 billion, more than double Q1 last year.

Oaktree’s $16 billion fund was the clear outlier.

There’s been a lot of talk about the mid-market’s saturation. Mid-market funds raised 40% less this quarter compared to last year. Draw your own conclusions.

The five largest funds raised over half the capital…

Everyone else split what was left.

1. Ares $17.6 billion Capital Europe VI

2. Oaktree $16 billion Opportunities Fund XII

3. Blackstone $8 billion Real Estate Debt Strategies V

4. Strategic Value Partners $6.5 billion Distressed debt fund

5. Apollo $5 billion Multi-strategy credit fund

Sub-scale funds are still raising…

The majority of capital went to funds with over $1 billion of AUM, with 33 funds raising $110 billion. These funds had an average size of $3.3 billion.

The remaining funds accounted for less than 10% of the total capital raised. These funds had an average size of $383 million (10x less than funds with over $1 billion of AUM).

🏆 Nick’s Funds of the Quarter

Proof that private credit is more than senior and “special sits.”

🌱 Goldman Sachs AM West Street Climate Credit Fund

ESG may be out of fashion, but Goldman Sachs is raising $3 billion for its West Street Climate Credit Fund. The fund aims to generate unlevered net returns of 8% to 10% and around 13% on a levered basis.

📱Francisco Partners Credit Partners III Fund

Francisco Partners closed its $3.3 billion Credit Partners III Fund. The fund finances technology-driven businesses and works alongside FP’s Flagship Private Equity fund, which closed its $13.5 billion Fund VII in 2022.

Read more about this strategy in this Harvard Business case study. Link

👩‍⚖️ Fortress Legal Assets Fund II.

Fortress is raising $1 billion for its latest litigation finance fund. The fund targets ~16% net returns and would be more than double the size of the prior fund that closed in 2021. Fortress is already a leader in the sector with $6.8 billion in commitments. It has backed law firms behind some of history’s biggest mass tort suits, such as the Roundup cases against Bayer AG and talcum powder litigation against Johnson & Johnson. More here

Read CovenantLite’s Introduction to Litigation Finance. Link

This newsletter is for education or entertainment purposes only. It should not be taken as investment advice.