Private Credit Exit Ops
Been doing private credit for a few years already and honestly I am getting pretty bored. It’s always the same key risks and mitigants, same structures/pricing/baskets, same questions asked at IC etc. for those that left private credit, where did you go?
Based on the most helpful WSO content, private credit professionals often consider a variety of exit opportunities depending on their interests and career goals. Here are some common paths:
Corporate Development: Many professionals transition to corporate development roles, especially in industries like tech, where they can leverage their deal experience and financial acumen.
Hedge Funds: Some move to credit-focused hedge funds, particularly if they enjoy the public markets and the volatility/social dynamics that come with it.
Private Equity: While less common, some private credit professionals transition to private equity, especially if they have experience in direct lending or mezzanine financing.
Entrepreneurship or Side Hustles: A few leave the structured finance world entirely to start their own ventures or pursue personal passions.
Public Markets (Equity Research or Asset Management): For those interested in public markets, roles in equity research or asset management can be appealing.
Government or Policy Roles: Some professionals later in their careers move into government or policy-related roles, especially if they have a strong interest in regulatory frameworks or public finance.
If you're feeling stagnant, it might be worth exploring these options or even considering a lateral move within private credit to a firm with a different focus or strategy.
Sources: Your job is going to be relatively mindless, repetitive, and dull., A Career In Market Risk, https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forum/investment-banking/public-finance-qa?customgpt=1, Credit Hedge Fund opportunities, What are the different types of Credit?
Bump
Curious to know as well. I'm not in direct lending, but in Special Sits (with a private/public mandate), which is a big feeder into HFs (both equity and credit). I guess HF exits are not very common for Direct Lending, although probably the event-driven roles not.
Separately, curious to understand the thinking about your career. If you're a director in PC, your WLB probably has increased quite a bit since you started. So I guess the trade off between more free time vs. being more career driven leans in favour of the latter?
That's a good point wrt WLB, but as a Director, in addition to the credit work/underwriting, you are also expected to originate deals too and it becomes a KPI that is tracked for comp etc these days. At my firm "everyone needs to originate at a senior level!!" The reality is its very hard to find deals / deploying these days. There's so much private credit dry powder out there that deals are grinding so tight now that it's not worth deploying.
Sponsor focused strategy and is there white space? How do you manage staffing to find free time to source?
Bump
Seen a few private credit guys go into PE-backed highly acquisitive corporate development roles.
Kind of get the pitch of ex-private credit vs. ex-PE for those seats given volume of deals closed in these seats (7-10+ / year) is going to be a lot closer to private credit than private equity so more used to churning through tack-ons.
Credit hedge funds are somewhat common too though mileage can vary. Unfortunately though most common exit is private credit at a different shop.
Do you know the level that those people exited from PC to CD at and what level /titles they joined at?
Would it be crazy to go PC to Corp dev for a non-PE F500?
Depends on level of seniority imo
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