Key Takeaways
- • Ares Management again capped withdrawals at its flagship Ares Strategic Income Fund (ASIF) after redemption requests rose to 14.4% of shares in the second quarter, up from 11.6% in the prior quarter, according to a filing released Thursday, June 25, 2026.
- • The fund limited withdrawals to 5% of shares, the customary threshold for such vehicles, on a fund with $22.6 billion in assets.
- • Most redemption requests came from fewer than 1% of ASIF's more than 20,000 shareholders, largely non-U.S. institutions and family offices, and accounted for nearly half of second-quarter requests.
- • U.S. private wealth investors, ASIF's largest shareholder segment, submitted redemption requests representing just 2.4% of shares, down 35% from the prior quarter, and accounted for nearly half of second-quarter inflows.
- • Investors pulled a combined $12.9 billion from private credit funds for wealthy individuals in the first five months of 2026, per Robert A. Stanger.
Summary
Ares Management (ARES.N) again capped withdrawals at its flagship private credit fund, the $22.6 billion Ares Strategic Income Fund (ASIF), after redemption requests rose in the second quarter, according to a filing released Thursday. Investors sought to pull 14.4% of shares in the quarter, up from 11.6% in the previous quarter. The fund limited withdrawals to 5% of shares, the customary threshold for such vehicles.
The redemption activity comes as wealthy individuals have pulled money from non-traded private credit funds in recent months over concerns about lending standards and how software companies that borrowed heavily from direct lenders will navigate AI disruption. Investors pulled a combined $12.9 billion from private credit funds for wealthy individuals in the first five months of 2026, according to investment bank Robert A. Stanger. Peer Apollo (APO.N) recently flagged that withdrawal requests at its $26 billion private credit fund moderated from U.S. investors and increased from offshore.
The fund said most requests were concentrated among a small number of non-U.S. institutions and family offices, representing less than 1% of ASIF's more than 20,000 shareholders. Nearly two-thirds of repurchase requests were submitted by investors who had tendered in the prior quarter. TD Cowen analyst Bill Katz said the filing was "optically, not a great update; however, the devil is in the details, and we are quite encouraged by the finer disclosure," noting that the pattern does not suggest widespread angst and that repeat requesters indicate redemption pressures are not building.
Requests from U.S. private wealth investors, ASIF's largest shareholder segment, represented only 2.4% of shares and declined 35% from the prior quarter. That segment also accounted for nearly half of second-quarter inflows, ASIF said. CEO Michael Arougheti said earlier this month that U.S. high-net-worth individuals were growing their alternatives exposure and not redeeming at the rate markets expected.
ASIF, launched in 2022, said its Class I shares have generated an annualized total return of 10.27% since inception, a 187-basis-point premium to broadly syndicated bank loans.
The redemption activity comes as wealthy individuals have pulled money from non-traded private credit funds in recent months over concerns about lending standards and how software companies that borrowed heavily from direct lenders will navigate AI disruption. Investors pulled a combined $12.9 billion from private credit funds for wealthy individuals in the first five months of 2026, according to investment bank Robert A. Stanger. Peer Apollo (APO.N) recently flagged that withdrawal requests at its $26 billion private credit fund moderated from U.S. investors and increased from offshore.
The fund said most requests were concentrated among a small number of non-U.S. institutions and family offices, representing less than 1% of ASIF's more than 20,000 shareholders. Nearly two-thirds of repurchase requests were submitted by investors who had tendered in the prior quarter. TD Cowen analyst Bill Katz said the filing was "optically, not a great update; however, the devil is in the details, and we are quite encouraged by the finer disclosure," noting that the pattern does not suggest widespread angst and that repeat requesters indicate redemption pressures are not building.
Requests from U.S. private wealth investors, ASIF's largest shareholder segment, represented only 2.4% of shares and declined 35% from the prior quarter. That segment also accounted for nearly half of second-quarter inflows, ASIF said. CEO Michael Arougheti said earlier this month that U.S. high-net-worth individuals were growing their alternatives exposure and not redeeming at the rate markets expected.
ASIF, launched in 2022, said its Class I shares have generated an annualized total return of 10.27% since inception, a 187-basis-point premium to broadly syndicated bank loans.
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