Capital Markets & Trends

Middle-market direct lending hit its lowest quarter since 2023 while bank and asset-based capacity expanded. Why the buyers who run a multi-source process capture the leverage.

Single-family offices now drive 65% of NAV loan demand, and 85% of that borrowing funds acquisitions, not distributions. What the shift means for owners financing against a portfolio.

Direct lending now rivals the syndicated market at $1.5 to $2 trillion, but the majority flows to sponsor-backed deals. Why non-sponsor owners get declined, and what closes the gap.

Roughly $1.55B moved into healthcare businesses in one week. The largest deal ended in a sale. The other two used debt and kept ownership intact. Why the same structures rarely reach an independent practice.

Two revolvers priced in the same week of July 2026 carried spreads 150 to 250 basis points apart on an identical base rate. The difference was credit tier, and tier is something a borrower can change.

As of July 2026, AI perception sets software valuations more than fundamentals do. Two identical-ARR companies can be marked $50M apart. A lender reads your contracts, not your narrative.

Venture funding hit a record $510B in H1 2026, but 43% went to two AI companies. Why recurring-revenue tech founders are misreading the headline, and the non-dilutive alternative.

A factory index above 50 reads as a growth signal, but hiring is still contracting and input costs are still high. Why financing sized to the headline misreads a margin story as a volume story.

U.S. acquisition capital sits near record levels while deal volume has fallen by half. The binding constraint for buyers now is structure and matching, not availability.

The rate outlook flipped and commercial bankruptcy filings are climbing. Why the debt capacity you modeled last year is shrinking, and how to bring current assumptions to the lender call.

Private equity deal value fell 14% year over year while deal count stayed flat. In a selective market, readiness, not access, decides which borrowers actually get funded.

Manufacturing capex intentions are at multi-year highs, but conventional bank underwriting is thinning. The bottleneck has shifted from the investment decision to how it gets funded.

Construction backlog hit a three-year high in May, but the gain is concentrated in data center work. Why the 86% of contractors outside that lane risk being priced off a market they do not occupy.

The 10-year Treasury hit a one-year high while markets price the Fed to hold or hike. Why waiting for lower fixed rates is now a bet against the curve, and how to decide structure first.

The 2026 rate cuts your capital plan assumed are gone. The Fed is on hold, banks are tighter, and capital has shifted to private credit. How to structure financing for the rate environment that actually exists.