The top business development companies saw their portfolios contract significantly in the first quarter of 2026, driven by a steep decline in new investment activity and by markdowns that reduced the fair value of existing assets.
Overall, the top 12 publicly traded BDCs tracked by LCD reported gross fundings of roughly $5.7 billion in Q1, down from $9.1 billion in Q4 2025 and from $8.4 billion in Q1 2025
That $5.7 billion total represents the lowest gross fundings since LCD began tracking this data two years ago. Several top BDCs stand out. Golub Capital BDC saw gross fundings shrink 96% year-over-year to just $15 million.
CEO David Golub told investors on May 5 that the company had prioritized share buybacks over new investment commitments, and would continue to do so. FS KKR Capital Corp. and MidCap Financial Investment Corp. each saw their gross fundings sink by roughly 75% year-over-year; the two BDCs also committed to aggressively buy back their own shares below NAV rather than seek new debt investments. Only one BDC increased its gross funding volume year-over-year: Ares Capital Corp. reported roughly $3.4 billion in new deployments in Q1, down from $4.8 billion in the prior quarter but still above the $2.8 billion deployed in Q1 2025.