In the 2000s, Eastern Europe was a successful region of Emerging Markets. A kind of gold rush attracted many investors to these markets. The region was hit hard by the financial crisis of 2008, but the investment story was not yet written off. It was only political changes, such as the Caucasus war of 2008, the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and, ultimately, the war in Ukraine in 2022, that made this region almost uninvestable for many investors.
Private credit encompasses a dizzying array of strategies – from well-understood corporate direct lending to more esoteric music royalties, fund financing, litigation finance, and real estate credit. Direct lending remains the center of gravity. For allocators looking to build out large scale private credit portfolios, where to go after direct lending can be a challenge. We believe asset-based finance (“ABF”) is the answer – a truly scalable opportunity that focuses on income generation and capital preservation.