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Bloomberg, By Kat Hidalgo and Paula Seligson Hedge funds? Quant trading? Old news. These days, everyone within shouting distance of Wall Street is talking about private credit—even if some of those people might admit that they still aren’t 100% sure what private credit is. The industry is minting billionaires. It’s become a huge chunk of the assets of private equity giants such as Blackstone, Apollo Global Management and KKR, so much so they now want to be called “alternative asset managers.” The new crop of prestige companies in Manhattan—the places that ambitious young bankers are jumping ship for—are private credit specialists. The draw is the promise of high returns, chunky management fees and the thrill of a market that’s grown by more than $1 trillion in assets under management in only a decade. But that name, private credit. It could mean almost anything. Haven’t people been privately lending money to each other forever? Isn’t that just what a bank does? Banks used to be where the action was in lending. But in recent decades—and especially since the financial crisis of 2008—more and more of the money for loans comes from investment funds instead of banks. In a nutshell, private credit is a catchall term for the most opaque part of this market. Here’s what you need to know to see it more clearly. What’s so “private” about it? In equities, the distinction between public and private ­investment is sharp. If it’s a company with a stock ticker that anyone can buy a share of, like Apple Inc., it’s public. Everything else is private. In the world of debt, it’s more complicated. There are widely traded bonds such as Apple’s highly rated debt. But there’s also a huge market of more specialized assets including syndicated leveraged loans. Similar to bonds, these are arranged by banks, which collect a fee but then aim to sell the asset to investors that may include insurers, pensions and mutual funds. In private credit, the manager of a large investment fund can skip the step of working with a bank and make a loan to a company directly using investors’ money. And unlike with a bank, private credit funds typically hang on to the loan until maturity, collecting payments and passing them on to investors. So private credit doesn’t trade often. On Wall Street, it’s said that banks arranging loans are in the moving business, whereas private credit funds are in the storage business. One new wrinkle: As the private credit market has gotten hotter, banks themselves have been trying to break into it. They’re striking partnerships with private credit funds in an effort to win back some of the fee income they’ve been losing to their new rivals. A Black Box Full of Money The size of the private debt market has climbed sharply. Recently, funds have been deploying capital faster than they’ve been raising new capital, and the share of assets dedicated to direct lending has continued to grow. What kinds of loans are these funds making? Private credit can fund almost anything. But the heart of the business has long been loans to midsize companies that have been acquired in a leveraged buyout. In an LBO, a private equity fund buys a company using lots of debt, which ends up on that company’s books. By acquiring businesses with borrowed money, PE funds and their investors can magnify their returns. The potential downside is that the company can end up with a lot of bills to pay, raising the risk of default or bankruptcy. So these loans can be risky. Over time, private equity managers realized there was money to be made providing the loans used in LBOs, too. That’s one reason many of the biggest names in private credit are companies mostly known for PE. Within the growing credit operations of these money managers, they are often financing their competitors’ buyout deals. Many of these firms also work with insurance companies or own one outright. Insurers control huge piles of cash that they can invest in loans. The private credit label is now applied to a growing menagerie of assets. It can include corporate loans to blue-chip companies, real estate lending, financing for “buy now, pay later” loans and infrastructure debt. It even reaches into niche areas such as agriculture and litigation finance, which pay for lawyers up front in exchange for a piece of lawsuit winnings. What’s the appeal? The funds that make private loans have one superpower: Most of their money comes from institutions or wealthy individuals who commit to locking up their cash for years, or in funds with limits on withdrawals. This kind of sticky money allows them to ride through bumpy markets and make loans on terms bankers and bond investors wouldn’t stomach. For borrowers with weak credit—say, a small company that already has a lot of debt or a fast-growing tech company that hasn’t turned a profit yet—a private loan might be the only option. Funds can also offer borrowers more flexible terms, such as the ability to defer interest payments. The reward for this is that borrowers pay more, so the funds get a higher return. The Cliffwater Direct Lending Index tracks over 16,000 directly originated loans and has returned more than 8% annually over the past decade. By comparison, the US leveraged loan market, where broadly syndicated corporate loans are traded, has posted annual returns of around 4% in the same period. Taking a page from private equity, the managers of private credit funds may also collect a management fee of 1% to 2% of assets per year, plus around 15% of profits above a certain level. That’s a much sweeter deal than running a public markets bond fund, where fees run about 0.37% per year, according to the Investment Company Institute. Is there a catch? A study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research last year argued that private credit hardly offers any advantage to investors above public markets assets, once you account for funds’ higher fees and the additional risks of private loans. Because private credit doesn’t trade on secondary markets, it’s not easy to know its exact value at any given time. Skeptics of private market investing say this fact gives fund managers leeway to grade their own homework. They report the fair value of the assets in a fund each quarter, though most hire third-party companies to provide an opinion. For investors in the funds, this cuts two ways. The values don’t change as often as they might in a public market, so the investment appears to be less volatile. But this also could end up masking problems with a loan—leading to big losses when they finally burst into view. Different lenders to the same company have on some occasions come up with wildly different assessments as to the loan’s worth. In some cases lenders have been reluctant to mark down the value of loans that had become distressed, Bloomberg has reported. So should I worry about all the money going into private credit? Private credit managers generally are subject to only a fraction of the regulation and oversight that banks have faced since the 2008 financial crisis. The industry says there’s a good reason for this: Unlike banks, these investment funds aren’t taking risks with the money of depositors or short-term investors, so there’s less danger of a panic in downturn. In this view, putting risky debt into funds instead of banks is good for financial stability. FULL ARTICLE HERE https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-02-19/private-credit-is-the-hot-new-thing-on-wall-street-but-what-is-it?leadSource=uverify%20wall&embedded-checkout=true

Major news! From their Press Release: MIAMI, Jan. 7, 2025 — eCapital Corp. (“eCapital”), a leading technology-enabled provider of financing for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) across North America and the U.K., today announced its acquisition of LSQ Group LLC and its subsidiaries (“LSQ”), a recognized leader in working capital finance and payment services. This acquisition reflects eCapital’s commitment to advancing innovation and expanding its ability to provide advanced, customized funding to clients as it continues to execute its growth strategy. “This acquisition significantly enhances eCapital’s capacity to deliver scalable working capital solutions,” said Marius Silvasan, CEO of eCapital. “LSQ’s proven expertise in technology-driven financing and its solid portfolio position us to widen our footprint and accelerate our impact in the marketplace. LSQ complements eCapital’s focus on streamlining access to the capital businesses need to thrive in today’s fast-paced economic environment.” For over 25 years, LSQ has built its reputation as a leader in working capital finance by leveraging an intuitive platform, on-demand payments, and a deep understanding of credit and risk. Their specialization in supply chain finance further enhances their capability to help businesses optimize liquidity and manage financial risk, reinforcing their role as a trusted provider in the finance sector. “eCapital’s velocity has been impressive to watch and joining the organization marks an exciting new chapter for LSQ, allowing us the opportunity to amplify our collective reach,” said Dan Ambrico, CEO of LSQ. “Throughout the acquisition process, we identified strong synergies in our approaches to business, client service, and technology. We’re ready to combine our strengths and drive client success, setting a new industry standard.” https://ecapital.com/en-ca/news/ecapital-acquires-lsq-to-expand-technology-solutions-and-strengthen-market-leadership/

May 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hello Alice, the fintech platform connecting 1.5 million small businesses to capital and resources is pleased to announce the dismissal of the lawsuit brought against it by America First Legal. The suit, which attempted to undermine Hello Alice's commitment to provide equitable access to capital and support for underrepresented entrepreneurs, has been dismissed by a federal judge in Ohio. The resolution in the case marks a significant win for the broader small business community. The judge in the case declared, "Plaintiffs fail to allege any injury in fact that would support their standing to seek either retrospective or prospective relief." In short, the judge found that the lawsuit did not allege a harm that could be remedied by the courts. The Court then stated that it "enters judgment in favor of all defendants." "This resolution marks a pivotal moment not only for our company but for the broader small business community in the United States," said Elizabeth Gore, co-founder and President of Hello Alice. "Facing a labor shortage, heightened interest rates, and inflation, this country needs its small business owners, and they, in return, need the capital and resources that programs like Hello Alice provide. We are thrilled for the judgment in favor of Hello Alice, as this represents one less threat to our nation's small business community and economy." "We are pleased by the resolution of this case. It beats back a meritless lawsuit and makes clear that the federal courts will not hear weak challenges such as these," said Neal Katyal, lead counsel from Hogan Lovells representing Hello Alice in the case. "The dismissal of this case is significant because the lawsuit would make it more difficult for diverse small businesses to compete in today's economy. The court ruled that this lawsuit is now over. The plaintiffs can try to appeal, but we are tremendously confident in our legal position, and are ready and willing to fight not just for Hello Alice, but the broader business community and ready to set an even broader precedent in the Court of Appeals." read full story: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/a-win-for-hello-alice-in-lawsuit-marking-a-significant-boost-for-the-small-business-community-302155566.html

The premise of the 2002 film “Minority Report” revolves around using advanced predictive technology to stop crimes before they occur. While the story, originally by sci-fi writer Phillip Dick, focuses on law enforcement, its underlying principles — data analysis, risk management and proactive decision-making — bear a surprising and striking resemblance to the role of a modern CFO or treasurer tasked with ensuring financial stability and growth by anticipating the future. After all, with the news that as many as 285,000 businesses are using The Clearing House’s RTP® instant payments network each month, the confluence of real-time payments and real-time financial data is increasingly providing finance professionals with an unprecedented ability to monitor and manage liquidity, a core determinant of financial health and operational success. In “Minority Report,” the PreCrime division exists to mitigate risk, stopping crimes before they cause harm. This mirrors a CFO’s role in managing financial risks — be it credit risks, market volatility or operational inefficiencies. CFOs continuously analyze data to make risk-informed decisions, much like how PreCrime uses insights to prevent disasters. As businesses grapple with volatile markets, evolving regulatory landscapes, and the demand for immediate financial decision-making, real-time data and faster payments are emerging as essential tools for maintaining agility and resilience. The Liquidity Management Imperative Liquidity performance sits at the heart of treasury management. It is the barometer of an organization’s ability to meet its obligations, fund growth opportunities and weather unforeseen disruptions. Traditionally, liquidity management relied on batch processes and historical data, leaving treasurers reacting to issues rather than proactively addressing them. Real-time data helps change this dynamic by enabling treasurers to access up-to-the-minute financial information. Paired with faster payment capabilities — facilitated by innovations such as real-time payment networks and APIs — finance teams can now execute transactions and optimize cash positions in ways that were previously unimaginable. PYMNTS Intelligence has found that treasurers with high levels of influence are far more likely to report that their companies have predictable cash flows, expect revenue to increase and are agile in responding to shifting marking conditions. Full Story: https://www.pymnts.com/news/b2b-payments/2025/minority-report-for-money-how-real-time-data-and-payments-transform-liquidity-performance/

Prosecutions for defrauding the COVID relief programs like the EIDL and PPP loan programs are continuing non-stop. The feds have gotten down to smaller loan amounts of fraud but this one is just over $1 million. Its tough to keep up with all of them so I will only post the interesting few. This one happens to be from my hometown of Fort Lauderdale and only 24 years old. Man Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Obtaining Over $1 Million in COVID-19 Relief and Unemployment Compensation MIAMI – On Nov. 15, Conrad Brandon Bernard, 24, pled guilty in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to committing bank fraud and identity theft during a scheme to fraudulently obtain over $1 million in Covid-19 relief loans and unemployment compensation payments.  During the COVID-19 outbreak, the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program was utilized to provide loan assistance to small businesses and other eligible entities in need. The U.S. Department of Labor's unemployment insurance programs were created to provide unemployment benefits to eligible workers who become unemployed through no fault of their own and meet certain other eligibility requirements. Beginning as early as in or around May 2020 and continuing through on or about December 2022, Bernard carried out a scheme to defraud the EIDL and unemployment insurance programs. Bernard fraudulently applied for fourteen EIDLs using the name and personal identifying information (PII) of other individuals without their knowledge or consent. Once the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) approved the fraudulent loan applications, the SBA transferred the EIDL funds to various bank accounts at Bernard’s direction. Bernard opened and operated these accounts with the name and PII of other individuals without those individuals’ knowledge or consent. Bernard then transferred those funds from the bank accounts to other accounts under his control including various accounts he created using the name and PII of other individuals without their knowledge or consent.  Bernard also transferred or withdrew fraudulently obtained unemployment benefit funds from bank accounts he opened and operated using the name and PII of other individuals without their knowledge or consent. These unemployment benefits were paid from several states, including West Virginia and Arizona. The unemployment benefit funds were fraudulently obtained because the name and PII of other individuals were used to apply for the unemployment benefits without those individuals’ knowledge or consent. In all, Bernard fraudulently obtained $1,083,340 in EIDL funds and unemployment benefits. During the investigation, law enforcement also discovered that Bernard possessed numerous false identifications including counterfeit passport cards, false Florida driver’s licenses and identification cards, the means to create false identification, and the PII of several thousand individuals including their names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers.  Bernard is scheduled to be sentenced on February 5, , 2025, before U.S. District Judge William P. Dimitrouleas in Fort Lauderdale. He faces up to 30 years in prison for the bank fraud convictions, to be followed by a mandatory consecutive term of 2 years in prison for the aggravated identity theft conviction. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/man-pleads-guilty-fraudulently-obtaining-over-1-million-covid-19-relief-and

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Last Thursday, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the Fed), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the federal supervisors of banks, issued 11 pages of warnings on what could go wrong when federally-insured banks get in bed with uninsured and untested financial technology companies. These financial technology companies are lovingly called Fintechs on Wall Street and in Silicon Valley where big money can be made by venture capitalists who bring the sexy-sounding Fintech startup as an IPO (Initial Public Offering) to investors on Wall Street. The Wall Street firm, in return, gets a nice payday in underwriting fees and a law firm also gets paid as counsel to the underwriters. Federal banking regulators have been in a frenzied scramble to deal with the growing fallout of disastrous marriages between Fintech and federally-insured banks. You might recall that after news broke that the fraudster crypto exchange, FTX, was using Silvergate Bank for deposits, there was turmoil at Silvergate, forcing it into eventual voluntary liquidation. (See Disgraced Silvergate Bank Hints It May Not Be Able to Cover All of Its Deposits; Fed Slaps It with a Cease and Desist Consent Order.) Then there is the mess with the Fintech payment app, Zelle. Things are so bad with that app that the U.S. Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations had to hold a hearing on May 21. The Chair of that Subcommittee, Richard Blumenthal, opened the hearing with this: “The banks of America have a dirty little secret. It’s called Zelle. And it’s not just Zelle, it’s other P2P paid platforms—apps that people use to transfer money among their bank accounts. In the case of Zelle, it is nearly instantaneous. It’s almost always irreversible. And it is owned by banks. “In fact, Zelle is the largest peer-to-peer payment app. It’s actually operated by Early Warning Services, which in turn is owned and operated by the seven largest banks. And Zelle is often integrated into consumers’ existing online bank accounts and mobile apps. “Zelle markets itself as ‘A fast and easy way to send and receive money.’ But, as this Committee has found, a fast and easy way to lose money is often what happens on Zelle. And that is probably a more accurate catchphrase for Zelle and for other P2P platforms as well. What distinguishes Zelle is speed, permanence, and bank ownership, and that’s really the reason why we are focusing on Zelle, but the other platforms deserve attention as well. In fact, it’s less well known than other payment apps like Cash App and Venmo, but Zelle is by far the largest—several times its nearest competitor, and it is approximately three times larger than its nearest rival. “Zelle transfers are nearly instant and irreversible, and by the time a consumer knows they’ve been scammed, usually it’s too late to do anything about it—at least according to Zelle and according to the banks that own, control, and in effect operate Zelle. “Just three banks, J.P. Morgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo handled 73% of all Zelle transactions in 2023….” Read the rest of the story: Bank Regulators Issue Warnings on Fintech and Banking as Disasters Pile Up,https://wallstreetonparade.com/2024/07/federal-bank-regulators-issue-warnings-on-fintech-and-banking-as-disasters-pile-up/

The Top 10 States for SBA 7(a) loans by loan count, cumulative over the last 10 years (2014-2023), sourced from Lumos Technologies. The average loan size for the last 10 years in these 10 states ranges from $269 thousand (Ohio) to $763 thousand (Georgia) The average loan size for the past 10 years for the total SBA program is $457 thousand.

The utilization of working capital solutions is on the rise for healthcare Growth Corporates. In 2024, 97% of industry Growth Corporates using at least one such solution, an increase of 51% year over year. The preference for on-demand solutions — such as corporate and virtual cards and bank lines of credit — has surged 285% and 92%, respectively. The most efficient Growth Corporates in healthcare leveraged flexible and strategic working capital solutions. As a result, they achieved $8.6 million in bottom-line benefits from reduced interest, inventory carrying costs, and supplier discounts. These top performers tend to use working capital strategically. For example, they covered planned cash flow gaps related to predictable business cycles and invested in business growth. The “2024-2025 Growth Corporates Working Capital Index: Healthcare Data Brief,” a PYMNTS Intelligence factsheet commissioned by Visa, examines a sample of firms that help drive regional and global economies and the working capital solutions available to support their growth. Overall, we surveyed 1,297 CFOs and treasurers across eight industry segments, five global regions and 23 countries. This data brief shares insights from 175 CFOs and treasurers in the healthcare industry. “2024-2025 Growth Corporates Working Capital Index: Healthcare Data Brief” gives a bird’s-eye view into: • Examples of working capital efficiencies • Insights into how healthcare Growth Corporates are deploying working capital strategically versus tactically • The top working capital solutions used among these Growth Corporates Download your copy of “2024-2025 Growth Corporates Working Capital Index: Healthcare Data Brief” today. This report includes crucial information on the firms that drive local, regional and global economies and the working capital solutions available to support their steady growth. This report builds on the findings of the “2024-2025 Growth Corporates Working Capital Index.” For more insights into how CFOs and treasurers are using working capital solutions, read the “The 2024-2025 Growth Corporates Working Capital Index.” https://www.pymnts.com/business/2024/working-capital-usage-jumps-51percent-among-healthcare-growth-corporates/

We hope your new year is starting off on the right foot! But were you aware of this new law that went into effect that could cost you $500 per day and 2 years in prison?? That's right, if you don't report ownership of your business entity by Jan 1, 2025, you could face punishment, but read our blog to find out what the new Corporate Transparency Act is and why FinCEN has implemented this now. https://www.funderintel.com/post/unpacking-the-corporate-transparency-act-fincen-s-latest-move-and-its-impact

When the Covid pandemic shut down his entertainment booking agency, Sleeping Giant Music, in 2020, Freddie Harb faced financial ruin. With concerts and live events largely on hold, the San Diego businessman said, he turned to the U.S. Small Business Administration in case he needed help making payroll. Like nearly 4 million other small-business owners, he received what’s called an “economic injury disaster loan.” But when Harb repeatedly tried to repay the loan, records show, his payments were never taken by the agency. Three years later, he learned he was in default and his business was in collections. “I wish I never got that loan,” Harb said in an interview. “It’s been a total nightmare.” Navigating the SBA’s Covid disaster loan program has become similarly agonizing for several other small-business owners who, like Harb, say their loans were wrongly deemed delinquent or in default as a result of the agency’s own internal accounting and processing errors. “It’s a complete s--- show,” said Trevor Curran, who co-runs Aurora Consulting, a Connecticut-based firm that has helped dozens of small-business owners manage and obtain SBA loans. “Dysfunctional internal systems, incompetent processing, bad communications.” Along with the added stress and wasted time trying to fix mistakes, several business owners accused of default have faced real financial consequences due to the agency’s alleged blunders, including garnished or withheld Social Security checks and tax refunds, intercepted Medicaid payments, and files sent to private collectors who’ve flagged delinquencies on credit reports, Curran said. An official for the Treasury Department, the agency charged with collecting on defaulted loans for the federal government, did not answer questions about specific collection methods but said they are used as a last resort. In an emailed statement, the SBA said it couldn’t comment on individual loans for privacy reasons. But a spokesperson said the agency made a number of improvements to its payment system last year. It had also undertaken “significant outreach to every borrower as their loan payments begin and as loans become delinquent,” the spokesperson said. To date, that has meant more than 115 million phone calls, over 16 million emails and nearly 1.7 million USPS letters, the statement added. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/covid-loans-collections-small-business-administration-rcna182835

An IT consultant fatally stabbed Lee, who founded the popular money transfer service, after an argument about the suspect's sister, prosecutors said. A San Francisco jury on Tuesday convicted IT consultant Nima Momeni in the 2023 fatal stabbing of tech executive Bob Lee, a killing that led to concern about street crime in the city — but which actually occurred after a personal dispute. The jury acquitted Momeni of first-degree murder but found him guilty of second-degree murder. A verdict was reached Monday but read out Tuesday after deliberations started Dec. 4. The jury had been asked to consider first-degree murder with an enhancement of using a deadly weapon, NBC Bay Area reported. Momeni appeared unemotional as the verdict was read, as did his lead attorney, who joined the hearing via Zoom, the station reported. Momeni faces 16 years to life in prison, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said. Lee, 43, the founder of the popular money transfer service Cash App, was found stabbed early April 4, 2023, near downtown San Francisco. He was rushed to a hospital but died of his injuries. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/nima-momeni-found-guilty-murder-killing-cash-app-founder-bob-lee-rcna181451