Blackstone’s BCRED fund, the alternative asset manager’s flagship private credit vehicle, recorded a 0.4% loss in February, marking its first monthly decline since September 2022, according to a report by Reuters citing information on the fund’s website.
The performance comes amid heightened investor concern over liquidity and credit quality in the private lending sector.
The BCRED fund, which manages approximately $82bn, allows quarterly withdrawals for investors. In the first quarter of 2026, the fund faced unusually large redemptions totalling $3.7bn, reflecting broader unease in private credit markets. During the month, the fund also wrote down select loans, including positions in customer service software company Medallia, according to reports citing communications with financial advisers.
Despite the recent setback, Blackstone emphasised that BCRED has delivered an annualised total return of 9.5% for Class I shares since inception, maintaining a 3.6 percentage point premium over the leveraged loan market and outperforming the broader Morningstar LSTA index, which fell 0.8% in February.
Investor nervousness over private credit has also influenced lending from major banks. JPMorgan Chase reduced the value of certain loans to private credit funds earlier in the month, while firms including Morgan Stanley and BlackRock implemented withdrawal limits in response to increased redemption activity.
Blackstone’s shares have fallen more than 28% so far in 2026, reflecting broader concerns about exposure to sectors such as software and ongoing uncertainty in the private lending landscape.
