Blackstone cuts value of private credit fund in first quarter

By Matt Tracy

May 7 (Reuters) - Asset manager Blackstone cut the value of its private credit fund Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (BXSL) in the first quarter, it said Thursday.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund's (BXSL) net asset value (NAV) per share dropped 2.4% to $26.26 in the first quarter at fair value, according to its earnings disclosure.

Investors have taken a closer look at the portfolios of private credit funds known as business development companies, as advances in artificial intelligence threaten the business models of companies in the software sector.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (BXSL) had the majority of its investments in software, about 20% of its portfolio in software names at fair value, at the end of March, according to its quarterly report.

The fund also declared a 77 cent dividend. It declared a dividend of 80 cents in the fourth quarter.

It saw $450 million in repayments within its portfolio in the first quarter, while new investments totaled almost $325 million, it said. (Reporting by Matt Tracy in Washington; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)