For decades, only financial institutions, such as banks and insurance companies, and wealthy investors got to collect the double-digit interest rates on loans made to small and midsize private companies.
Now, however, a growing number of investment firms and entrepreneurs are working to help regular investors gain access to those attractive yields. At least six new publicly traded funds specializing in private credit launched in the first 11 months of 2024, gathering about $8 billion in assets. In all, publicly traded funds giving investors access to private credit now hold more than $355 billion, up from $190 billion in 2019, according to research firm CFRA.
