Ares restricts withdrawals as redemption requests climb at flagship fund

The surge in withdrawal requests was driven by a narrow segment of the fund’s 20,000 shareholders. According to the filing, less than 1% of the investor base—primarily non-U.S. institutions and family offices—accounted for nearly half of all second-quarter redemption demands. Nearly two-thirds of these requests originated from parties who had previously attempted to exit the fund in the first quarter.

Despite the headline figures, the domestic picture appears more stable. Requests from U.S. private wealth investors, which represent the fund's largest shareholder group, dropped 35% compared to the prior quarter, accounting for only 2.4% of shares. This segment also provided nearly half of the fund's new inflows during the same period. CEO Michael Arougheti noted earlier this month that high-net-worth individuals in the U.S. are increasing their exposure to alternative assets rather than liquidating them.

TD Cowen analyst Bill Katz suggested the data should be viewed with nuance, noting that the concentration of repeat requesters indicates that broad-based panic among investors is not taking hold. Since its 2022 launch, the fund has reported an annualized total return of 10.27%, maintaining a 187-basis-point premium over broadly syndicated bank loans.