KKR, one of the world's largest alternative asset managers, is preparing to enter the private credit trading space. Co-CEO Scott Nuttall announced on May 27 that the firm is likely to start facilitating trades in this historically illiquid debt market.
KKR joins competitors like Apollo Global Management, which has already been building secondary trading infrastructure. With approximately $758 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2026, KKR's entry is significant.
Private credit refers to loans made by non-bank lenders to mid-sized businesses that don't use public bond markets. Currently, these loans are illiquid-investors commit capital, collect yield, and wait. Creating a secondary market would allow loans to be traded more like corporate bonds, benefiting both KKR and institutional investors.
In May 2026, KKR partnered with Capital Group to launch two public-private credit funds called Core Plus+ and Multi-Sector+, blending public and private debt. Nuttall, a KKR veteran since 1996, became Co-CEO in 2021, overseeing the firm's expansion from pure private equity to a diversified financial giant.
While pension funds and sovereign wealth funds are attracted to private credit's yield premium, liquidity concerns have capped allocations. However, increased trading could introduce mark-to-market volatility, one of the asset class's previous selling points. Building a trading ecosystem around custom, non-standardized instruments remains a major challenge.