Barings closes European loan fund at €1.5bn

Barings has raised €1.5 billion for its second generation European private debt fund.

The firm has held a final close on its Barings European Private Loan Fund II after receiving commitments from more than 45 new and existing institutional investors.

LPs include public and private pension funds, insurers, family offices and fund of funds from across Europe, North America and the Asia Pacific.

The fund will focus on investing in primarily senior secured corporate loans to European companies. It will offer investors accesses to differentiated opportunities up and down the capital structure with a focus on risk adjusted returns and providing a premium to public credit markets.

Barings said it has already deployed almost 50 percent of its committed capital.

Adam Wheeler, head of European and Asia Pacific private finance at Barings, said: “The trends and dynamics underlying the European private credit market have shifted considerably in the past decade, creating an opportunity for direct lenders to provide the capital needed by middle-market companies, whilst also delivering a less complex and more efficient lending solution to the borrower.”

Last year, Barings closed its North American Private Loan Fund on $1.85 billion after an eight-month fundraise.