Justin Guichard, Warren Min, Aaron Greenberg and Katy Mao

The decline of lending activity by regional banks has led to great opportunities for private lenders with flexible mandates, and Oaktree Capital rode just that sort of flexibility to $2.2 billion in originations in the 12 months ending March 1, 2025.

“Our focus within real estate historically includes both commercial and residential exposure, and both private credit and traded debt securities,” said Justin Guichard. “In the markets we’re experiencing today, that flexibility remains a key element of how we distinguish ourselves for our clients.”

Guichard noted that given the stark decimation of value within commercial real estate of late, Oaktree is heavily focused on value resets.

“The market is still digesting the impact of the trade war on commercial real estate in particular, but also on residential real estate as well,” he said. “Our key focus areas in 2025 include capturing the value reset in commercial real estate — focusing on assets that have strong fundamentals but that also experienced a decline in valuations.”

In November, Oaktree formed a $250 million partnership with Avana Companies for investment in middle-market direct private debt, prioritizing hospitality assets.

And, in February of this year, the firm announced the close of Oaktree Opportunities Fund XII, with $16 billion of commitments. The fund has invested, or committed to invest, over $7 billion to date.

Between efforts like these and the flexibility within the firm to pursue opportunities across sectors, geographies and asset classes, Guichard said that Oaktree has the right positioning to benefit investors in uncertain times.  

“We have a 70-person global team here at Oaktree, and we don’t have silos that restrict people from contributing to a variety of strategies,” he said. “This is a team of strong athletes who are looking across capital structures and markets to find the best opportunities.”