Private credit investors withdrew more than $7bn from some of Wall Street’s largest funds in the final months of 2025, as concerns over credit quality weigh on the fast-growing asset class, according to a report by the Financial Times.
Funds managed by Apollo Global Management, Ares Management, Barings, Blackstone, BlackRock’s HPS Investment Partners, Blue Owl, Cliffwater, and Oaktree have seen an increase in redemption requests, according to regulatory filings and people familiar with the matter. Redemptions reportedly amount to around 5% of fund portfolios, net of debt. The withdrawal figure is expected to rise as further data is reported.
Senior figures in private markets report that anxiety over private credit has been driven by the bankruptcies of First Brands and Tricolor, despite both financing themselves primarily through loans and asset-backed securities provided or organised by banks. This concern comes alongside comments from JPMorgan Chase Chief Executive Jamie Dimon expressing concern about the sector, and Blue Owl calling off a merger of two of its private credit funds.
Redemptions are reportedly concentrated in non-traded business development companies and interval funds, the main vehicles through which retail and high-net-worth investors access private credit. Blackstone’s $79bn flagship private credit fund recorded $2.1bn in redemptions in the fourth quarter, or 4.5% of the fund, up from 1.8% in the prior quarter. Ares’ $23bn strategic income fund reported just under $600m of withdrawals, representing 5.6% of net asset value.
Despite the outflows, analysts at Barclays say most large managers continue to attract more new capital than they pay out, limiting the need to sell assets or draw heavily on liquidity facilities. Fund managers reportedly maintain that liquidity positions are sufficient to meet investor withdrawals.
