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1. An alternative asset manager, like a Blackstone (BX) or KKR (KKR), but specialized in direct lending to middle-market companies and providing capital to other alternative fund managers.

2. Think of it as a specialized Ares Management (ARES) that not only does direct lending but also provides capital to other alternative investment funds and structures corporate real estate transactions.

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• Direct Lending: Provides various private credit products, including diversified, technology, first lien, and opportunistic lending, to middle-market companies.
• GP Capital Solutions: Offers capital solutions such as GP minority equity investments, GP debt financing, and professional sports minority investments to large private capital managers.
• Real Estate Products: Focuses on structuring sale-leaseback transactions, which involve triple net leases, for corporate real estate owners and tenants.

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Blue Owl Capital (OWL) serves primarily other companies and entities. Its major customers can be categorized as:

• Middle-market companies (recipients of direct lending products).
• Large alternative asset managers (recipients of GP capital solutions).
• Corporate real estate owners and tenants (beneficiaries of real estate products like sale-leaseback transactions).

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Douglas Ostrover Co-Chief Executive Officer

Douglas Ostrover is Co-Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Blue Owl Capital Inc.. He co-founded Owl Rock Capital Partners, the predecessor to Blue Owl's Credit platform. Previously, he founded GSO Capital Partners in 2005, which became Blackstone's alternative credit platform and was acquired by Blackstone for up to $945 million in cash and stocks in 2008. He served as a Senior Managing Director at Blackstone until 2015, during which time GSO grew to $75 billion in assets under management. Before founding GSO, he was a Managing Director and Chairman of the Leveraged Finance Group at Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB). He joined CSFB in 2000 after its acquisition of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ), where he had been a Managing Director overseeing High Yield and Distressed Sales, Trading, and Research since 1992. Mr. Ostrover has over thirty years of experience in leveraged finance, often collaborating with private equity sponsors. His career demonstrates a pattern of managing companies backed by private equity firms, including GSO Capital Partners under Blackstone and Owl Rock, which merged to form Blue Owl.

Marc Lipschultz Co-Chief Executive Officer

Marc Lipschultz is Co-Chief Executive Officer and a member of the board of directors of Blue Owl Capital Inc.. He co-founded Owl Rock, the predecessor firm to Blue Owl's Credit platform. Prior to co-founding Owl Rock in 2016, which later merged with Dyal Capital to form Blue Owl in 2021, he spent more than two decades at KKR. At KKR, he served on the firm's Management Committee and was the Global Head of Energy and Infrastructure, gaining extensive experience in private credit, private equity, and infrastructure. Before joining KKR in 1995, he was with Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he focused on mergers and acquisitions and principal investment activities. Mr. Lipschultz's background includes significant leadership roles within KKR, a private equity firm, and co-founding Owl Rock, indicating a pattern of involvement with private equity-backed entities.

Alan Kirshenbaum Chief Financial Officer

Alan Kirshenbaum is the Chief Financial Officer and Co-Chair of the Operating Committee of Blue Owl Capital Inc.. Before joining Owl Rock, the predecessor firm to Blue Owl's Credit platform, he was the Chief Financial Officer of Sixth Street Specialty Lending (TSLX), a NYSE-traded business development company. From 2011 to 2015, he was responsible for building and overseeing TSLX's finance, treasury, accounting, and operations functions, including its initial public offering in March 2014. From 2011 to 2013, he also served as the Chief Financial Officer of TPG Special Situations Partners. His prior roles include Chief Financial Officer of Natsource, a private investment firm, and Managing Director, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Financial Officer of MainStay Investments. He was CFO of Bear Stearns Asset Management (BSAM) from 2003 to 2006, after joining BSAM in 1999. Mr. Kirshenbaum also co-founded Harbor Light Investment Management in 2007, where he served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer. His career highlights a pattern of managing financial operations for companies, including those that underwent IPOs and entities associated with private investment firms.

Michael Rees Co-President

Michael Rees is a Co-President, founder, and head of GP Strategic Capital at Blue Owl Capital, also serving on its board of directors and executive committee. He established Dyal Capital, which became the foundation for Blue Owl Capital's GP Strategic Capital platform, managing over $54 billion in assets by acquiring minority stakes in private equity firms. Before founding Dyal Capital, Mr. Rees was a founding employee and shareholder of Neuberger Berman Group, where he played a key role in the management buyout from Lehman Brothers and became the first Chief Operating Officer of Neuberger Berman's alternatives business. At Lehman Brothers, he was head of asset management strategy and responsible for strategic acquisitions within the investment management division. Mr. Rees co-founded Blue Owl Capital, which was formed in 2021 through the merger of Dyal Capital and Owl Rock Capital. His background demonstrates a strong focus on private equity, particularly in acquiring stakes in other private equity firms, and involvement in the management buyout of Neuberger Berman.

Craig Packer Co-President

Craig Packer is a Co-President of Blue Owl Capital Inc. and a member of the firm's board of directors. He also serves as the Head of the Credit platform, Co-Chief Investment Officer for Blue Owl Credit Advisers, and Chief Executive Officer of the Blue Owl BDCs. Mr. Packer co-founded Owl Rock Capital Partners, the predecessor firm to Blue Owl's Credit platform. Prior to co-founding Owl Rock, he was a Partner and Co-Head of Leveraged Finance in the Americas at Goldman Sachs & Co., joining in 2006 as a Managing Director and Head of High Yield Capital Markets and being named Partner in 2008. Before his tenure at Goldman Sachs & Co., he was the Global Head of High Yield Capital Markets at Credit Suisse First Boston, and prior to that, he worked at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette. His extensive career in leveraged finance has frequently involved working with private equity sponsors, and he co-founded Owl Rock which subsequently became a part of Blue Owl Capital.

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The key risks to Blue Owl Capital's business are primarily linked to the dynamics of the private credit market and its operational implications.

1. Downturn in the Private Credit Market and Potential for Credit Losses: Blue Owl Capital faces significant exposure to a potential cyclical downturn in the private credit industry. There are increasing concerns from market participants and analysts regarding understated credit loss rates in the portfolios of Blue Owl and its peers, suggesting that actual losses could be higher than reported. This broader industry strain has led to fears of a potential sector-wide credit crisis.
2. Liquidity Restrictions and Elevated Redemption Requests: The company has experienced substantial liquidity pressures, highlighted by the permanent restriction of withdrawals from one of its retail-focused private credit vehicles (Blue Owl Capital Corp. II) and the sale of approximately $1.4 billion in loans to meet liquidity demands. This development has intensified concerns about the liquidity of private credit products and has contributed to a surge in redemption requests from investors across the private credit market.
3. Valuation Doubts and Exposure to the Software Sector: Blue Owl Capital faces scrutiny over the valuation of its loan portfolio, particularly concerning its investments in software companies. Some observers suggest that the company's loan valuations may be higher than current public trading prices, raising questions about the true value of its assets. This risk is amplified by the potential for business model disruptions in leveraged software companies due to advancements in artificial intelligence, which could impact their ability to repay debts.

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Blue Owl Capital (NYSE: OWL) operates across several alternative asset management segments, targeting substantial addressable markets in direct lending, GP capital solutions, and real estate products.

Direct Lending Products

Blue Owl Capital provides direct lending products primarily to middle-market companies. The global private credit market, which encompasses direct lending, was approximately $1.6 trillion in 2025 and nearly $2 trillion globally by Q2 2024. Direct lending itself accounted for $1.4 trillion of the $2.1 trillion global private credit market. The North American direct lending market is estimated to be around $1.5 trillion as of March 2025 and is projected to reach nearly $2 trillion by the end of the decade. The European direct lending market is estimated to be between $500 billion and $1 trillion. In the U.S., assets under management by direct lenders sharply increased to over $1.6 trillion by 2024. The U.S. middle market alone consists of nearly 200,000 companies, representing one-third of the private sector's GDP.

GP Capital Solutions Products

The company offers GP capital solutions, including GP minority equity investments, GP debt financing, and professional sports minority investments to large private capital managers. The global GP Financing market size was $19.6 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow to $58.4 billion by 2033. The United States contributes the majority of this activity in North America, while Europe represents the second-largest regional market at $6.2 billion in 2024. More broadly, the total enterprise value of private markets General Partners (GPs) globally is estimated to exceed $1.7 trillion, a market for stakes investors that is forecast to double by 2030. The market for GP stakes is approximately $80 billion, with growing interest from limited partners (LPs). Specifically, minority equity investing in mid-sized private capital GPs represents an estimated $90 billion of aggregate enterprise value potentially available.

Real Estate Products

Blue Owl Capital's real estate products focus on structuring sale-leaseback transactions, which include triple net leases. The U.S. sale-leaseback market recorded approximately $14.4 billion in aggregate dollar volume across 714 transactions in 2025, and $11.7 billion in 2024. The estimated addressable market for private markets in real assets is over $11 trillion by 2028, with current sale-leaseback transaction volume representing less than 0.5% of this. A broader perspective indicates that approximately $20 trillion of property, plant, and equipment sits on investment-grade companies' balance sheets as non-earning assets, creating significant opportunities for sale-leaseback deals. The estimated size of primary markets for triple-net lease (sale-leaseback) is $3 trillion in North America and €6.3 trillion in Europe, based on corporate owner-occupied real estate holdings. The U.S. net-lease investment volume totaled $43.7 billion in 2024.

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Blue Owl Capital (NYSE: OWL) is expected to drive future revenue growth over the next 2-3 years through several key initiatives and market trends:

1. Deployment of Undeployed Capital: The company has a significant amount of assets under management (AUM) that are committed but not yet deployed and generating fees. As of the end of 2025, Blue Owl had $28.4 billion in AUM not yet paying fees, which is projected to convert into over $325 million in annual management fees once deployed. This embedded deployment is expected to accelerate revenue growth, particularly in 2027.
2. Expansion in Digital Infrastructure: Blue Owl Capital is strategically focused on digital infrastructure, viewing it as a major growth pillar. The company is actively launching new funds, such as Digital Infrastructure Fund IV in 2026, and is involved in substantial data center financing deals. This focus leverages growing demand in cloud and AI innovation.
3. Growth in Private Wealth and Institutional Fundraising: The company has demonstrated strong fundraising capabilities across both its institutional and private wealth channels, achieving record capital raises in 2025. Blue Owl is expanding its global distribution network and introducing new wealth products and retirement offerings to continue this fundraising momentum.
4. Diversification and Launch of New Products: Blue Owl is diversifying its product offerings and expanding into new areas. This includes the introduction of new evergreen products, such as the digital infrastructure evergreen product (ODIT) and the alternative credit interval fund (OWLCX), as well as a broader expansion into alternative and asset-based credit strategies.
5. Sustained Strong Investment Performance: The company's consistent strong investment performance across its core strategies, including net lease, tech lending, and direct lending, is crucial for attracting and retaining capital. Continued strong returns can lead to increased AUM and, consequently, higher management fees.

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Share Repurchases

• Blue Owl Capital Inc. is authorized to repurchase up to $150 million of its shares.
• As of December 2025, approximately $70 million in Class A common stock was purchased by Blue Owl Capital Inc., which included over $50 million repurchased under its existing plan and more than $15 million by executives and employees.

Share Issuance

• In December 2025, Blue Owl Exchange LP, an affiliate, sold 710,588 Class A shares for approximately $10.68 million.
• In February 2026, equity awards were granted to Co-President Craig Packer (813,484 Class C shares and units) and Co-CEO Marc S. Lipschultz (878,709 Class C shares and units).
• The business combination on May 19, 2021, involved the issuance of share consideration to the Dyal Capital selling shareholders.

Inbound Investments

• Blue Owl Capital achieved new capital commitments totaling $56 billion for the full year 2025.
• The company closed its inaugural Strategic Equity Secondaries Strategy, raising over $3 billion.
• Its digital infrastructure-focused evergreen vehicle completed its first close with approximately $1.7 billion, contributing to an estimated $4.3 billion in aggregate capital closed across evergreen non-traded products from October through December 2025.

Outbound Investments

• Blue Owl Capital invested $40 million in Coremont, a portfolio management software provider, to support its expansion in emerging asset classes and AI-powered analytics.
• Through its Credit platform, new investment commitments totaled $4.3 billion across 43 new and 81 existing portfolio companies for the year ended December 31, 2025.

Capital Expenditures

• Blue Owl Capital Inc. invested $57.7 million in capital expenditures during fiscal year 2025, primarily for funding long-term assets and infrastructure.
• Capital expenditures for the fourth quarter of 2025 were $23.7 million.
• Expenses are anticipated to remain elevated due to continued investments in the franchise and higher revenue-related compensation costs.