# Ares Senior Direct Lending
Ares Senior Direct Lending is a series of senior direct lending fund partnerships within Ares Management Corporation's U.S. direct lending platform, not a standalone private equity firm. The complex comprises Delaware and [Cayman Islands](https://www.edgepedia.org/cayman-islands) feeder partnerships (vehicle pooling investor money into a master fund) managed by SDL Management entities and a parallel line of "Access Fund" vehicles sold through Merrill Lynch. The strategy sits inside [Ares Management](https://www.edgepedia.org/ares-management)'s Credit Group, whose parent platform reported approximately $428 billion of assets under management as of March 31, 2024, rising to over $484 billion by December 31, 2024.[1](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240730849667/en/Ares-Management-Closes-%2434-Billion-for-U.S.-Senior-Direct-Lending-Strategy) • [2](https://www.morningstar.com/news/accesswire/979101msn/ares-management-announces-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2024-us-direct-lending-origination-activity)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Structure | Delaware and Cayman feeder partnerships managed by SDL Management, Ltd (Grand Cayman), within Ares Management's U.S. direct lending platform[3](https://aum13f.com/fund/ares-senior-direct-lending-fund-delaware-lp) |
| First filings | 2018: Delaware fund filed Form D dated July 9, 2018 and Access Fund I filed Form D effective November 20, 2018[3](https://aum13f.com/fund/ares-senior-direct-lending-fund-delaware-lp) • [4](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1749933/0001749933-18-000001.txt) |
| Feeder-level Form D total | Approximately $923 million sold across the three feeder filings documented in the record, 2018–2024[3](https://aum13f.com/fund/ares-senior-direct-lending-fund-delaware-lp) • [4](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1749933/0001749933-18-000001.txt) • [5](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2015308/0002015308-24-000001.txt) |
| Flagship fund | SDL III closed July 2024 with ~$15.3 billion of equity commitments and an expected ~$33.6 billion total capital base[1](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240730849667/en/Ares-Management-Closes-%2434-Billion-for-U.S.-Senior-Direct-Lending-Strategy) |
| Predecessor | SDL II (2021) had $14.9 billion in total debt and equity commitments[1](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240730849667/en/Ares-Management-Closes-%2434-Billion-for-U.S.-Senior-Direct-Lending-Strategy) |
| Key people | Mitch Goldstein (Co-Head, Ares Credit Group), Mark Affolter (Co-Head, U.S. Direct Lending), plus Form D executive officers including Michael Arougheti, Kipp deVeer, Mike Weiner, Kort Schnabel, and Jim Miller[1](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240730849667/en/Ares-Management-Closes-%2434-Billion-for-U.S.-Senior-Direct-Lending-Strategy) • [3](https://aum13f.com/fund/ares-senior-direct-lending-fund-delaware-lp) |
| Status as last recorded | Record U.S. direct lending origination activity through December 31, 2024, per the company's February 2025 release; Access Fund III, formed in 2023, filed its Form D in March 2024[2](https://www.morningstar.com/news/accesswire/979101msn/ares-management-announces-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2024-us-direct-lending-origination-activity) • [5](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2015308/0002015308-24-000001.txt) |
## Strategy and lending approach
The strategy provides financing to middle-market corporate borrowers across a range of industries, as well as project finance, vendor finance, and commercial finance, including asset-based and cash flow loans to small and middle-market companies, according to Ares' own description of its U.S. Direct Lending business.[6](https://ssl.aresacre.com/our-business/credit/u.s.direct-lending) Ares describes itself in this strategy as a long-term, value-oriented direct lender, targeting companies with a history of stable cash flows, demonstrated competitive advantages, and experienced management teams, and seeking board representation or access as appropriate.[6](https://ssl.aresacre.com/our-business/credit/u.s.direct-lending)
The flagship fund gives a sense of borrower scale. At its July 2024 closing, SDL III had already committed $9.0 billion of capital to over 165 companies, targeting companies with $10 million to over $150 million of EBITDA where Ares funds act primarily as the lead provider of capital, according to the company's announcement.[1](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240730849667/en/Ares-Management-Closes-%2434-Billion-for-U.S.-Senior-Direct-Lending-Strategy) Fourth-quarter 2024 transactions reported by Ares included senior secured credit facilities supporting Novo Holdings' acquisition of Catalent and Permira's acquisition of [Squarespace](https://www.edgepedia.org/squarespace), with Ares acting as administrative agent, joint lead arranger, and joint bookrunner.[2](https://www.morningstar.com/news/accesswire/979101msn/ares-management-announces-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2024-us-direct-lending-origination-activity)
## The funds, by the numbers
The fund complex is best understood in two layers. The Form D filings that anchor this record capture the feeder partnerships and Access Funds, which together reported approximately $923 million sold across the three filings documented in the record; the underlying institutional strategy is far larger, measured in the tens of billions.
At the feeder level, the filings documented in the record are:
- **Ares Senior Direct Lending Fund (Delaware), L.P.**, a Delaware limited partnership, reported $620.2 million sold in its Form D offering dated July 9, 2018, amended January 3, 2019 under exemptions 506(b) and 3(c)(7).[3](https://aum13f.com/fund/ares-senior-direct-lending-fund-delaware-lp)
- **Ares Senior Direct Lending Access Fund, L.P.**, a Delaware limited partnership formed in 2018 and classified as a pooled private equity fund, reported $266,739,000 sold with $6,750,000 yet to be raised, across 774 investors, with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith as the sole placement agent; its Form D was effective November 20, 2018.[4](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1749933/0001749933-18-000001.txt)
- **Ares Senior Direct Lending Access Fund III, L.P.**, formed in 2023, filed its Form D on March 18, 2024, reporting $35,775,000 sold of a $50,000,000 offering to 82 investors, again using Merrill Lynch as placement agent.[5](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2015308/0002015308-24-000001.txt)
At the strategy level, SDL II, the 2021 predecessor fund, had $14.9 billion in total debt and equity commitments. SDL III closed in July 2024 with approximately $15.3 billion of equity commitments, oversubscribed against an initial target of $10.0 billion, and a total capital base expected to be approximately $33.6 billion including equity commitments in related vehicles and anticipated leverage; approximately $6.4 billion of SDL III commitments were raised in the second quarter of 2024 alone, according to Ares' announcement.[1](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240730849667/en/Ares-Management-Closes-%2434-Billion-for-U.S.-Senior-Direct-Lending-Strategy) Reuters reported the closing as a capital base of $34 billion, the largest in the investment manager's history, with total equity commitments a little over $15 billion against a $10 billion target, double the size of its predecessor.[7](https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/ares-management-closes-its-latest-direct-lending-fund-record-34-bln-2024-07-31/)
## People
The Delaware fund's Form D record lists SDL Management Ltd as director, with executive officers including [Michael Arougheti](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-arougheti), Mitchell Goldstein, Mark Affolter, Kipp deVeer, Mike Weiner, Kort Schnabel, David Schwartz, Michael Smith, and Jim Miller; the fund is administered c/o SDL Management, Ltd, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands KY1-1104.[3](https://aum13f.com/fund/ares-senior-direct-lending-fund-delaware-lp) Ares' July 2024 announcement identifies Mitch Goldstein as Partner and Co-Head of the Ares Credit Group and Mark Affolter as Partner and Co-Head of U.S. Direct Lending.[1](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240730849667/en/Ares-Management-Closes-%2434-Billion-for-U.S.-Senior-Direct-Lending-Strategy) The specific roles of Jim Miller, Mike Weiner, and Kort Schnabel beyond their listing as Form D executive officers are not documented in the sources retrieved for this article.
## Recent developments
Three developments mark the period after 2023. First, Access Fund III, formed in 2023, filed its Form D in March 2024 with an initial $35.8 million sold, continuing the wealth-channel line begun in 2018.[5](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2015308/0002015308-24-000001.txt) Second, the institutional flagship SDL III closed at a record size in July 2024, the largest fund in Ares' history per Reuters.[7](https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/ares-management-closes-its-latest-direct-lending-fund-record-34-bln-2024-07-31/) Third, origination activity across the broader platform reached new levels: Ares' Credit Group funds closed approximately $13.8 billion in U.S. direct lending commitments across 90 transactions in the fourth quarter of 2024, and a record approximately $48.2 billion across 341 transactions in the 12 months ended December 31, 2024, per the company's release, while Ares Management's global platform grew from approximately $428 billion of assets under management at March 31, 2024 to over $484 billion at December 31, 2024.[2](https://www.morningstar.com/news/accesswire/979101msn/ares-management-announces-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2024-us-direct-lending-origination-activity) • [1](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240730849667/en/Ares-Management-Closes-%2434-Billion-for-U.S.-Senior-Direct-Lending-Strategy)
## References
1. Ares Management Closes $34 Billion for U.S. Senior Direct Lending Strategy (Business Wire, July 30, 2024) — https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240730849667/en/Ares-Management-Closes-%2434-Billion-for-U.S.-Senior-Direct-Lending-Strategy
2. Ares Management Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2024 U.S. Direct Lending Origination Activity (Accesswire via Morningstar, Feb 5, 2025) — https://www.morningstar.com/news/accesswire/979101msn/ares-management-announces-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2024-us-direct-lending-origination-activity
3. Ares Senior Direct Lending Fund Delaware LP — Form D Offering Data (aum13f, EDGAR-derived) — https://aum13f.com/fund/ares-senior-direct-lending-fund-delaware-lp
4. SEC Form D — Ares Senior Direct Lending Access Fund, L.P. (filed 2018-11-20) — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1749933/0001749933-18-000001.txt
5. SEC Form D — Ares Senior Direct Lending Access Fund III, L.P. (filed 2024-03-18) — https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2015308/0002015308-24-000001.txt
6. U.S. Direct Lending | Ares Management (company website) — https://ssl.aresacre.com/our-business/credit/u.s.direct-lending
7. Ares Management closes its latest direct lending fund at record $34 bln (Reuters, July 31, 2024) — https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/ares-management-closes-its-latest-direct-lending-fund-record-34-bln-2024-07-31/
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Economics and business › Finance › Venture capital and private equity › Private equity and buyout firms of the Americas › Private credit and lending funds › Direct lending funds*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license