MANAMA: ASB Capital, a purpose-driven asset and wealth management firm with assets under management (AUM) of USD 10.2 billion, announced its partnership with Stepstone (Nasdaq: STEP) to launch the ASB StepStone Private Financing Fund. The Fund will provide investors with access to a Shari’a compliant diversified private financing strategy focused on current income and capital appreciation.
The Fund is being structured as an open-ended perpetual vehicle designed to provide greater flexibility around subscriptions and redemptions. The underlying strategy focuses predominantly on senior secured financing to US middle-market companies, illustrating disciplined underwriting and diversification across borrowers and industries.
The partnership marks an important step in ASB Capital’s expansion into private markets, broadening its investment offering to address demand for Shari’a compliant income-generating alternatives. As private credit assumes a growing role in global investment portfolios, the Fund aims to provide investors access to international strategies with an established track record and attractive risk-adjusted returns. The strategy incorporates a strong focus on seniority, collateral coverage and portfolio diversification.
Through its partnership with StepStone, ASB Capital provides its clients with access to the capabilities of a global private-markets investment platform with approximately USD 245 billion in AUM. The partnership combines StepStone’s private-markets expertise, global investment network, and institutional capabilities with ASB Capital’s regional reach and diversified product offering. The ASB StepStone Private Financing Fund forms part of the broader strategy of ASB Capital to expand its investment solutions and provide clients with access to alternative asset classes that support income generation and portfolio diversification.
“The ASB StepStone Private Financing Fund represents a significant milestone in the development of our private markets platform. Investors are increasingly seeking actively managed income-generating strategies that can diversify their portfolios beyond traditional assets. Through our partnership with StepStone, we are providing clients with access to a diversified private financing strategy supported by institutional investment capabilities and disciplined portfolio construction,” Commenting on the partnership, Rafik Nayed, Managing Director of ASB Capital, said.
“Private financing can play an important role in diversified portfolios by providing access to contractual income and opportunities that are not generally available through public markets. We are pleased to partner with ASB Capital, one of the region’s fastest growing asset managers, to make a diversified private financing strategy available to investors, combining our global private-markets capabilities with ASB Capital’s reach and expertise,” Hans-Jörg Baumann, Chairman and Founding Partner of StepStone Private Debt said.
The partnership strengthens ASB Capital’s private-markets credentials and further expands its investment platform across public markets, private markets, and investment banking.
