Prospect Capital, a little-known New York firm that helped pioneer the private credit boom, has come up with an unusual technique to keep dividends flowing out of an $8 billion fund it runs. For years now, it’s sold financial instruments to retail investors and handed over the proceeds to shareholders.
The sales helped the fund deliver hefty payouts even as the performance of its investments — mostly corporate loans to mid-size companies and real estate — deteriorated markedly. But they’ve also long raised concerns among some analysts who say the strategy obfuscates returns and is unsustainable.
Now, two years after the ...
