Beyond Banks: The Emerging Opportunity in European Direct Lending

The tightening of regulations around the world is prompting banks to offload a variety of financial assets onto the capital markets. Investors are aware of this opportunity. However, we think that many hold misconceptions about it because of the opaque nature of the disintermediation process, and the unfamiliar and heterogeneous nature of the assets involved. In particular, we believe that investors incorrectly assume the opportunity has been missed and offer evidence that this is not the case. We also think that few investors have had the opportunity to fully understand the practical characteristics of the asset class. Our objective is to provide these details, and to explain how it might be incorporated into and institutional portfolio.