PRIVATE CREDIT GUIDE
How to Find the Right Private Credit Partner
Lender selection requires more than identifying firms that provide private credit. It requires matching the specific financing request with each lender's mandate, credit profile, hold size, structural capability, and current deployment appetite.
DIRECT ANSWER
Finding the right private credit lender is a matching problem.
Identifying an appropriate private credit lender requires matching the specific financing request — including company size, industry, credit profile, ownership structure, collateral, use of proceeds, proposed financing structure, and timing — with each lender's mandate, hold size, underwriting requirements, and current deployment appetite.
Lenders that appear similar from the outside can reach different conclusions on the same credit based on portfolio concentration, fund strategy, risk tolerance, and current pipeline. A broad, undirected approach to lender outreach is unlikely to produce the most relevant options and can create process problems that are difficult to reverse.
A structured process — beginning with preparation and ending with a targeted, informed engagement — is more likely to surface relevant lenders, produce comparable proposals, and support a well-informed decision.
LENDER MANDATES
Why lenders that appear similar can reach different conclusions
Private credit is not a uniform market. Lenders differ by strategy, fund structure, portfolio composition, and deployment timeline in ways that are not always visible from their published materials.
Even when two lenders share a broad mandate — such as lower-middle-market direct lending — their actual criteria for any given transaction can diverge significantly based on factors including fund size, portfolio concentration in a particular sector, hold-size constraints, current deployment pace, underwriting standards, and risk appetite for specific credit profiles. Confirming current, specific interest before initiating outreach reduces wasted time and unnecessary disclosure.
PREPARATION
Information needed before lender outreach
Lenders evaluate a company from the information provided. Organized, accurate, and complete information — assembled before outreach begins — allows lenders to assess the credit efficiently and reduces the risk of a process stalling on avoidable gaps.
Company and ownership profile
Business description, ownership structure, management team, and corporate history.
Financing amount
The amount being requested and the basis for that figure.
Use of proceeds
A specific description of how the capital will be deployed.
Revenue, EBITDA, and cash flow
Historical financial performance with notes on adjustments, non-recurring items, and trends.
Existing debt and leverage
Current debt obligations, lender names, outstanding balances, terms, and covenants.
Collateral
Available collateral — real estate, equipment, receivables, inventory — and current encumbrances.
Industry and geography
The sector in which the company operates and the markets it serves.
Historical performance
Three or more years of financial statements, ideally reviewed or audited.
Financial projections
Forward-looking financial model with assumptions, key drivers, and sensitivity context.
Timing
Required funding date, process constraints, and any external deadlines.
Principal credit considerations
Known material risks, contingent liabilities, prior credit events, or issues that a lender is likely to evaluate.
EVALUATION FRAMEWORK
Lender-selection criteria
The following criteria should be evaluated for each lender considered, not only at initial screening but also when current conditions, fund stage, and specific credit appetite are confirmed.
| Criterion | What to evaluate |
|---|---|
| Check size and hold size | Minimum and maximum loan size a lender will commit to; whether they hold the full amount or syndicate. |
| Industry mandate | Sectors a lender actively finances versus sectors excluded from their fund strategy or credit policy. |
| EBITDA and revenue profile | Minimum EBITDA or revenue thresholds required for underwriting; some lenders require positive EBITDA, others do not. |
| Leverage tolerance | Maximum total debt to EBITDA (or equivalent coverage metric) a lender will approve at underwriting. |
| Collateral | Whether and what collateral is required — real estate, equipment, receivables, intellectual property, or enterprise value. |
| Ownership preference | Whether a lender focuses on founder-owned or family-owned companies, sponsor-backed companies, or both. |
| Use of proceeds | Permitted uses — growth capital, acquisition, refinancing, recapitalization, working capital — versus excluded or disfavored uses. |
| Financing structure | Term loans, revolving credit, unitranche, mezzanine, preferred equity, asset-based — not all lenders offer every structure. |
| Geographic coverage | Jurisdictions where a lender is active and where they have underwriting experience and legal infrastructure. |
| Execution timing | A lender's current pipeline volume, fund deployment stage, and realistic closing timeline given diligence requirements. |
| Covenant and reporting expectations | Financial maintenance covenants, reporting frequency, and monitoring requirements over the life of the loan. |
| Amendment and relationship considerations | Historical approach to amendments, waivers, and borrower communication when circumstances change. |
PROCESS
A disciplined lender-selection process
A structured, sequential approach — beginning well before lender contact — produces better results than beginning with outreach and working backward. Each stage builds on the one before.
Assess financing readiness
Review the completeness, accuracy, and quality of financial information before initiating any lender contact. Incomplete or inconsistent information creates friction and slows review.
Evaluate structural alternatives
Examine how different financing structures — term loan, revolving credit, asset-based, unitranche, mezzanine — align with company cash flow, collateral, and objectives.
Prepare the financing case
Organize the company overview, financial history, projections, ownership context, use of proceeds, and credit considerations into a coherent and accurate presentation.
Develop a focused lender universe
Identify lenders whose mandate, hold size, industry focus, credit tolerance, and structural capability align with the specific financing request.
Confirm current appetite
Published mandates often lag actual lender behavior. Verify current deployment activity, portfolio concentration, and interest before initiating formal outreach.
Coordinate lender discussions
Manage the outreach process deliberately — controlling information flow, scheduling management conversations, and responding to initial lender questions accurately.
Compare proposals beyond headline pricing
Evaluate the full economic and structural package — interest rate, fees, amortization, covenants, reporting, prepayment terms — not rate alone.
Complete underwriting and documentation
Organize information for diligence, respond to third-party requests, track open items, and maintain process momentum through documentation and funding.
For more detail on how this process is structured in practice, see Our Process and Financing Readiness Review.
MARKET ACCESS
Ways companies access the private credit market
Companies use several channels to identify and engage private credit lenders. Each channel has a different profile, scope, and engagement structure.
Commercial finance advisory boutiques
Firms that specialize in advising companies on private credit and structured finance. They typically assist with preparation, lender identification, and process coordination on a fee basis.
Investment banks and debt-capital-markets teams
Larger financial institutions with debt advisory or placement functions. Approach and engagement structure vary by firm, transaction profile, and company relationship.
Independent debt advisors
Individual practitioners or smaller advisory practices that assist companies through the financing process. Scope and capabilities vary significantly by advisor.
Lender databases and marketplaces
Platforms that aggregate lender information or connect companies with potential lenders. Useful for preliminary research but do not replace verification of current mandate and appetite.
Professional referral networks
Introductions through accountants, lawyers, financial advisors, or industry contacts. Can accelerate initial access but require the same preparation and lender-fit evaluation as other channels.
COMMON MISTAKES
Mistakes that complicate the lender-selection process
Several patterns consistently create avoidable friction in the financing process. Identifying them in advance reduces the likelihood of stalled diligence, lender withdrawal, or an unfavorable outcome.
Contacting lenders before the financing case is ready
Approaching lenders without organized financials, a clear use of proceeds, and a coherent credit narrative creates a difficult first impression that is hard to correct.
Relying only on published mandates
Lender mandates on websites and databases often lag actual deployment preferences. Current appetite must be verified through direct contact or market knowledge.
Approaching too many poorly matched lenders
Broad outreach to lenders outside the financing profile wastes time, risks early disclosure, and can signal a disorganized process.
Selecting only on headline interest rate
Rate is one component of the total financing package. Fees, amortization, covenants, flexibility, and lender behavior over time all affect the cost and suitability of the facility.
Underestimating diligence requirements
Private credit lenders conduct thorough underwriting. Companies that cannot respond to document requests promptly risk delays or lender withdrawal.
Sharing confidential information too broadly
Distributing sensitive financial or operational information before establishing appropriate agreements or confirming genuine lender interest creates unnecessary risk.
Failing to evaluate future flexibility and amendment behavior
The relationship with a lender extends beyond closing. How a lender handles amendments, waivers, and covenant resets is material information that should inform lender selection.
ADVISORY SUPPORT
When an advisor may add value
Many companies approach the private credit market without a dedicated internal debt-capital-markets function. An external advisor may contribute most in situations where the company lacks current lender-market knowledge, the credit is complex, or the timeline is compressed.
Lender mandates are not always transparent. Published guidelines often lag actual deployment behavior, and relationships with specific lenders at specific fund stages are not consistently available to borrowers directly. An advisor with current market knowledge can reduce the time required to identify genuinely relevant lenders.
The value of advisory support also depends on whether the company is pursuing a non-standard or complex structure, has credit considerations that require careful positioning, or needs to coordinate a process across multiple lenders without diverting management time from operations.
Situations where advisory support is commonly sought:
No internal debt-capital-markets function
Complex or non-standard financing structure
Credit profile that requires careful positioning
Lender mandates that are difficult to interpret without current market knowledge
Compressed timeline with limited margin for process inefficiency
Need to coordinate a multi-lender process without diverting management from operations
First-time or infrequent access to the private credit market
JANNU CAPITAL
Jannu Capital's role in the financing process
Jannu Capital helps lower- and middle-market companies assess financing readiness, evaluate structural alternatives, prepare for lender review, identify relevant capital providers, and coordinate a targeted process from initial assessment through documentation and funding.
Assignments are handled directly by the founder throughout the engagement, without delegation to junior staff.
Jannu Capital does not make loans, commit capital, approve credit, handle funds, or guarantee financing.
SERVICES PROVIDED
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Common questions about private credit lender selection
Start With a Structured Financing Review
Provide a preliminary overview of your company and financing objective. Jannu Capital will assess whether the opportunity appears suitable for an initial discussion and identify the information required for the next stage.