EnTrust Raises $2.1 Bln for Its Blue Ocean Funds

Alternative asset management firm EnTrust Global said Wednesday that it has completed fundraising for its EnTrust Global Blue Ocean Funds for investment in the global maritime industry. The Funds closed at $2.1 billion after raising $925 million since April of 2020.

Part of EnTrust Global’s private debt and real asset division, the Blue Ocean Funds engage in direct lending and similar financing opportunities to vessel owners and operators and other maritime businesses.

“We continue to see strong demand for our debt capital solutions from clients around the world, and we have continued to deploy capital efficiently to our select customer base while also successfully maintaining the quality of our existing portfolio throughout a very tough time period as a consequence of COVID-19,” said Svein Engh, Senior Managing Director and Portfolio Manager of the Blue Ocean Funds.

“To have raised $2.1 billion in a vertical as specific as the maritime industry speaks to our team’s expertise and demonstrated success since the inception of the Blue Ocean Funds,” said Gregg S. Hymowitz, Chairman and CEO of EnTrust Global. “We are grateful for the strong support from our investors during a volatile market as the economy has navigated the pandemic these last six months. As evidenced by the growth of our platform, and the addition of Julian Proctor earlier this year to lead a new, environmentally-focused shipping initiative, we continue to believe there are compelling opportunities in the maritime industry and in real assets in general.”

Julian Proctor, who with Engh heads EnTrust’s new initiative focusing on environmentally-advanced vessels, added, “Vessel owners and their customers and end-users are increasingly focused on the impact of the shipping industry on the environment, and especially on carbon emissions, but there is inadequate financing for the industry to move to cleaner, more advanced technology. I am excited to lead EnTrust’s initiative to create financing solutions for vessel owners that will help transition the shipping industry to a more sustainable future.”