Canal Road Group Secures Equity Commitment from SMBC for Direct Lending Strategy

Miami, FL – Canal Road Group (CRG) has announced an expansion of its strategic partnership with SMBC Bank, which has committed equity to CRG's direct lending strategy. This commitment is expected to provide up to an additional $225 million in investable capital, increasing CRG's total investment capacity to $2.3 billion, including financing.

As part of this agreement, SMBC will also acquire a passive minority stake in CRG. This capital injection builds upon an existing relationship that includes a $350 million asset-based lending facility, which CRG uses to finance its private credit portfolio and can be expanded to $500 million.

Since launching its private credit platform less than two years ago, CRG has deployed nearly $1.2 billion in commitments to corporate credit borrowers in the private market. The firm highlights that SMBC's commitment reflects confidence in CRG's platform, team, and growth prospects. The leadership team, including Mike Damaso and Don Young, previously grew CBAM Partners to over $15 billion in assets under management before its sale to Carlyle in 2022.

CRG stated that SMBC's commitment demonstrates confidence in the firm's ability to source and underwrite investments, the quality of its existing portfolio, and its capacity to meet established goals for the business and its limited partners. The company values the relationship built with SMBC.