KKR & Co. is considering entering the private credit market in Japan to provide an alternative to bank loans.
“It will be a medium to long-term initiative,” Hiro Hirano, the head of KKR Japan said in an interview. “I think it is very important in Japan that we do it ourselves.”
The $1.7 trillion private-credit industry has swelled in the US and Europe by focusing on companies with high credit risk and private equity funds that need help financing acquisitions. In Japan, most direct lending has been done overseas and the domestic loan market is dominated by major banks.
