For purposes of this brochure, “Adviser” means Benefit Street Partners L.L.C. (“Benefit Street”),
a Delaware limited liability company, together (where the context permits) with certain of its
affiliates that provide advisory services to and/or receive advisory fees from the Funds (as defined
below). These affiliates may or may not be under common control with Benefit Street, but
generally possess substantially similar personnel and/or equity owners as Benefit Street. These
affiliates are formed for tax, regulatory or other purposes in connection with the organization of
the Funds, or serve as general partners of the Funds.
Background
Benefit Street is an investment management platform that focuses on debt-related investments
across various market sectors. Benefit Street was formed in 2011.
On February 1, 2019, Franklin Resources, Inc. acquired Benefit Street and became the sole owner
of the Adviser.
On November 1, 2022, Franklin Resources Inc. acquired Alcentra NY, LLC (“Alcentra NY”) and
Alcentra Limited (“Alcentra Ltd.”). As a result of the acquisition, the Adviser and Alcentra NY
integrated certain of their advisory activities, and expect to integrate all of their advisory
activities, which include overlapping trading and investment strategies. The Adviser and Alcentra
operate under a single compliance program. The Adviser and Alcentra Ltd. remain separate but
closely-affiliated advisers (under common control of Franklin Resources, Inc.), with certain
combined operations and some overlap in trading and investment strategies, but operate under
separate and independent compliance programs. The acquisition and various integrated activities
between the Adviser, Alcentra NY and Alcentra Ltd., as well as certain other advisory affiliates of
the Adviser, raises conflicts of interest. Please see Item 11 and Item 12 below for information
regarding how such conflicts of interest are generally addressed by the Adviser through
implementation of related policies and procedures.
Services
The Adviser provides investment advisory services to investment vehicles, including private
funds that are not registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the
“Investment Company Act”), and whose securities are not registered under the Securities Act of
1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), to certain collateralized loan obligation vehicles (“CLO
Funds”), to a non-publicly traded real estate investment trust (the “REIT”) whose securities are
registered under the Securities Act and which has elected to be treated as a real estate investment
trust under Sections 856 through 860 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the
“Code”), and to certain separate account clients, single-investor funds and tailored funds. The
Adviser also provides sub-advisory services to certain registered investment companies (the
“1940 Act Funds”), to certain other collective investment vehicles (collectively with the 1940 Act
Funds, the “Sub-Advised Funds”). Collectively, the funds, vehicles and account arrangements
discussed in this paragraph may
be referred to herein, as the context permits, as the “Main
Funds.”
The Adviser may, from time to time, establish Funds on a transaction-by-transaction basis to
allow certain persons to invest alongside one or more Main Funds in a particular investment
opportunity (each such vehicle, a “Co-Investment Fund”). Co-Investment Funds are typically
limited to investing in securities relating to the transaction or transactions with respect to which
they were organized. As a general matter, any co-investment by a Co-Investment Fund will be on
terms and conditions not more favorable than the terms and conditions of the investment by the
applicable Main Fund.
Additionally, the Adviser organizes and serves as the general partner (or in an analogous
capacity) of certain other Funds which are “feeder” vehicles (each, a “Feeder Fund”) organized to
invest exclusively in another Fund, and/or an alternative investment vehicle (each, an “Alternative
Investment Vehicle”) organized to address, for example, specific tax, legal, business, accounting
or regulatory-related matters that arise in connection with a transaction or transactions.
The Main Funds, Feeder Funds and Alternative Investment Vehicles are collectively referred to,
as the context permits, as the “Funds.”
Certain of the Funds primarily make investments in debt instruments across various market
sectors. A number of Funds also invest from time to time in equity securities, certain types of
instruments which can be considered to have equity characteristics (such as preferred stock and
convertible instruments), and derivative instruments. Certain of the Funds focus on primarily
making investments in interests of real estate mortgage trusts and other real-estate-related debt
instruments. Subject to the terms of the applicable advisory or sub-advisory agreement, the
Adviser’s advisory services include investigating, identifying and evaluating investment
opportunities, structuring, negotiating and making investments on behalf of the Funds, managing
and monitoring the performance of such investments and disposing of such investments. The
Adviser serves as the investment adviser, sub-adviser or general partner to the Funds in order to
provide such services.
Except as may be the case for certain separately managed accounts or Sub-Advised Funds,
investment advice is generally provided directly to the Funds and not individually to investors.
Services are provided to the Funds in accordance with an advisory agreement with each of the
Funds, sub-advisory agreements with a Fund’s investment adviser, and/or organizational
documents of the applicable Fund. Investment restrictions for the Funds, if any, are generally set
forth in the organizational documents and/or prospectus and statement of additional information
(“SAI”) of the applicable Fund.
As of December 31, 2023, the Adviser managed $28,297,736,837 of client assets on a
discretionary basis. As of December 31, 2023, Alcentra NY managed $16,175,681,673 of client
assets on a discretionary basis and $206,185,566 of client assets on a non-discretionary basis.