Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (BXSL) Bank of America Securities Financial Services Conference summary

Platform history and strategy

• BXSL launched in 2018 as a flagship direct lending product, going public in 2021, with a focus on shareholder alignment, defensive first-lien portfolios, and leveraging Blackstone's scale.

• Portfolio is 99% first-lien, $12B in assets, $5.7B NAV, investment-grade rated, and has delivered 11.4% inception-to-date returns with low defaults.

• Competitive advantages include Blackstone's data, sector expertise, origination scale, and ability to add value beyond capital.

Portfolio composition and overlap

• BXSL and Blackstone's private BDC have about 90% asset overlap, both focusing on first-lien, defensive portfolios.

• BXSL benefits from more fixed-rate bonds and 100% floating-rate assets, advantageous in higher interest rate environments.

Market outlook and M&A trends

• M&A volumes are expected to inflect upward in 2025, driven by private equity dry powder and lower cost of capital.

• Blackstone Credit had its most active origination year in 2023, deploying over $40B, with strong activity expected to continue.