BY Richard Summerfield
Software investment firm Thoma Bravo has announced the closure of its Credit Fund III, the firm’s largest credit fund to date, on $3.6bn, signalling a continuation of the strong private debt fundraising cycle that began in H2 2024.
The firm announced it had completed its capital raising efforts for Thoma Bravo Credit Fund III on Tuesday, marking its largest pool of credit capital to date. The fund, which exceeded its predecessor by $300m, will focus on investing in senior secured debt of enterprise software companies. The fund has already invested over $1bn across 20 investments.
“We appreciate our investors’ continued recognition and strong support of Thoma Bravo’s differentiated platform and strategy in credit, which is a testament to its growth and success,” said Orlando Bravo, a founder and managing partner at Thoma Bravo. “As an early adopter of private credit, Thoma Bravo has long recognized the crucial role private credit plays in enterprise software.”
“We are very proud of the strong backing we have received from our investors for our strategy and team, at a time of tremendous opportunity in software direct lending,” said Oliver Thym, a partner at Thoma Bravo who leads the Thoma Bravo Credit platform. “We are excited to have broadened our platform to include unlevered capital and funds-of-one/separately managed accounts. We look forward to capitalizing on the growing market demand for our flexible and differentiated credit solutions and driving further success for our partners and investors in 2025.”
The Thoma Bravo Credit platform focuses on the senior secured debt of established, mission-critical enterprise software companies. The platform targets sponsor-backed companies and leverages Thoma Bravo’s extensive sector experience in enterprise software, as well as its broad and differentiated sourcing channels. Since its inception in 2017, the platform has invested over $8bn across approximately 100 transactions.
Thoma Bravo is one of the largest software-focused investors in the world, with over $166bn in assets under management as of 30 September 2024 and has invested in more than 500 companies over the last 20 years, representing $265bn in enterprise value. Through its private equity, growth equity and credit strategies, the firm invests in growth-oriented, innovative companies operating in the software and technology sectors.
The closure of Credit Fund III is indicative of the current strength in the fundraising cycle that began in H2 2024. Though H1 2024 saw a slump in fundraising, the second half of the year saw a strong recovery. Through Q3 2024, private debt funds raised a total of $169.2bn, which, according to Pitchbook, put 2024’s fundraising efforts on track to slightly exceed 2023’s total of $226bn. Significant fund closings include Blackstone’s senior direct lending fund that closed on $22bn in October 2024 and Ares’ third direct lending vehicle that closed at $33.6bn in July 2024.