# Private Credit Funds and Firms 2026: Who Raised and Who Lends > Private Equity List tracks 227 private credit firms, 132 of them in the US and 55 in Europe. The biggest credit funds of 2026, the firms to know and how to find a lender for a deal. Guides · 17 October 2026 · by Giorgio Fenancio · https://privateequitylist.com/intelligence/private-credit-funds-and-firms

Key takeaways

The firms: Private Equity List lists 227 private credit and debt firms. 132 are in the US and 55 in Europe, 29 of them in the UK.
Contacts: 225 of the 227 have investment-team contacts in their profiles, 3,151 people in total.
New funds in 2026: 26 private credit funds so far this year, with $17.2B across the 22 that disclosed a size. The typical fund is $511M.
Biggest raises: Monroe Capital's $2.8B Private Credit Fund V, HarbourVest's $2.4B credit secondaries strategy and Oaktree's $2B Asset-Backed Finance Fund.
Strategies: direct lending, asset-based finance, CLOs, venture and growth debt, and real estate and infrastructure credit all raised new money in 2026.
Sectors: by profile tags, the most common are financial services (179 firms), healthcare services (136) and fintech (114).

```chart type: stat 227 | private credit firms | in Private Equity List 55 | in Europe | 29 in the UK 26 | new credit funds | 2026, to 16 October $17.2B | raised by them | where the size is known ``` ```chart type: bar title: Private credit firms by headquarters source: Private Equity List database United States | 132 United Kingdom | 29 Canada | 10 India | 8 France | 7 Hong Kong | 5 Australia | 5 Luxembourg | 4 Switzerland | 4 ``` ```chart type: bar title: Sectors private credit firms back, number of firms source: Private Equity List database Financial services | 179 Healthcare services | 136 Fintech | 114 Real estate | 105 Business services (B2B) | 104 Energy | 100 ``` ## What is private credit: loans from funds instead of banks **Private credit:** loans that investment funds make directly to companies, outside banks and the public bond market.\ **Who borrows:** mostly mid-sized companies, many of them owned by private equity firms, that want money faster or on terms a bank will not offer.\ **Who lends:** private credit funds raise money from pension funds, insurers and endowments, lend it out and pass the interest back to those investors.\ **Private debt:** another name for the same market. Direct lending, where a fund lends straight to one company, is one strategy inside it. ## Biggest private credit funds of 2026: HarbourVest, Oaktree and Nuveen - **[HarbourVest Partners](https://privateequitylist.com/investors/harbourvest-partners-llc)** reportedly raised $2.4B for its private credit secondaries strategy, which buys stakes in existing credit funds from the investors who hold them. - **[Oaktree Capital Management](https://privateequitylist.com/investors/oaktree-capital-management)** closed its first Asset-Backed Finance Fund at its $2B target, with US public pension plans and sovereign wealth funds among the backers. The money goes to loans against equipment leases, transportation, consumer finance, real estate and infrastructure. - **[Nuveen](https://privateequitylist.com/investors/nuveen)** held a $700M first close for its latest Australian commercial real estate debt fund. - **[Claret Capital Partners](https://privateequitylist.com/investors/claret-capital-partners)** raised €575M ($632.5M) for its fourth fund. The London firm lends to European growth companies that want capital without selling more equity. - **[Granite Asia](https://privateequitylist.com/investors/granite-asia)** passed the $500M target of its pan-Asia private credit strategy. - **[Allianz Global Investors](https://privateequitylist.com/investors/allianz-global-investors)** held a $270M first close for an Asia-Pacific infrastructure credit fund. - **[Lendable](https://privateequitylist.com/investors/lendable)** closed its second MSME fintech credit fund at $255M. Its loans go to fintech companies in emerging markets. - **[Orbit Capital](https://privateequitylist.com/investors/orbit-capital)** closed Growth Debt Fund II at €107M ($117.7M) for scale-ups in Central and Eastern Europe. **Also new in 2026:** Private Equity List records Monroe Capital's $2.8B Private Credit Fund V, Arcmont's $1.65B Capital Solutions Fund II, Sound Point's $1.5B Strategic Capital Fund III, Brigade's $1B Private Credit Solutions Fund, Nuveen Green Capital's $1B C-PACE lending fund IV, Eagle Point's $559M Defensive Income Fund III and Canyon Partners' $400M CLO Fund IV. ## Private credit firms to know in the US and Europe

Firm	Headquarters	What it lends
Blackstone	New York	Credit, alongside real estate, private equity and infrastructure
Apollo Global Management	New York	Credit and other flexible capital across market cycles
Blue Owl Capital	New York	Loans to companies with and without a private equity owner
HPS Investment Partners	New York	Credit across the capital structure
Golub Capital	New York	Unitranche loans to sponsor-backed companies, a format it pioneered
Sixth Street	San Francisco	Direct lending, plus energy, infrastructure and real estate financing
Oaktree Capital Management	Los Angeles	Credit strategies, including asset-backed finance
Antares Capital	Chicago	Middle-market loans, backed by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
Churchill Asset Management	New York	Financing for US middle-market private equity firms and their companies
Monroe Capital	Chicago	Direct lending, venture debt and structured credit in the US and Canada
Benefit Street Partners	New York	Direct lending, structured credit and real estate debt
Hercules Capital	Palo Alto	Venture loans to life sciences and technology companies
Intermediate Capital Group (ICG)	London	Flexible capital for growing companies, since 1989
Arcmont Asset Management	London	Private debt across Europe, an early mover in the market
Hayfin Capital Management	London	Direct lending, special opportunities and hybrid capital
Pemberton Capital Advisors	London	Loans to mid-sized European companies, through ten offices
Kartesia	Leudelange	Lending to lower mid-market companies across Europe
Orbit Capital	Prague	Venture debt in Central and Eastern Europe

## Private credit strategies: what the funds lend against **Direct lending:** loans straight to mid-sized companies, often owned by private equity. Golub Capital, Antares and Churchill lend this way in the US; Arcmont, Pemberton and Kartesia in Europe.\ **Asset-based finance:** loans secured on assets such as equipment, leases and consumer loans. Oaktree's first fund for this strategy closed at $2B in 2026.\ **Venture and growth debt:** loans to venture-backed companies that would rather not sell more equity. Hercules Capital, Claret and Orbit Capital work here.\ **CLOs and structured credit:** pools of company loans sold to investors in slices. Canyon Partners added a $400M CLO fund this year.\ **Real estate and infrastructure credit:** loans against buildings and projects. Nuveen, Cheyne Capital and Allianz Global Investors raised such funds in 2026.\ **Credit secondaries:** buying existing stakes in credit funds. HarbourVest's $2.4B strategy is the largest 2026 example in Private Equity List. ## Private credit vs private equity: lending to a company or owning part of it **Private equity:** a fund buys a stake, often control, and earns its return when it sells the company.\ **Private credit:** a fund lends money, takes no ownership and earns interest until the loan is repaid.\ **Same firms, different funds:** Blackstone, Apollo, KKR, The Carlyle Group and Bain Capital run both private equity and credit funds.\ **For a founder or adviser:** credit keeps the cap table as it is, but the company needs steady cash flow to pay the interest. ## How to find private credit lenders for a deal **Start with the type:** the [Debt funds list](https://privateequitylist.com/investors/debt-fund) in Private Equity List holds all 227 firms.\ **Narrow it down:** in [search](https://privateequitylist.com/search), filter by sector, headquarters and cheque size. 52 of the firms write cheques of $100M or more and 100 write $10–50M.\ **Check who just raised:** a fund that closed this year has money to lend. The [new funds tracker](https://privateequitylist.com/new-vc-funds) lists each one as it is announced.\ **Reach the team:** profiles list partners and investment staff with their roles. CSV export comes with the Pro+ plan.

Find private credit lenders

227 debt funds with investment-team contacts, filtered by sector, country and cheque size.

## FAQ ### What is private credit? Private credit is lending by investment funds directly to companies, outside banks and the public bond market. The funds raise money from pension funds, insurers and endowments and earn interest on the loans. Private Equity List lists 227 private credit and debt firms. ### Who are the largest private credit firms? Among the best-known private credit managers are Blackstone, Apollo, Blue Owl, HPS Investment Partners, Golub Capital, Sixth Street and Oaktree in the US, and ICG, Arcmont, Hayfin and Pemberton in Europe. In 2026 the biggest new credit funds in Private Equity List came from Monroe Capital ($2.8 billion), HarbourVest ($2.4 billion) and Oaktree ($2 billion). ### What is the difference between private credit and private equity? Private equity buys ownership in a company and earns its return when it sells. Private credit lends money, takes no stake and earns interest until the loan is repaid. Many large firms, such as Blackstone, Apollo, KKR and The Carlyle Group, run both. ### What is direct lending? Direct lending is a private credit strategy in which a fund lends straight to one company, usually a mid-sized business owned by a private equity firm. Golub Capital, Antares, Churchill, Arcmont and Kartesia are direct lenders. ### How do I find private credit lenders for my company or a client? Start with the Debt funds list in Private Equity List, then filter by sector, headquarters and cheque size. Funds that closed this year have money to lend. Profiles list partners and investment-team contacts, and CSV export comes with the Pro+ plan.