Private Credit’s Sketchy Marks Get Warning Shot From Top DOJ Cop

Wall Street’s top prosecutor has a warning for private-market players getting creative with their numbers.

Stark divergences in how competing firms value private assets in their portfolios are drawing increasing attention from market participants, academics — and, now, the Department of Justice, according to Jay Clayton, the head of its Manhattan outpost.

Jay Clayton

Photographer: Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg

“There are definitely some areas of concern for me in private markets,” Clayton said in an interview. “People should know that the financial regulators and the department are looking at those.”

Private equity firms have faced increasing questions over the value of their portfolio companies as ...