1 00:00:02,360 --> 00:00:06,680 Speaker 1: Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news. 2 00:00:06,840 --> 00:00:10,320 Speaker 2: Blue Al Capital co CEO Mark Lipschaltz joins us alongside 3 00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:13,480 Speaker 2: our very own Chanellegue Basic Mark. I look at the 4 00:00:13,480 --> 00:00:15,640 Speaker 2: shares and it's down today. As I mentioned, they're also 5 00:00:15,680 --> 00:00:18,119 Speaker 2: down about twenty two percent so far this year. Investors 6 00:00:18,160 --> 00:00:21,440 Speaker 2: are clearly nervous with all the uncertainty over the economy, 7 00:00:21,440 --> 00:00:25,200 Speaker 2: over tariffs, over policy, if there's a recession. The concern 8 00:00:25,239 --> 00:00:28,840 Speaker 2: here is about the exposure that private credit funds have. 9 00:00:29,240 --> 00:00:31,400 Speaker 2: How do you prepare investors for the kind of markdown 10 00:00:31,440 --> 00:00:33,879 Speaker 2: set you may need to take if we do get 11 00:00:33,880 --> 00:00:34,720 Speaker 2: that kind of downturn. 12 00:00:35,479 --> 00:00:38,400 Speaker 3: Great to be here today, and actually great to be 13 00:00:38,440 --> 00:00:41,879 Speaker 3: here during a time of uncertainty, candidly, because our business 14 00:00:41,880 --> 00:00:46,200 Speaker 3: at Blue Owl is built exactly for this environment. Look, 15 00:00:46,200 --> 00:00:48,720 Speaker 3: I won't pretend to understand how stocks trade on a 16 00:00:48,800 --> 00:00:52,320 Speaker 3: day to day basis, month to month basis. I'm thankful 17 00:00:52,320 --> 00:00:54,040 Speaker 3: in the mornings that I work in the private market 18 00:00:54,080 --> 00:00:56,200 Speaker 3: where I can focus on making the right long term 19 00:00:56,480 --> 00:00:59,920 Speaker 3: decisions for both BLUA as a company and for our investor. 20 00:01:01,360 --> 00:01:03,560 Speaker 3: Things are going really well. And this is the thing 21 00:01:03,560 --> 00:01:08,200 Speaker 3: about uncertainty. Our business business, all our lines, all our products, 22 00:01:08,319 --> 00:01:13,240 Speaker 3: we're built around downside protection, predictability and stability, private credit, 23 00:01:13,720 --> 00:01:17,120 Speaker 3: real assets with long term leases, with investment grade credit 24 00:01:17,120 --> 00:01:18,080 Speaker 3: worthy counterparties. 25 00:01:18,520 --> 00:01:21,320 Speaker 1: These are businesses that were built for this environment. 26 00:01:21,360 --> 00:01:25,480 Speaker 3: This is actually where we outperform even more. Now there's 27 00:01:25,480 --> 00:01:27,280 Speaker 3: a baby in a bath water for now and on fact, 28 00:01:27,280 --> 00:01:29,000 Speaker 3: if you look at the old stocks. 29 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:31,600 Speaker 1: They've traded literally as they're tethered together. 30 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:33,720 Speaker 3: If you watch what's happened for the year to date, 31 00:01:33,920 --> 00:01:36,720 Speaker 3: it's just this whole group movement. And I think, well, 32 00:01:36,760 --> 00:01:39,240 Speaker 3: understand that shorthand behavior in the marketplace. 33 00:01:39,480 --> 00:01:41,560 Speaker 1: But actually this is exactly. 34 00:01:41,080 --> 00:01:44,000 Speaker 3: Where the Blue Hole model, both our investment products, but 35 00:01:44,080 --> 00:01:47,120 Speaker 3: probably even more importantly, our stock is totally different. We 36 00:01:47,160 --> 00:01:49,560 Speaker 3: don't have any carry we have fee income, we have 37 00:01:49,640 --> 00:01:52,960 Speaker 3: permanent capital, so we actually have a business that is 38 00:01:52,960 --> 00:01:55,360 Speaker 3: continuing to thrive. You have people coming on here right 39 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:57,840 Speaker 3: every day talking about, hey, they need to withdraw their 40 00:01:57,880 --> 00:01:58,600 Speaker 3: guidance for the year. 41 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:01,440 Speaker 1: We're coming on here saying buiness is really good. Carry on. 42 00:02:01,760 --> 00:02:04,080 Speaker 4: Wait, the phenomenon is so strange, right because you have 43 00:02:04,200 --> 00:02:07,520 Speaker 4: the Nasdaq one hundred only down about five percent this year, but. 44 00:02:07,440 --> 00:02:09,639 Speaker 1: Blue Owl areas Apollo all. 45 00:02:09,440 --> 00:02:12,280 Speaker 4: Down much more than that what is it that the 46 00:02:12,320 --> 00:02:15,240 Speaker 4: market is seeing in the big alternative asset managers that 47 00:02:15,280 --> 00:02:17,320 Speaker 4: they're not even seeing in the big tech stocks. 48 00:02:17,800 --> 00:02:20,040 Speaker 3: Yeah, and I fear the answer might be, what is 49 00:02:20,080 --> 00:02:23,120 Speaker 3: it the market's not seeing. I think they're not understanding 50 00:02:23,560 --> 00:02:27,120 Speaker 3: the durability and the difference that Blue All, for example, 51 00:02:27,160 --> 00:02:29,720 Speaker 3: is now two hundred and seventy five billion dollars Roughly. 52 00:02:30,120 --> 00:02:34,280 Speaker 3: We're a diversified business, but again still our business model 53 00:02:34,720 --> 00:02:39,120 Speaker 3: is actually higher growth and more stable, more predictable than 54 00:02:39,160 --> 00:02:40,359 Speaker 3: some of the best tech companies. 55 00:02:40,680 --> 00:02:42,560 Speaker 1: And so I'm not sure. I think there. 56 00:02:42,440 --> 00:02:45,760 Speaker 3: Probably is a reality that we're still a small segment 57 00:02:45,840 --> 00:02:48,760 Speaker 3: of the world and there's still a tendency in times 58 00:02:48,760 --> 00:02:52,400 Speaker 3: of fear to sort of like act first and refine later. 59 00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:54,560 Speaker 3: But those who take the time to focus on the 60 00:02:54,560 --> 00:02:58,160 Speaker 3: Blue All stock are going to recognize great dividend yield, 61 00:02:58,440 --> 00:03:02,160 Speaker 3: a very predictable, high growth business. Again, feed driven, it's 62 00:03:02,160 --> 00:03:04,280 Speaker 3: not about carry, it's not about transaction fees. 63 00:03:04,360 --> 00:03:05,080 Speaker 1: We're marching on. 64 00:03:05,720 --> 00:03:08,120 Speaker 2: So your second biggest business is real assets, and that 65 00:03:08,120 --> 00:03:11,600 Speaker 2: includes real estate as well as data centers. Meta says 66 00:03:11,680 --> 00:03:14,400 Speaker 2: constructing these data centers is costing more. That's what we 67 00:03:14,440 --> 00:03:17,079 Speaker 2: heard from them. From yesterday's earnings. What are you seeing? 68 00:03:17,520 --> 00:03:19,960 Speaker 3: Yeah, so the data center business is one of our 69 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:23,680 Speaker 3: best business's highest growth businesses. In point of fact, we 70 00:03:23,800 --> 00:03:27,240 Speaker 3: just closed our third data center fund at the seven 71 00:03:27,280 --> 00:03:30,639 Speaker 3: billion dollar hardcap, nearly double our prior fund. If we 72 00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:33,440 Speaker 3: think about that in this environment, we just doubled that 73 00:03:33,480 --> 00:03:34,440 Speaker 3: fund size nearly. 74 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:35,680 Speaker 1: It's because it works. 75 00:03:36,120 --> 00:03:39,440 Speaker 3: And in fact that fund is probably sixty percent already committed, 76 00:03:39,560 --> 00:03:41,720 Speaker 3: and the vast preponderance of that is to people like 77 00:03:41,840 --> 00:03:44,160 Speaker 3: Microsoft and Amazon. I mean, this is this is why 78 00:03:44,160 --> 00:03:48,320 Speaker 3: I say this is like a fantastic opportunity set for us. So, 79 00:03:48,840 --> 00:03:51,720 Speaker 3: you know, data centers absolutely when you have supply demand 80 00:03:51,720 --> 00:03:54,160 Speaker 3: and balances, and right now there is clearly a whole 81 00:03:54,240 --> 00:03:57,839 Speaker 3: lot more demand than there is available supply, particularly when 82 00:03:57,840 --> 00:04:00,400 Speaker 3: married to the technical expertise required. 83 00:04:00,400 --> 00:04:02,960 Speaker 1: To build that supply. So we're one of very few 84 00:04:02,960 --> 00:04:03,800 Speaker 1: people in the world. 85 00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:06,720 Speaker 3: We have a thousand people in our operations area to 86 00:04:06,840 --> 00:04:10,080 Speaker 3: design and then be able to operate the body that 87 00:04:10,160 --> 00:04:11,360 Speaker 3: surrounds that AI brain. 88 00:04:11,560 --> 00:04:14,000 Speaker 4: So not only are you seeing data center demand really 89 00:04:14,040 --> 00:04:17,880 Speaker 4: hold up from the big hyperscalers, you are also financing 90 00:04:18,200 --> 00:04:23,000 Speaker 4: Stargates first data center in Abilene. This is that big 91 00:04:23,080 --> 00:04:28,520 Speaker 4: fancy SoftBank OpenAI Oracle initiative to bring more activity back 92 00:04:28,520 --> 00:04:31,520 Speaker 4: to the US. Are you involved in financing any other 93 00:04:31,680 --> 00:04:34,640 Speaker 4: Stargate projects and what's the promise of the initiative. 94 00:04:34,960 --> 00:04:38,240 Speaker 3: Well, we're very excited about being in this initial partnership 95 00:04:38,279 --> 00:04:40,920 Speaker 3: with Stargate build in their premiere project. 96 00:04:40,960 --> 00:04:43,440 Speaker 1: In fact, our team was just down there. It's quite 97 00:04:43,440 --> 00:04:45,520 Speaker 1: a sight to see the scale of. 98 00:04:45,440 --> 00:04:48,880 Speaker 3: This enterprise and the partners The power of that partnership 99 00:04:49,000 --> 00:04:52,760 Speaker 3: is really exciting. So, look, we're happy to be right 100 00:04:52,760 --> 00:04:55,599 Speaker 3: at the ground floor, and I anticipate and hope will 101 00:04:55,640 --> 00:04:58,280 Speaker 3: be a very important partner to Stargate going forward. Look, 102 00:04:58,320 --> 00:05:00,760 Speaker 3: when you look at data centers, you know sort of 103 00:05:00,880 --> 00:05:03,039 Speaker 3: think of a spot. We tend to be there because 104 00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:06,240 Speaker 3: we have really one of the premier capabilities to both 105 00:05:06,279 --> 00:05:10,240 Speaker 3: provide capital in the form as designed, Stargate is more 106 00:05:10,240 --> 00:05:14,719 Speaker 3: of a traditional triple net real estate structure. When we 107 00:05:14,720 --> 00:05:18,000 Speaker 3: think about some of the Microsoft projects those are data 108 00:05:18,000 --> 00:05:19,800 Speaker 3: center they're a little bit different in terms of the 109 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:22,120 Speaker 3: exact gives and takes, but the end state is the same. 110 00:05:22,600 --> 00:05:25,719 Speaker 3: You end up with an extremely long term commitment from 111 00:05:25,760 --> 00:05:29,000 Speaker 3: some of the best credits in the world at really 112 00:05:29,040 --> 00:05:32,640 Speaker 3: attractive from our point of view, rates with built in escalators. 113 00:05:33,440 --> 00:05:35,960 Speaker 1: What fixed income security has a coupon that goes up 114 00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:37,279 Speaker 1: every year for decades? 115 00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:39,159 Speaker 4: I want to go somewhere else in the credit market 116 00:05:39,160 --> 00:05:40,800 Speaker 4: is now kind of back to the business you were 117 00:05:40,880 --> 00:05:43,760 Speaker 4: first really known for here because there are some really 118 00:05:43,839 --> 00:05:45,960 Speaker 4: interesting things happening in the market. Some would say some 119 00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:49,520 Speaker 4: funky things happening in the market. Well, for example, you 120 00:05:49,560 --> 00:05:52,200 Speaker 4: saw some of your rivals of Parlow in Carlisle by 121 00:05:52,640 --> 00:05:58,120 Speaker 4: the first SRT tied to private debt BDCs. And I 122 00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:00,880 Speaker 4: wanted to ask you in particular about this because now 123 00:06:00,920 --> 00:06:04,640 Speaker 4: you're looking at package loans that are being sold in 124 00:06:04,760 --> 00:06:09,920 Speaker 4: tranches off to private credit firms. Again, what's going on here? 125 00:06:09,960 --> 00:06:13,440 Speaker 4: I mean this does call back a little bit to 126 00:06:13,520 --> 00:06:16,000 Speaker 4: what we saw pre crisis from the banks, does it not? 127 00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:18,800 Speaker 4: In terms of CDO and CDO square. Do you think 128 00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:21,640 Speaker 4: that maybe too much is being packaged at this point? 129 00:06:22,640 --> 00:06:25,120 Speaker 3: So there, look is a funky world right now. So 130 00:06:25,120 --> 00:06:27,560 Speaker 3: I'm sure there are some funky things going on at 131 00:06:27,560 --> 00:06:28,080 Speaker 3: Blue Owl. 132 00:06:28,560 --> 00:06:31,080 Speaker 1: We stick to our knitting. That's our business has. 133 00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:34,920 Speaker 3: Been built around doing a few things really really well. 134 00:06:35,200 --> 00:06:37,599 Speaker 3: We're not off trying to turn an in liquid asset 135 00:06:37,640 --> 00:06:38,520 Speaker 3: into a liquid ASSEID. 136 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:39,320 Speaker 1: We've talked about that. 137 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:41,599 Speaker 3: We're not trying to go and find new ways to 138 00:06:41,640 --> 00:06:42,560 Speaker 3: buy a secondary product. 139 00:06:42,560 --> 00:06:45,440 Speaker 1: We have a massive origination engine. We go out and 140 00:06:45,480 --> 00:06:48,359 Speaker 1: we find great companies with great backers. 141 00:06:48,120 --> 00:06:50,320 Speaker 3: And we provide them long term solutions and we get 142 00:06:50,360 --> 00:06:52,400 Speaker 3: paid for that and we get a great credit agreement. 143 00:06:52,680 --> 00:06:55,000 Speaker 3: And that's what we do in credit and that's why 144 00:06:55,400 --> 00:06:59,040 Speaker 3: today we still are running since inception at a thirteen 145 00:06:59,120 --> 00:07:03,120 Speaker 3: basis point and realized loss rate. We focus on a 146 00:07:03,160 --> 00:07:04,840 Speaker 3: core set and by the way, our average company is 147 00:07:04,839 --> 00:07:07,480 Speaker 3: two hundred and fifty million dollars in even mark How. 148 00:07:07,360 --> 00:07:09,279 Speaker 4: Much are you stepping in now? There is clearly some 149 00:07:09,360 --> 00:07:12,360 Speaker 4: trouble under the surface. You are seeing companies based for structuring. 150 00:07:12,640 --> 00:07:14,920 Speaker 4: Is Blue Owl going to step in in a much 151 00:07:14,960 --> 00:07:17,560 Speaker 4: bigger way as we see more of these come to market. 152 00:07:18,440 --> 00:07:19,720 Speaker 1: Yes, we are here. 153 00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:22,240 Speaker 3: We we have a lot of capital, We are a 154 00:07:22,280 --> 00:07:24,920 Speaker 3: reliable partner for people and at the end of the day, 155 00:07:24,960 --> 00:07:27,640 Speaker 3: what we've built is a one stop stop, one stop 156 00:07:27,640 --> 00:07:31,800 Speaker 3: shop solutions provider, whether you're a peebacked company or another 157 00:07:31,880 --> 00:07:35,280 Speaker 3: public or private enterprise. So absolutely we are very front 158 00:07:35,320 --> 00:07:39,160 Speaker 3: foot in and thankfully we don't have current problems that 159 00:07:39,200 --> 00:07:41,520 Speaker 3: are distracting us, and that's endemic to a lot of 160 00:07:41,560 --> 00:07:43,840 Speaker 3: Oltz firms, so we can be very much on our 161 00:07:43,880 --> 00:07:44,800 Speaker 3: front foot, all. 162 00:07:44,800 --> 00:07:47,160 Speaker 2: Right, Mark, really appreciate your joining us today. Mark Clipscholtz 163 00:07:47,240 --> 00:07:48,760 Speaker 2: is Coco Blue l Capital