Blackstone to Launch Private Credit Fund for the Masses in May

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) plans to debut its fifth perpetual flagship fund, BMAX, through the registered investor advisor channel on May 1, as it seeks to accelerate its growth in the private credit sector, President and CEO Jon Gray told analysts on Thursday.

"This diversified strategy reflects the evolution of private lending into many different areas beyond non-investment grade corporate loans, and will invest across our credit platform," Gray said during the company's earnings call.

The asset manager calls private credit investing one of its growth engines. On Tuesday, it announced partnerships with Vanguard and Wellington Management to develop multi-asset investment products with an aim to democratize private markets.

"There is a profound expansion underway in the traditional model of providing credit to borrowers, which is creating tremendous structural tailwinds for Blackstone," Gray said. 

The company is now the world's largest third party focused on credit business with $465B across corporate and real estate credit, up more than 2.5x in the past four years, he said.

"One of the most exciting opportunities before us today is an investment grade private credit, where our business grew 35% year-over-year to $107B," he added.