By Matt Wirz
Boaz Weinstein's investment firm Saba Capital and Cox Capital are preparing a tender offer for stakes in three semiliquid private-credit funds operated by Blue Owl Capital.
The shot across Blue Owl's bow pits Weinstein -- one of Wall Street's better known hedge-fund managers who helped take down JPMorgan's " London Whale" -- against two rising stars in the booming private-credit market, Blue Owl co-Chief Executive Officers Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz.
Saba and Cox announced Friday plans for a buyout offer to shareholders at prices between 65% and 80% of net asset value, an apparent effort to capitalize on rising angst about funds Blue Owl and other private fund managers marketed to individual investors.
Weinstein has been on a crusade against managers of closed-end mutual funds, including BlackRock which, like the Blue Owl funds, limit investors' ability to take their money out. He has argued that such funds age poorly, leaving shareholders stuck with hard-to-trade assets, and that his firm can do a better job managing the stranded portfolios.
In a post on X, Weinstein said rising redemptions and limited liquidity mean private-credit funds and business-development companies "are facing one of their toughest periods yet -- leaving many investors with limited options."
Blue Owl announced this week it had sold $1.4 billion of private corporate loans held in three of its funds. The sale, which involved high-quality loans sold for top dollar, will in-part pay for a distribution to shareholders in the oldest fund allowing them to get 30% of their money. But that leaves the fund, which Blue Owl is winding down, holding a larger proportion of less attractive loans, analysts said.
Shares of Blue Owl dropped Thursday and Friday, losing 12% this week.
Cox specializes in secondary transactions for wealthy individuals, purchasing their stakes in private funds at a discount. Saba has dealt with redemptions itself in the past, at one point shrinking to $3.3 billion in assets under management, but managed about $6 billion as of August.
Write to Matt Wirz at matthieu.wirz@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 20, 2026 16:43 ET (21:43 GMT)
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