Aug 28 (Reuters) - Institutional investors are increasing allocations to private credit in Asia. Granite Asia raised more than $500 million for a pan-Asian strategy and Partners Group secured a $1 billion mandate as managers expand in a region that remains a small part of the global market.
Granite Asia said this week that its Libra Hybrid strategy had raised more than its $500 million target, attracting new commitments from DBS Private Bank, an insurer and other institutional investors.
The new investors
joined anchor backers including Singapore state investor Temasek, Malaysia's Khazanah Nasional and the Indonesia Investment Authority. The fund, launched in 2025, has completed eight transactions and realized two exits, Granite said.
The fundraising followed a $1 billion private-credit mandate secured by Partners Group from a major Asian institutional investor earlier this month. The open-ended mandate will invest in senior and junior direct-lending opportunities across Asia-Pacific and includes discretionary and co-investment capital.
Partners Group said it had closed more than five mandates with major institutional investors in Asia over the past year. It said sovereign wealth funds and insurers, particularly in Southeast Asia and Japan, were increasing allocations to private credit.
Asia accounts for roughly one-third of global economic output but represents only about 4% of the global private-credit market, according to Preqin.
APAC-focused private-credit funds raised $2.7 billion in the first quarter of 2026, compared with more than $10 billion for North America-focused funds and $9.9 billion for Europe-focused funds, Preqin said.
The data provider forecasts that assets under management in APAC-focused private-credit funds will reach about $142 billion by 2030, compared with $3.35 trillion in North America and $940.2 billion in Europe.
The market is developing differently from the sponsor-backed direct-lending model prevalent in the United States and Europe, market participants said.
Asian private-credit transactions have greater exposure to asset-backed financing, including real estate, infrastructure and other fixed assets, according to Kroll, a financial advisory firm.
In a July note following an industry conference in Singapore, S&P Global Ratings said investor demand for private credit across Asia-Pacific remained strong but selective, with greater focus on collateral quality, sponsor strength and covenant protections.
S&P said Australia was attracting interest in senior secured direct lending, real estate and infrastructure credit. Financing needs tied to artificial intelligence, data centers, connectivity and the energy transition were also creating opportunities across the region.
(Reporting by Patturaja Murugaboopathy, Editing by Louise Heavens)
