26
Jun
Investor and lender insights: looking beyond direct lending
Investors and lenders remain committed to private credit and allocations to direct lending are expected to remain strong in 2025. However, they are increasingly choosing to make larger allocations to fewer managers, opting for large, more established firms. They are also becoming more comfortable with private credit, looking beyond the direct lending space into more niche segments of the market, such as asset-based financing, opportunistic credit and secondaries. Our panel of top investors and lenders will discuss issues that are top of mind during their search for meaningful alpha.
- Why does private credit remain an investable opportunity, and how is the changing landscape of private credit impacting investors?
- What is prompting allocations beyond direct lending, and what are some of the most interesting strategies investors and lenders are looking at?
- Does the middle market remain a compelling space for investors and lenders?
- What are some challenges and risks investors and lenders may face when investing in the asset class, given macro-economic and political uncertainties in 2025?
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SpeakersAmelia Weitzman Private Credit Reporter Debtwire
Daniel Garant Executive Vice President & Global Head, Public Markets BCI
Paras Vira Managing Director, Head of Americas Leveraged Finance, Credit Investments CPP Investments
David Thompson Senior Principal PGIM Private Capital
Matt Szwarc Managing Director and Head of Junior Credit Manulife Investment Management
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Daniel Garant joined BCI in September 2017. He is responsible for managing a diverse, global portfolio of investments, which combines index and active management strategies in equities, fixed income, derivatives, currencies, credit, and absolute return strategies that integrates environmental, social, and governance factors into investment analysis and decision-making. With $250.4 billion of gross managed assets as of March 31, 2024, BCI is one of Canada’s largest institutional investors within the global capital markets.
Daniel has over 30 years of experience in the investment management industry. Before joining BCI, he was the Executive Vice President and Chief Investment Officer at the Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSPIB) for two years. Prior to that, he served as their Senior Vice President, Public Markets Investments from 2008–2015. In years previous, Daniel held several business development and portfolio management positions, each with increasing responsibility, at Hydro-Québec. He was their Executive Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer, as well as the Chief Executive Officer of Hydro-Québec International.
Daniel holds a bachelor of arts in finance from Universite Laval Quebec and is a CFA® charterholder. He serves on the QuadReal board of directors and has served as Director on the boards of both public and private companies.
Paras leads the corporate credit business in the Americas which invests directly in non-investment credit across the capital structure. Prior to joining the CPP Investment Board, Paras was a Senior Vice President in the Mezzanine Finance group at Oaktree Capital Management in New York. Prior to that, he worked at UBS Investment Bank in the Leveraged Finance group in New York. Paras holds a MS in Operations Research from Columbia University and a BS in Operations Research & Industrial Engineering from Cornell University.
David Thompson is the Direct Lending group team leader in New York. He is responsible for originating and underwriting middle-market Direct Lending investments in the Northeastern U.S., managing the portfolio, and supporting the firm’s fundraising efforts.
Prior to joining in 2022, David spent six years at Brookfield Asset Management on the Special Investments and Principal Credit teams. Prior to Brookfield, he was with Garrison Investment Group, GSC Group, and Goldman Sachs, bringing over 20 years of industry experience.
Mr. Szwarc leads Manulife Investment Management’s junior credit business, which focuses on providing subordinated and second-lien debt and structured equity solutions to private equity sponsors and their portfolio companies. He joined Hancock Capital Management—now operating as Manulife Investment Management—in 2013. His responsibilities include oversight of the team’s investment professionals, portfolio construction and overall management of the strategy. Mr. Szwarc is also an acting investment committee member for private equity co-investments and primary fund commitments at Manulife Investment Management. Previously, he was Vice President at Pomona Capital, where he focused on private equity secondary and co-investment opportunities. Earlier in his career, Mr. Szwarc held investment positions at AlpInvest Partners and Prudential Capital Group.
Mr. Szwarc received a BS in Finance and Accounting from Boston College and an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. He is based in New York.