Coller Capital has closed a $1.3bn (£951m) continuation vehicle for the 2018 vintage of Ares’ US direct lending fund.
The fund allows existing investors in the Ares vehicle to continue their exposure to a portfolio of senior, floating-rate loans to US mid-market companies backed by private equity sponsors. New investors can also join the vehicle.
“We are pleased to have completed this transaction with Ares, reflecting the strength of our ongoing relationship and shared commitment to high-quality credit investing,” said Edward Goldstein, partner and chief investment officer of Coller Credit Secondaries. “As the private credit market continues to mature, continuation vehicles are becoming an increasingly important tool, enabling managers to offer limited partner liquidity as well as exposure to well-performing assets. These structures provide our investors with a disciplined way to access seasoned credit portfolios with attractive risk-adjusted returns.”
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Ares will continue to manage the loan portfolio through the fund’s remaining lifecycle alongside new and existing investors.
Coller Capital is a dedicated private market secondaries manager, overseeing $50bn of assets, while Ares is a $623bn global alternatives manager.
“This transaction underscores the strength of the evolving secondaries market, the increasing liquidity options available to investors in private credit and our commitment to delivering attractive returns for our investors,” said Mitchell Goldstein, co-head of Ares Credit. “Leveraging the advantages of Ares US Direct Lending’s scale, deep origination capabilities and disciplined underwriting, we have built a diversified and durable portfolio to support the growth of quality middle-market businesses with strong competitive positions.”
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PJT Partners advised on the deal financially, while Kirkland & Ellis and Proskauer Rose provided legal counsel.
The vehicle comes as the private credit secondaries market continues to grow, with estimates suggesting that activity has more than doubled since 2023, rising to more than $15bn in 2025. Alongside this, general partner-led transactions in private credit secondaries outstripped limited partner-led deals for the first time last year, reflecting a shift in underlying borrowing dynamics.
