Behind the Money Private credit’s public reckoning
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Mar 25, 2026 
Antoine Gara, FT deals editor who tracks private equity and credit, and Eric Platt, FT investment editor focused on asset management and credit markets, walk through private credit’s rapid rise to $2tn and the recent investor run. They discuss stressed funds, notable blowups and a spooked merger, wealth-channel redemptions, and what might come next for the sector.
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Private Credit Replaced Banks For Bespoke Buyouts
- Private credit filled a post‑2008 gap by offering bespoke loans to private equity buyers shut out by bank rules.
- Antoine Gara explains private credit financed niche purchases like cash‑light software firms by embedding future profitability into loans.
Higher Yields Plus Control Drove A $2tn Boom
- The pitch to investors combined higher returns with control over loan terms, implying safety relative to public high‑yield markets.
- Eric Platt and Antoine note this attracted huge flows, growing the sector to roughly $2tn by 2025.
Blue Owl Merger Sparked Retail Panic
- Blue Owl grew fast by selling private credit products to wealth channels and wealthy individuals rather than just institutions.
- Antoine Gara recounts Blue Owl's fund merger plan in Nov 2025 that would have locked redemptions and created ~15–20% paper losses.