Manulife | Comvest Credit Partners has raised $5.4bn (£4bn) at the final close of its North American direct lending strategy, marking the largest fundraise to date for the platform.

Comvest Credit Partners VII is the latest vintage of the manager’s private credit strategy, which focuses on middle-market cash flow and asset-based lending opportunities for both sponsored and non-sponsored companies.

According to Robert O’Sullivan, global head of Manulife | Comvest Credit Partners, the strategy focuses on differentiated lending rather than the broadly syndicated segments of the market.

The $21.5bn credit platform of Manulife Wealth & Asset Management said its latest fund is already substantially deployed, attracting commitments from existing and new institutional investors.

Read more: Manulife | Comvest Credit Partners closes $428m private credit CLO

“This milestone reflects the sustained demand we’re seeing for private credit, particularly for scaled platforms in the middle market,” said Anne Valentine Andrews, global head of private markets at Manulife Investment Management.

The fund closing comes as insurer Manulife acquired a 75 per cent stake in Comvest Credit Partners in August 2025, the direct lending platform of Comvest Partners, to create the combined private credit platform now known as Manulife | Comvest Credit Partners.

Read more: Bridgepoint inks €5.1bn for direct lending amid European credit boom