Crescent Capital doubles fund target to close on $8bn

Crescent Capital Group has held a final close for its eighth private credit solutions fund on $8 billion in total investable capital, its largest ever and double its $4 billion target.

The Los Angeles-based alternatives manager said in a statement that the total investable capital raised for Crescent Credit Solutions VIII includes targeted leverage and separately managed accounts investing alongside the fund. Approximately 50 percent of the capital had been deployed as of 30 September 2022, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Launched in April 2021, CCS Fund VIII attracted a diverse mix of US and international institutional investors, including insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, financial institutions and multi-employer plans. According to Private Debt Investor research, investors in the fund included City of Pittsburgh Pension Trust Fund, which committed $10 million; Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana, which committed $100 million; and an unknown commitment from Norwegian public pension fund Oslo Pensjonforsiking.

The fund’s predecessor, Crescent Mezzanine Partners Fund VII, held a final close on $4.6 billion in January 2017 and had recorded an internal rate of return of 8.5 percent as of 30 June 2022, according to Private Debt Investor research gathered from Florida Retirement System Trust Fund.

CCS Fund VIII will continue its focus on directly originating unitranche, secured second lien, and junior debt of mid-market and upper mid-market companies primarily in conjunction with private equity firms.

“This successful fundraise speaks to the strength of our credit solutions business,” said Chris Wright, managing director and head of private markets at Crescent. “We are proud of the reputation that Crescent Credit Solutions has built over the years as a reliable provider of privately negotiated debt capital, and believe this reputation is a result of our extensive investment experience, broad transaction sourcing capabilities, and consistent and disciplined investment approach.”

Crescent raised its first fund in 1992, with Crescent Credit Solutions investing more than $21 billion through multiple economic and market cycles. The firm focuses on below investment-grade credit through strategies that invest in senior bank loans, unitranche loans, high-yield debt, mezzanine debt and other private debt securities. As of 31 December 2022, Crescent Capital Group managed approximately $40 billion of privately originated debt investments and marketable securities.