Premium Maritime Credit Fund, a Luxembourg based RAIF had its first close this week backed by significant European institutional investors and family offices. The Fund will now actively pursue building a portfolio of first lien maritime loans with a strong focus on lending to European small to midsize shipping companies.

The Fund will be managed by NRP Maritime Asset Management (‘MAM’) as sponsor, owner of the General Partner and Investment Advisor. NRP MAM is an Oslo, Norway based investment manager with a long successful track record managing investments in the maritime industry.

“There is currently great interest in and demand for specialised private debt structures focused on industries where flight of capital is driven mainly by regulation. We believe the timing for a balanced portfolio of attractively priced maritime debt provides an excellent opportunity for our investors to capitalize on the current strong supply/demand imbalance in shipping credit markets,” says Fund Manager, Wilhelm Magelssen in NRP Asset Management.

The Fund is backed by investments from the European Investment Fund (part of the European Investment Bank), Oslo Pensjonsforsikring AS and funds managed on behalf of the Greater London Authority in addition to several Norwegian maritime and non-maritime family offices.

Over USD 110 million of the Fund’s USD 200 million was successfully raised in the first close.  NRP MAM is targeting its next closing before the end of the year.

The Fund’s strategy is to provide senior 1st lien debt mainly to ship owning companies with European presence with no opportunity to raise traditional bank debt.

“We are highly appreciative and a little humbled by the strong backing we have received from top institutions in both Europe and Norway. At the first close we have a diverse and strong combination of both domestic and international institutional investors from which to grow.  We hope to attract further institutional investment as more learn about our Fund, its current risk adjusted returns and the high ESG requirements embedded in our underwriting requirements,” says Managing Partner, Nicolai Heidenreich.

The main advisors for the Fund include Allen Overy and Wikborg Rein (legal), NRP Project Finance AS and South 40 Capital (fund raising).