Apollo CEO Foresees Surge in Investment-Grade Private Credit Market Making Activity

“I think markets are going to trade,” Rowan stated, underscoring the ongoing evolution toward a tradeable ecosystem for investment-grade private credit. Apollo is actively spearheading this transformation by developing what it claims will be the first dedicated marketplace for trading and syndicating high-grade private credit assets. This platform aims to facilitate efficient buying and selling, institutionalizing liquidity and creating new fee-generating opportunities beyond traditional origination and management fees.

Apollo’s Strategic Position and Market Impact

As of September 30, 2025, Apollo managed approximately $908 billion in assets, with a significant portion originating investment-grade credit for its Athene insurance subsidiary and other institutional clients. Despite not positioning itself as a trading firm, Apollo has executed nearly $7 billion in private credit trades in 2025 alone, with Rowan projecting this volume to triple in 2026. This growth signals a robust appetite for liquidity solutions within the private credit space.

To bolster trading infrastructure, Apollo has forged partnerships with major Wall Street banks, including JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs, who act as broker-dealers for private credit transactions. These banks either absorb Apollo-originated debt onto their balance sheets or facilitate pricing and placement with external investors, further integrating private credit into mainstream fixed-income markets.

Broader Industry Implications and Market Trends

The push toward a more liquid private credit market aligns with broader trends in alternative asset management, where investors seek scalable, transparent, and tradeable products. Apollo’s initiative reflects a strategic response to institutional demand for secondary market liquidity, which could reshape private credit’s risk-return profile and investor base.

Analysts have noted Apollo’s strong positioning under Rowan’s leadership, with UBS recently assigning a Buy rating and highlighting accelerating fee-related earnings growth driven by such innovations in credit markets. The firm’s ability to blend origination with trading capabilities positions it well to capitalize on the growing institutionalization of private credit.

Private Credit Market Making: A New Frontier for Institutional Investors

The emergence of market makers in investment-grade private credit represents a paradigm shift, potentially unlocking new exit strategies and portfolio management tools for investors traditionally constrained by illiquidity. This development is expected to enhance price discovery, reduce bid-ask spreads, and increase market efficiency, thereby attracting a broader set of institutional participants.

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Visual Summary

As Apollo and its partners continue to build out trading infrastructure, the investment-grade private credit market is poised to become a more dynamic, liquid, and institutionalized asset class, reshaping the landscape of private credit investing and offering new opportunities for portfolio diversification and risk management.