Private credit emerging managers to watch 2025

5 min read

Despite industry talk of a “golden moment” for private credit, getting a new launch off the ground has proven very difficult in recent years.

Of the $215bn of global private debt fundraising tracked by With last year, 86% went to managers set up before the 2008 financial crisis, while over 40% went to just five “mega-funds” raised by industry giants, with LPs putting a premium on longevity and experience managing through a distressed cycle.

Even launches backed by established names have faced major headwinds: in May 2024, Fidelity International scraped plans for a direct lending business after struggling to attract LPs for its debut fund.

More recently, Deutsche Bank decided to wind down its newly launched private credit manager, DB Investment Partners, instead opting to consolidate its efforts under the DWS banner.

However, there are still plenty of private debt specialists looking to strike out on their own: With tracked 323 private debt launches in 2024, with 87 coming from first-time managers in the asset class.

Reflecting the increasing concentration of the direct lending market, our 10 “managers to watch” this year are heavily biased towards opportunistic credit and asset-based finance, which are fast emerging as new battlegrounds within private credit.

Corinthia Global Management | Paul Weightman | London | Direct lending

Corinthia Global Management shocked the private credit market in March 2024 when it raided Barings’ global private finance business to set up a new direct lending platform investing in the UK, Europe and North America.

Founder Paul Weightman, an Australian real estate veteran, tempted away 20 senior staff from Barings, including direct lending co-heads Ian Fowler and Adam Wheeler, and COO Kelsey Tucker.

The Nomura-backed manager was instantly embroiled in a legal dispute with Barings over the raid, but has pressed ahead with its fundraising plans regardless. The firm has reportedly already raised $5bn from LPs and plans to begin committing capital in the next couple of months.

Lane42 Investment Partners | Scott Graves | Los Angeles | Opportunistic credit

Scott Graves officially launched Lane42 Investment Partners in early March 2025. With Intelligence first reported his plans to set up the firm last year.

The new firm, whose strategy will span asset-based finance, special situations and opportunistic credit, has secured a $2bn seed deal from multi-strategy hedge fund Millennium Management. Izzy Englander’s firm has also taken a minority equity stake in the new firm.

Graves has around 30 years of industry experience and previously spent seven years as head of private equity at Ares Management, overseeing the firm’s distressed debt and special situations portfolio. Before that, he spent 15 years at Oaktree Capital Management, where he was head of credit strategies.

D2 Asset Management | Ben Doramus, Luke Doramus | Dallas | Asset-based finance

Founded by brothers Ben and Luke Doramus, D2 Asset Management secured a $1bn seed deal from Koch Real Estate Investments in July last year.

Dallas-based D2 is in the market with its first fund, named D2 Strategic Opportunities Fund I, will run a hybrid investment strategy focusing on asset-based finance in private and public markets.

Prior to setting up D2, Ben was a partner at Greenwich-based H/2 Capital Partners, where he focused on real estate credit investing, while Luke was a partner at TowerBrook Capital Partners, having previously spent a decade at Greg Lippman’s structured credit fund, LibreMax Capital.

The firm has made a number of senior hires in recent months, including HBK veteran Richard Burkhardt, who joined as CFO in November, and ex-CEO of Freddie Mac David Brickman, who joined in February as president of residential real estate.

HMC Capital | Matt Lancaster, Adam Roberts-Thomson, Dane Weiss | Sydney | Corporate credit, asset-based finance

Sydney-based HMC Capital broke into private credit in May 2024, hiring former Macquarie principal finance executive Matt Lancaster to lead its effort to build a A$5bn ($2.5bn) platform spanning real estate, corporate, mezzanine, and infrastructure debt.

The manager’s first big move was its acquisition of A$1.4bn real estate lender Payton Capital, which closed in July 2024, and the firm has since added a corporate and asset-based finance (CAF) team, co-headed by ex-Credit Suisse head of financing, Adam Roberts-Thomson, and ex-Goldman Sachs private credit pro Dane Weiss.

The CAF team completed its first deal in December, and HMC is planning to come to market with its inaugural fund, HMC Diversified Credit Fund, in the second half of the year, with a fundraising target of A$300-500m. The firm is also exploring the potential launch of an ASX-listed private debt vehicle.

Point72 | Todd Hirsch | New York | Asset-based finance

Steve Cohen’s $37bn hedge fund is preparing a push into private credit after hiring Blackstone executive Todd Hirsch to lead the effort.

Hirsch, who spent 12 years as a senior managing director in Blackstone’s tactical opportunities group, joined as head of private capital in January.

Hirsch will be responsible for building out a team focusing on asset-based lending, specialty finance, structured credit and direct lending. Point72’s private credit investments will initially sit within the firm’s multi-strategy hedge fund, and the firm has not yet decided whether to raise a dedicated fund in the future.

Square Nine Capital | Nicole Musicco, Peter Ma | Toronto | Opportunistic credit

With Intelligence reported in December that former CalPERS CIO Nicole Musicco is working on the launch of Square Nine Capital, which is expected to debut later this year.

Musicco has partnered with Morgan Stanley’s Peter Ma for the new venture, which is seeking up to $1bn for an opportunistic middle market strategy. Several other Morgan Stanley pros are expected to join Square Nine in the coming months.

Musicco spent 18 months as CIO of CalPERS, the US’s largest pension, leaving in October 2023. Before that she was a partner at RedBird Capital Partners, and previously spent over 16 years at the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan.

Canal Road Group | Don Young, Mike Damaso | Miami | Direct lending

Miami-based Canal Road Group was founded by veteran credit investors Don Young and Mike Damaso, after they sold their $15bn CLO business CBAM to the Carlyle Group.

With a staff of 14 CBAM alumni, the lender began fundraising for its debut uppermiddle market direct lending fund in July 2024.

Canal Road Private Credit Fund focuses on senior-secured lending to sponsor-backed companies with at least $50m in EBITDA. The manager has signed up Northern Lights Alternative Advisors as placement agent for the fund.

In January, Canal Road sold a minority stake to BMO as part of a joint venture which will allow it to originate up to $1bn of loans for its direct lending strategy.

Indago Capital | Akhil Mago | New York | Asset-based finance

Akhil Mago, the former head of structured credit at Sculptor Capital Management, has set up Indago Capital to invest in asset-based finance, structured credit, and regulatory capital relief trades.

Mago has brought in former Sculptor colleague Daniel Ruppert to work on the new launch, as well as Hayfin Capital Management managing director Chen Chen.

Indago has reportedly secured over $1bn in LP commitments so far, including a $100m anchor investment for its debut closed-end fund, Indago Asset-Based Opportunities 1, which is seeking $500m.

Kimmik Capital | Julien Farre | London | Opportunistic credit

Angelo Gordon alum Julien Farre set up Kimmik Capital in London last year, focusing on liquid and illiquid opportunistic credit deals.

Farre spent 11 years at Angelo Gordon, latterly as a managing director in the European distressed and corporate special situations team. He has recently brought in former Angelo Gordon colleague Andrew Rowland to work on the new launch.

Kimmik, which takes its name from the Inuit word for “sled dog,” is looking to raise £300m-£500m ($390m-$650m) for its debut fund, which will have an evergreen structure.

Kinnerton Hill | Jacob Ucar | London | Special situations

Jacob Ucar established Kinnerton Hill Capital last year after a 16-year career at Park Square Capital, where he was partner and head of opportunistic credit.

Based in London, the new firm will run a flexible “capital solutions” strategy targeting established mid-market businesses in Western Europe. Kinnerton Hill can invest across the capital structure, from senior debt to mezzanine and structured equity, and will invest in a range of transaction types from buyouts to complex carve-outs, growth capital and special situations.

Ucar has built out a team of eight so far, including Park Square alumni Piers Dennison, Cyrus Imregun and Anastasis Andreou, all of whom have joined as partners.