Monroe Capital, a U.S. private credit manager, is expanding in Australia to tap the nation’s fast-growing A$4.1 trillion ($2.6 trillion) superannuation funds pool with the opening of a new office and hire.
The firm has set up its first Australian office in Sydney and appointed Galen Fu as director, business development, Monroe Capital said in a statement on Feb. 5. Fu was previously a director in the capital markets team at Hines Investment Management, a U.S.-based real estate asset manager.
Private credit has been making inroads into Australia’s real estate and corporate lending as banks shrink their exposures due to tighter capital regulations. Global investors such as Warburg Pincus, Nuveen and PGIM have raised Australia-focused property debt funds, while Ares Management, Blackstone and KKR & Co. regularly provide leveraged loans to back private equity buyouts down under.
Based in Chicago, Monroe Capital manages $20.3 billion, focusing on lending to mid-market companies in the U.S. and Canada, according to its website.
