Ninety-three per cent of global institutional investors intend to either maintain (42%) or increase (51%) their exposure to alternative credit in 2026, according to new research published by Benefit Street Partners (BSP).
The main motivation is the pursuit of greater diversification (85%) and the potential for higher total returns in alternatives than traditional fixed income (81%). As investors grow and diversify their alternative credit allocations, 81% consider a specialist asset class focus as the key to delivering strong performance.
Over the next 12 months, 47% of respondents intend to increase their exposure to infrastructure debt, making it the most popular strategy, followed by direct lending (39%), asset-based lending (35%), special situations and distressed debt (30%), commercial real estate debt (28%) and CLOs (16%).
Allison Davi, senior managing director, co-COO and head of business development at BSP added: “The message from our clients is clear: they want access to the best investment opportunities available across the expanding alternative credit landscape, but managed by a single, trusted and global partner.”
The research was conducted on behalf of BSP by CoreData Research in November and December 2025, and focused on 135 global institutional investors with a combined AuM of $8trn in Australia, Bahrain, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Israel, Japan, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Sweden, United Arab Emirates (UAE), United Kingdom and the United States.
