Private Market Titans Warn of Pain as Credit Cracks Widen (1)

Amid the worst start to the year for their stocks in more than a decade, leaders of Wall Street’s biggest private markets firms had a surprising message: investors have reason to be concerned.

From Blue Owl Capital Inc. to Blackstone Inc., private credit funds across the industry are facing a wave of withdrawals and analysts are warning default rates could soar if AI disrupts corporate America as much as some experts expect. And in private equity, managers are struggling to offload assets and return cash to investors, forcing them to turn to expensive forms of debt to extract returns ...