Size does matter. BlackRock's private credit platform currently manages $44bn through direct lending and opportunistic credit strategies. Its size has helped it reach a wider spectrum of opportunities than many. It provides senior debt financing to North American and European middle market companies with enterprise values between $150m and $1.5bn, in order to generate higher income for insurers.

The opportunistic credit solutions are designed to capitalize on investments that offer excess return due to complexity and illiquidity.

All private credit investments are overseen by BlackRock's independent risk management teams. Dedicated private credit risk professionals provide unbiased views on potential performance and investment income, transaction risks, portfolio risks, and ESG risks.

All of this has come in handy in the current year when the market has been challenged by record inflation, high commodity prices, and heightened geopolitical risk. To weather this BlackRock has helped clients use bespoke, flexible financing solutions to address their capital needs

And it believes that secular and cyclical shifts, alongside technical drivers, will continue to drive attractive opportunities for all-weather credit investing. Given its extensive risk and asset sourcing capabilities, BlackRock made a solid choice for private debt manager of the year.