Santander raises €150M for first close of asset-backed SME lending fund
What's the deal? Santander Alternative InvestmentsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has announced the first close of Asset Backed Corporate Lending Fund II (ABCL II) with more than €150 million in commitments. It is the firm's second fund focused on asset-backed corporate financing for European small and medium-sized enterprises.
Who's backing it? The capital came from a group of institutional investors, including Grupo SantanderDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, the European Investment Fund, and other institutions. Santander Alternative Investments is in talks with further European institutional investors currently running due diligence.
What's the endgame? ABCL II targets a total of €500 million, with a final close planned for June 2027. Each deal combines the corporate recourse of the financed company with guarantees over tangible assets, aiming to give investors a return adjusted for risk.
Why now? The fund's managers have already identified a set of investment opportunities and expect to close their first deals in Spain, Italy, Germany, and France — markets deemed strategic for the strategy.
The signal: The first close extends Santander's broader push into alternative credit. Since creating a dedicated alternatives unit in 2023, the group has scaled secured private debt, including a trade finance fund that has raised €1 billion and deployed over €5.1 billion in short-term trade assets. ABCL II confirms continued investor appetite for secured private credit and Santander's strategy of turning its corporate origination into institutional-grade funds.
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