Schroders creates dedicated private credit group

Asset manager Schroders Capital has reorganised its global credit business and created a business focused on private debt.

The newly formed Private Debt and Credit Alternatives business at Schroders will form part of the Global Debt and Credit arm. It comprises the real asset debt, structured and corporate credit, speciality finance and impact lending activities of Schroders Capital.

It will initially oversee $30 billion of assets under management and has a team of more than 100 investment professionals. The team will be led by Michelle Russell-Dowe and Stephan Ruoff as co-heads, reporting to global head of private assets Georg Wunderlin.

Russell-Dowe and Ruoff, who are both based in the US, will also continue their existing roles as global head of securitised product and asset-based finance and global head of insurance-linked securities respectively.

Schroders said merging its capabilities into a single platform will give it increased flexibility to allocate capital across the global debt space. Investors will be able to access a broader range of products as well as enhanced product development and communication between specialist investment teams.

In a statement issued today, Russell-Dowe and Ruoff said: “Investors are having to navigate an ever-evolving, often volatile market environment and they need dynamic and flexible solutions to navigate market conditions that are unfamiliar to many. We are witnessing structural changes that have resulted in higher interest rates.

“With this backdrop, there is a heightened focus on debt and credit. The creation of our PDCA platform allows us to provide clients with flexible solutions at a critical time whilst enhancing our perspective and improving our ability to manage change as we focus on delivering innovative dynamic solutions which will meet the challenges of today and tomorrow.”