Singapore-based Granite Asia is targeting mid-sized businesses across Asia for new private credit investments after raising more than $500m for its pan-Asian Libra Hybrid strategy, according to a report by Reuters.
The investment firm is focusing on opportunities in areas including advanced manufacturing and healthcare, with the report citing managing partner Ming Eng as saying that the middle market offers an attractive combination of growth potential and financing demand.
Libra Hybrid exceeded its initial $500m fundraising target last month. Eng, who heads Granite Asia’s private credit strategy, said there is no formal cap on the fund, although the firm is now prioritising the deployment of capital rather than further fundraising.
Since launching in 2025, Libra Hybrid has completed eight investments and realised two exits, with distributions already made to investors. Eng said the strategy had generated returns in the “teens” over its first year, although she did not provide a more precise figure.
Granite Asia sees private credit as particularly suited to mid-market companies that have access to traditional bank financing but may be reluctant to raise equity and dilute existing shareholders.
The firm is taking a broad approach to geography and is assessing investment themes including digitalisation, technology adoption, regional expansion and changes in global supply chains.
Asia’s private credit market remains considerably less developed than those of the US and Europe, creating what Eng described as an imbalance between available capital and borrower demand.
The opportunity is attracting increasing institutional interest as private credit managers expand across the region. Asia-Pacific’s private credit market is projected to grow from $59bn in 2024 to $92bn by 2027, according to the Alternative Investment Management Association.
