Key Takeaways
- • KKR closed its first private credit continuation vehicle with more than $460 million in total commitments, according to market sources cited by PitchBook.
- • Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI) is the lead buyer of the vehicle, which holds the assets of KKR Lending Partners III, a $1.5 billion direct lending fund that completed fundraising in 2017.
- • KKR Lending Partners III generated an 11.0% net IRR and a 1.7x MOIC as of June 30, 2026, per a KKR 10-Q filing.
- • Existing investors could either sell their interests for liquidity or roll over into the new vehicle on substantially the same terms.
- • Credit secondaries deal volume in H1 2026 surpassed 2025's full-year total of $20 billion, per Evercore data, with most of that volume coming from continuation vehicles.
Summary
KKR has closed its first private credit continuation vehicle with more than $460 million in total commitments, according to market sources reported by PitchBook. Allianz Global Investors is the lead buyer. The vehicle consolidates the assets of KKR Lending Partners III, a $1.5 billion direct lending fund that completed fundraising in 2017. Evercore acted as financial advisor to KKR and Debevoise as legal counsel.
The transaction gave existing limited partners the choice to take liquidity by selling their interests or to maintain exposure through a rollover into the new vehicle on substantially the same terms. According to a KKR 10-Q filing, KKR Lending Partners III generated an 11.0% net IRR and a 1.7x MOIC as of June 30, 2026. A KKR spokesperson described the deal as an expansion of the firm's relationship with AllianzGI.
AllianzGI has been active in this segment. It is also the lead investor in Blackstone's $1 billion private credit continuation vehicle and co-led Crescent Capital's $3.2 billion private credit continuation vehicle earlier this year. Allianz has invested in private credit since 2007, and AllianzGI launched its first dedicated private credit secondaries fund in 2022. Alexander Li, Senior Portfolio Manager at AllianzGI Global Private Credit, said the firm drew on its private credit secondaries experience to lead and structure the transaction.
Continuation vehicles are becoming a more common way for private credit general partners to return capital to existing LPs while keeping underlying assets. Evercore data cited in the article shows credit secondaries volume in the first half of 2026 alone exceeded the full-year 2025 total of $20 billion, with most of that activity driven by continuation vehicles.
The transaction gave existing limited partners the choice to take liquidity by selling their interests or to maintain exposure through a rollover into the new vehicle on substantially the same terms. According to a KKR 10-Q filing, KKR Lending Partners III generated an 11.0% net IRR and a 1.7x MOIC as of June 30, 2026. A KKR spokesperson described the deal as an expansion of the firm's relationship with AllianzGI.
AllianzGI has been active in this segment. It is also the lead investor in Blackstone's $1 billion private credit continuation vehicle and co-led Crescent Capital's $3.2 billion private credit continuation vehicle earlier this year. Allianz has invested in private credit since 2007, and AllianzGI launched its first dedicated private credit secondaries fund in 2022. Alexander Li, Senior Portfolio Manager at AllianzGI Global Private Credit, said the firm drew on its private credit secondaries experience to lead and structure the transaction.
Continuation vehicles are becoming a more common way for private credit general partners to return capital to existing LPs while keeping underlying assets. Evercore data cited in the article shows credit secondaries volume in the first half of 2026 alone exceeded the full-year 2025 total of $20 billion, with most of that activity driven by continuation vehicles.
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