Over 30 investors from Australia, Europe, the Middle East and north America have backed the fund, which will provide junior capital to performing companies. It will also offer first and second lien senior financing to companies with “bespoke funding needs regarding acquisitions, capex, working capital or recovery funding.”
Roughly half the capital has already been committed to companies across western Europe. “To simultaneously close the fund at €1bn and commit 50% of the capital speaks volumes about the attractiveness of this strategy and Pemberton’s ability to originate, select and manage diverse credit opportunities,” said Ben Gulliver, an SCOS portfolio manager.
Pemberton had three direct lending platforms in operation before SCOS, with target returns of 5.75% to 7% for LPs. It has 68 staff across Europe working on private debt.
The fund manager is partly owned by Legal & General.