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Chart of the Month
It’s Lonely at the Top of the BDC Market
Number of participants in the Upper, Core and Lower Middle Markets1
1. Source: Showing all public BDCs (business development companies) and nontraded BDCs based on fund NAV. Upper middle market defined as weighted average borrower EBITDA greater than $150mn. Middle Market defined as weighted average borrower EBITDA between $50mn and $150mn. Lower Middle Market defined as weighted average borrower EBITDA less than $50mn. Source: BDC.com, Stanger Report, Company filings. Including BDCs with over 50% of investments in “level 3” assets. Data as of March 31, 2025.
Direct lending continues to expand in both market size and manager count, prompting further inquiry into competitive dynamics. In the Upper Middle Market, where Blue Owl primarily operates, competition remains limited. Only seven firms currently manage a public or private BDC targeting borrowers with average EBITDA greater than $150 million, making this segment notably less penetrated.
According to the Cliffwater Direct Lending Index, borrowers in the Lower Middle Market have defaulted approximately twice as often as those in the Upper Middle Market over the past five years. This reinforces Blue Owl's position in a more resilient and less crowded segment, offering a distinct advantage in both deal quality and portfolio durability.
Tipping the Scale: Redefining Alternatives for Investors
In this Barron's feature, Blue Owl co-CEO Marc Lipschultz discusses how private markets are evolving to better serve individual investors. Innovations in fund structures, digital platforms, and advisor enablement have expanded access to alternative investment strategies, offering greater diversification and the potential for improved risk-adjusted returns.
Marc explains how Blue Owl is designing products specifically for individual investors, emphasizing downside protection, income generation, and long-term durability. By providing institutional-grade access and tailored solutions, Blue Owl enables investors to take advantage of the growing opportunity.
Capturing Growth through Digital Infrastructure Investing
Explosive demand for data center capacity (GW)2
2. Source: RBC Datacenter Download (June 2025); McKinsey: The Cost of Compute: A $7 Trillion Race to Scale Data Centers (April 2025); Rivery: Big data statistics: how much data is there in the world? (May 2025). Note that capital expenditure estimates reflect projected investments in power infrastructure, data center construction, and IT equipment, based on McKinsey’s demand model that incorporates AI adoption, supply constraints, and regulatory considerations.
As digital transformation accelerates, the infrastructure supporting it is gaining momentum as a compelling investment opportunity. From AI to cloud services, the demand for data is fueling a surge in physical assets like data centers that keep the digital world running.
In this Q&A, Matt A’Hearn, Head of Blue Owl Digital Infrastructure, shares how his team is helping hyperscalers meet global demand with speed and precision. The conversation explores Blue Owl’s strategic edge, its deep integration in the tech ecosystem, and why digital infrastructure is capturing the attention of private wealth investors seeking long-term growth.
Blue Owl Capital Launches Debut Interval Fund: OWLCX
Blue Owl Capital has officially launched its first interval fund, the Blue Owl Alternative Credit Fund (OWLCX), designed to provide individual investors access to a wide range of alternative credit assets that traditionally have been available predominantly to only institutional investors. OWLCX aims to generate current income and, to a lesser extent, long-term capital appreciation by accessing alternative credit strategies, with a focus on the estimated $11.2 trillion asset-based finance market.3
Backed by $850 million in initial capital commitments, OWLCX is among the largest ever credit interval fund launches. Managed by Blue Owl’s seasoned Alternative Credit team, the Fund leverages nearly two decades of experience and dedicated data science infrastructure to source and evaluate investments. This launch marks a significant step in Blue Owl’s mission to democratize access to resilient, income-focused alternative investments.
3. Source: Asset-based finance market and dedicated fund AUM reflects market and fund sizing developed by Blue Owl, based on assumptions derived by third-party sources, including With Intelligence, Private Debt Investor, Preqin, NAIC, Morgan Stanley Into the Great Unknown November 19, 2023, Private Equity International: Sizing the NAV finance market December 1, 2023, MSI research Q4 2023, fund manager web data. assumptions of the underlying include estimated growth rates and product trends derived from the cited industry sources. Actual outcomes may vary materially.
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This communication is for informational purposes only and is not an offer or a solicitation to sell or subscribe for any fund and does not constitute investment, legal, regulatory, business, tax, financial, accounting or other advice or a recommendation regarding Blue Owl Capital Inc. (“Blue Owl”), its affiliates and investment program, funds sponsored by Blue Owl, including the Blue Owl Credit, GP Strategic Capital Funds and the Real Assets Funds (collectively the “Blue Owl Funds”) as well as investment held by the Blue Owl Funds. The information provided herein is not directed at any particular investor or category of investors and is provided solely as general information about Blue Owl products and services to regulated financial intermediaries and to otherwise provide general investment education. No information contained herein should be regarded as a suggestion to engage in or refrain from any investment-related course of action. All investments are subject to risk, including the loss of the principal amount invested, as well as substantial fees and costs, all of which can impact an investor’s return. Within the United States and Canada, securities are offered through Blue Owl Securities LLC, member of FINRA/SIPC, as Dealer Manager.
