Manulife-Comvest raises US$5.4bn for cash-flow and asset-based lending

Manulife | Comvest Credit Partners has raised US$5.4bn of total investable capital in connection with the final close of Comvest Credit Partners VII and related transaction vehicles, completing the largest fundraising in the private-credit platform’s history.

The headline figure covers CCP VII and associated vehicles and is described as total investable capital, rather than solely investor commitments to the flagship fund. The manager did not disclose how the US$5.4bn is divided between the fund, related vehicles and any financing used within the structure.

CCP VII is the latest vintage of the platform’s North American direct-lending strategy. It will invest across both cash-flow and asset-based lending opportunities involving sponsor-backed and non-sponsored middle-market companies.

That combination gives the manager scope to underwrite borrowers in different ways. Cash-flow loans rely principally on a company’s earnings and debt-service capacity, while asset-based structures can link availability more closely to collateral such as receivables, inventory or equipment. The flexibility may be particularly useful when earnings visibility, collateral quality and financing requirements vary across sectors.

Manulife-Comvest said CCP VII is already substantially deployed. The strategy attracted commitments from existing and new institutional investors, although the announcement did not disclose individual investor names, target returns, pricing or the portfolio’s current borrower composition.

The fundraising adds considerable capacity to a platform that managed US$21.5bn at 31 March 2026. Manulife-Comvest combines the insurance group’s capital and distribution network with Comvest’s middle-market origination and underwriting operations.

For the asset-based lending market, the scale of the close is significant because it places ABL alongside conventional direct lending within a large institutional strategy rather than treating it as a separate specialist product. This may increase competition for well-collateralised borrowers while also directing more private capital towards companies whose financing needs do not fit broadly syndicated markets.

The substantial deployment already completed also means the vehicle is not merely accumulating capital for future use. However, the manager has not disclosed the proportion invested in asset-based loans compared with cash-flow facilities, so the precise amount available for each segment cannot yet be determined.