Ares Bundles $3.4B Of Private Credit For World Record Secondaries Sale

Ares is eyeing a $3.4B private credit secondary sale.

It could be one of the largest ever recorded.

Ares Management is in discussions to sell LP stakes in the fourth vintage of Ares Capital Europe - a bundled secondary transaction that would test the limits of a market that barely existed five years ago.

- $3.4B in LP stakes up for sale
- Ares Capital Europe - fourth vintage
- Discussions ongoing - no deal confirmed yet
- PC secondaries transaction volume hit $15B in 2025
- That's a 5x increase from $3B in 2019

Private credit used to mean locked-up capital for the life of a fund. But that's changing fast.

The secondaries market is becoming the liquidity layer underneath private credit - giving LPs a way to rebalance, exit, or manage downside risk without waiting for maturity.

Advisors are projecting $28B in volume by 2026 and $50B+ by 2030.

Ares isn't the only institution doing this.

Pantheon led a $3.2B vehicle for Crescent Capital, Benefit Street Partners closed a $2.3B vehicle with Coller EQT, and GIC is reportedly exploring a sale of private credit assets.

The pattern is clear. Private credit is becoming a tradeable asset class, not just a yield product.

These deals don't go on a public list.

If you want to know more, my DMs are open.

Do you trade private credit secondaries?