Ares raises €2.2bn for open-ended private debt fund

• Ares Management has raised over €2.2bn ($2.3bn) for its latest open-ended fund, primarily from wealthy individuals in Europe and Asia. It is the first fund raised through the Ares Wealth Management Solutions platform.

• Ares European Strategic Income Fund was first made available to individual investors last year and has already provided credit to over 230 portfolio companies.

• The evergreen direct lending fund intends to offer private wealth investors a ‘core income solution with downside protection and stable yields,’ Ares said.

• ‘This milestone is a testament to the strong demand we have seen as individual investors across Europe and Asia seek to increase their exposure to alternative investment strategies,’ Mark Serocold, Partner and EMEA Head of Wealth Management Solutions at Ares, said in an announcement.

February 4, 2025 (Preqin News) – Established asset managers have increasingly looked to tap private wealth investors as a source of capital following a slowdown in capital from traditional sources, with their efforts aided by a series of regulatory changes that have lowered the minimum investment in Europe.

Ares launched its Wealth Management Solutions platform in 2021, targeting clients with more liquid investment opportunities across credit, private equity, real estate, and infrastructure. The firm said that the Ares European Strategic Income Fund, an evergreen vehicle, can ‘provide durable income, compelling yield generation potential, and flexibility in a semi-liquid format.’

Another evergreen fund, Blackstone’s perpetual credit vehicle Blackstone Private Credit Fund took in $12.4bn last year, including $3.1bn in the last quarter of 2024, according to its earnings release. The firm has an evergreen AUM of $444.8bn, with its three largest vehicles in private credit ($75.8bn), real estate BPP ($61.4bn), and private equity ($43.4bn).

There were 333 evergreen funds launched between 2019 and 2024, according to Preqin Pro data, including BDCs, ELTIFs, Interval Funds, LTAFs, Non-Traded REITs, and Tender Offers. Evergreen launches peaked in 2021 at 77, before dropping to 43 in 2024 but remaining above the pre-pandemic average. Funds launched between 2019 and 2024 have a total NAV of $380.7bn.

Additional research by Enrique Ramos Cobo, a Senior Associate in Preqin’s Private Capital Research team – EMEA in London.

_{The opinions and facts included within the above do not constitute investment advice. Professional advice should be sought before making any investment or other decisions. Preqin providing the information in this content accepts no liability for any decisions taken in relation to the above.}