Key Takeaways
- • KKR raised $25bn of new capital in the third quarter, with $14bn coming from its credit and liquid strategies business, according to Alternative Credit Investor.
- • KKR's total assets under management rose 11 per cent year on year to $804bn, with $116bn of organic new capital raised over the past 12 months.
- • The credit and liquid strategies division's AUM reached $337bn, up 7 per cent year on year, and it has raised $39bn so far in 2026.
- • KKR expects to return more than $40bn to clients in 2026, exceeding its previous annual record by more than 50 per cent.
- • Firm-wide realised performance income fell to $602.3m in Q3 from $930.7m a year earlier, though it rose to $2.21bn over the first nine months of the year.
Summary
Private markets firm KKR raised $25bn (£18.5bn) of new capital in the third quarter, with $14bn of that coming from its credit and liquid strategies business, according to Alternative Credit Investor. The alternatives manager's assets under management rose 11 per cent year on year to $804bn, supported by $116bn of organic new capital raised over the trailing twelve months.
Within the credit and liquid strategies arm, AUM rose 2 per cent quarter on quarter and 7 per cent year on year to $337bn. The division raised $14bn of new organic capital in the quarter and $39bn year to date, and invested $8bn during the quarter, with deployment most active in asset-based finance. KKR attributed the quarter's new capital mainly to inflows at its insurer, Global Atlantic, as well as activity in private credit and strategic investments.
KKR's co-chief executives, Joseph Bae and Scott Nuttall, said in a joint statement: "We continue to monetise investments and return capital to our clients at record levels." They added: "In 2026, we expect to return more than $40bn to our clients, exceeding our previous annual record by more than 50 per cent."
Realised carried interest fell year on year in the third quarter across private equity, real assets and credit. Firm-wide realised performance income, the share of profits KKR books when its funds sell assets, declined to $602.3m in the quarter from $930.7m a year earlier. Over the first nine months of the year, however, it rose to $2.21bn, up from $1.7bn in the same period of 2025.
KKR reported fee-related earnings of $1.3bn for the quarter, up 27 per cent year on year, while fee-paying AUM rose 11 per cent.
Within the credit and liquid strategies arm, AUM rose 2 per cent quarter on quarter and 7 per cent year on year to $337bn. The division raised $14bn of new organic capital in the quarter and $39bn year to date, and invested $8bn during the quarter, with deployment most active in asset-based finance. KKR attributed the quarter's new capital mainly to inflows at its insurer, Global Atlantic, as well as activity in private credit and strategic investments.
KKR's co-chief executives, Joseph Bae and Scott Nuttall, said in a joint statement: "We continue to monetise investments and return capital to our clients at record levels." They added: "In 2026, we expect to return more than $40bn to our clients, exceeding our previous annual record by more than 50 per cent."
Realised carried interest fell year on year in the third quarter across private equity, real assets and credit. Firm-wide realised performance income, the share of profits KKR books when its funds sell assets, declined to $602.3m in the quarter from $930.7m a year earlier. Over the first nine months of the year, however, it rose to $2.21bn, up from $1.7bn in the same period of 2025.
KKR reported fee-related earnings of $1.3bn for the quarter, up 27 per cent year on year, while fee-paying AUM rose 11 per cent.
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