BlackRock Private Credit Funds Hit Redemption Caps as Investors Seek Liquidity
BlackRock’s private credit complex is again bumping up against its quarterly liquidity limits, as two of its flagship interval-style funds capped redemptions after withdrawal requests exceeded their 5% thresholds.
The HPS Corporate Lending Fund (HLEND) received repurchase requests totaling approximately 13.3% of shares outstanding as of March 31 during the second quarter, according to a shareholder letter released Friday. The fund will honor requests equal to 5% of outstanding shares, or roughly $620 million, in line with its quarterly repurchase program.
Despite the elevated withdrawal activity, BlackRock said HLEND’s underlying portfolio remains healthy. Portfolio companies grew revenue and EBITDA by 11% on a trailing 12-month basis through March 31. The fund also maintained leverage at 1.0 times, the low end of its target range, and held an estimated $7.2 billion in liquidity, including $4.9 billion in available debt capacity, more than $700 million in cash and a $1.6 billion portfolio of liquid assets.
Meanwhile, the BlackRock Private Credit Fund (BDEBT) received withdrawal requests totaling approximately 5.3% of shares outstanding, slightly above its quarterly cap. The fund will fulfill repurchases equal to 5% of shares outstanding, or about $83 million.
BDEBT reported leverage of 0.5 times and estimated liquidity of approximately $1.4 billion, including $775 million of unused debt capacity, more than $460 million in liquid assets and over $170 million in cash.
Not all of BlackRock’s private credit vehicles faced redemption pressure. The HPS Corporate Capital Solutions Fund reported tender requests totaling 4.7% of outstanding shares, below its 5% quarterly limit, allowing the fund to meet all repurchase requests.
