Introduction
After a relatively sluggish start to the year, private credit fundraising exploded in the second quarter, with first-half final closes hitting $190 billion – a 53% increase on H1 2025, and just 20% shy of 2025’s full-year total of $240 billion (Figure 1).
Direct lending – which has been subject to near-constant negative headlines due to concerns around software lending and a string of high-profile bankruptcies – rebounded remarkably in Q2, with $73 billion of fund closes, taking the H1 total to almost $100 billion.
Investors continue to prioritize geographic diversification, with European and multi-region fundraising holding strong in H1, while there are signs of a resurgence in fundraising for Asia-Pacific and emerging markets private credit strategies.
It was not all rosy, though. Private wealth products – most notably non-traded BDCs – have come under huge redemption pressure in 2026, with most large managers forced to gate their funds for two consecutive quarters. After years of rapid growth, ’40 Act private credit assets fell slightly in Q1, owing to a combination of redemptions and loan markdowns.
Mega-Funds
Large funds dominated first-half fundraising, with 59% of capital going towards funds over $5 billion – the highest proportion since our fundraising reports began in 2023. Four $10 billion-plus “mega-funds” closed in H1, raising a collective $56 billion – accounting for nearly one-third of all private debt capital raised in the first half (Figure 2).
Sub-$1 billion funds represented just 6% of total fundraising, continuing a downward trend observed since 2023, when these vehicles captured 13% market share (Figure 3).
The largest fund to close was Hayfin’s fifth flagship direct lending fund, which at €15 billion ($17.5 billion) is one of the largest ever European private credit vehicles. Churchill Asset Management closed the largest US fund, raising $16 billion for its Middle Market Senior Loan Fund V, split between a main fund, an evergreen vehicle and separate accounts.
Long-term Fundraising
We have tracked $837 billion in private credit final closes across 381 funds since the start of 2023, and 275 managers have held at least one final close in that period.
Over the past three-and-a-half years, a small number of managers have dominated fundraising: the 10 most active managers account for 37% of total closed end funds raised, while the top 20 account for 52% of the total (Figure 5).
Seven managers have raised over $20 billion in closed-end funds since 2023, while 21 have raised at least $10 billion. Ares Management is the most active manager, closing nine funds totaling almost $68 billion. (Figure 4).
Regional Breakdown
First-half fundraising figures once again highlight the increasing trend towards geographic diversification.
North America continues to be the largest single fundraising market for private credit, with $71 billion of final closes in H1. However, North American funds only accounted for 38% of fundraising, down from nearly 50% in 2023 and 2024. Meanwhile, fundraising for multi-region strategies continued to trend upwards, accounting for $70 billion – 37% of the total – in H1 (Figure 6).
While Europe’s share of the overall total fell to 23% from last year’s high of 29%, fundraising remains strong in absolute terms, with $44 billion of final closes in H1. And with Arcmont and ICG both expected to close mega-funds this year, fundraising could exceed 2025’s record $69 billion by year-end (Figure 7).
Methodology
Includes all fund closes tracked by With Intelligence in H1 2026, through the stories and signals published by reporters and data researchers throughout the year. Some of the fund closes have been included through press releases and direct manager reporting to With Intelligence. Funds that were raised in local currencies have been converted to USD ($) at the rate of €1 = $1.17, £1 = $ 1.34 and ₹ 1 = $0.0107.
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