Capital Raising in 2025: Why Traditional Bank Financing Is No Longer Enough

The Capital Raising Shift

For decades, businesses seeking growth capital defaulted to one route - the bank loan. Banks were the primary financiers of expansion, offering credit lines, syndicated debt, or project loans. But the economic environment of 2025 has altered this dynamic.

• Regulatory tightening has made banks more conservative.
  
• Interest rate volatility has heightened risk sensitivity.
  
• Global financing needs - from AI infrastructure to green energy - are outpacing banks’ appetite and frameworks.
  

This shift has created a capital raising gap, one increasingly filled by private credit, venture debt, NAV lending, evergreen funds, and family office participation.For ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs), family offices, and businesses seeking strategic financing, the question is no longer “Which bank?” but rather “Which structure?”

Why Traditional Bank Financing is Faltering

1. Regulatory Pressure

Post-2008 frameworks (Basel III and now Basel IV) have forced banks to maintain stricter capital reserves. Risky lending, particularly to SMEs or high-growth companies, is less attractive. For many businesses, this means banks now ask for collateral levels or repayment covenants that are impractical.

2. Higher-for-Longer Rates

In 2025, global central banks remain cautious on inflation. Elevated interest rates increase loan costs, which banks then pass on to borrowers. For many businesses, the cost of capital via banks is simply unaffordable.

3. Credit Quality Screening

Banks have shifted focus toward “safe” borrowers - blue-chip corporates or investment-grade credits. As a result, growth-stage firms with strong fundamentals but no long track record find themselves excluded from bank financing.

The Rise of Private Credit

Private credit has evolved from a niche to a $1.5 trillion mainstream asset class by 2024, and it is projected to reach $3.5 trillion by 2028

What Private Credit Offers Businesses

• Speed: Funding can close in weeks instead of months.
  
• Flexibility: Structures can be tailored around cash flow, assets, or project needs.
  
• Scale: Pools of capital from institutional investors, sovereign wealth funds, and family offices now rival banks.
  

What Private Credit Offers Investors

For UHNW investors, private credit offers 8–20% yields, diversification, and exposure to opportunities unavailable in public markets.

Forms of Private Credit Driving Capital Raising

1. Direct Lending

Middle-market businesses are increasingly raising capital directly from private credit funds. In the U.S. and Europe, direct lending has grown into the largest sub-segment of private credit, with double-digit annual growth.

Case Example: A European healthcare services company recently secured €200 million from a private credit fund to expand diagnostics labs - a deal no bank would underwrite.

2. NAV Lending

Net Asset Value (NAV) loans - secured against portfolio assets - allow funds to raise liquidity without selling holdings. The market for NAV lending is now $50–100 billion annually.

Case Example: A growth equity fund needing liquidity for follow-on investments used NAV financing to unlock $150 million without forcing early exits.

3. Asset-Based Finance

Private credit funds increasingly finance receivables, equipment, and even intellectual property. This is particularly relevant in AI and digital infrastructure, where tangible assets may be limited but recurring revenue is predictable.

Venture Debt: Growth Without Dilution

Record Expansion

Venture debt deployment hit $53 billion in 2024, nearly doubling 2023 levels. In the first half of 2025 alone, $19 billion was raised through venture debt structures.

Why It Works

• Provides capital without diluting equity.
  
• Preserves founder control.
  
• Flexible repayment terms compared to banks.
  

Case Example: A late-stage fintech scale-up used venture debt to raise $80 million, funding expansion into Asia without giving up further equity.

Evergreen & Interval Fund Structures

Evergreen and interval funds are reshaping capital raising. These structures allow continuous inflows and provide limited redemption windows, striking a balance between investor liquidity and manager deployment flexibility.

• In Europe, evergreen flows doubled to €24 billion in 2024 .
  
• Global evergreen/interval AUM has surpassed $500 billion.
  

For investors, these vehicles represent the middle ground between illiquid PE funds and daily-liquid mutual funds.

Cross-Border Capital Raising

Europe

European mid-market lending has surged as regional banks retreat. Private funds now dominate corporate financing in countries like Germany and France.

Emerging Markets

Southeast Asia and Latin America are seeing private credit inflows fund renewable energy, logistics, and infrastructure. For UHNWIs, this represents yield + diversification.

Case Example: A renewable energy developer in Vietnam raised $120 million through a mix of offshore private credit and local co-investment - unattainable via local banks.

Hedge Funds & Asset Managers Enter Private Credit

The influx of new players is further proof that capital raising has shifted:

• Hedge funds like Point72, Millennium, and Third Point are now launching private credit arms .
  
• Apollo Global targets managing $1.2 trillion in private loans by 2029 .
  
• Citi teamed up with Apollo in a $25B private credit partnership .
  

Investor Inflows: UHNW Participation

High-net-worth investors contributed $48 billion to private credit in H1 2025, surpassing all prior years .

This demonstrates a broader trend: capital raising is no longer institution-only. Family offices and UHNWIs now provide direct credit, co-investments, and bespoke structures.

Sector-Specific Capital Raising in 2025

AI and Data Infrastructure

AI adoption demands massive investment in data centres, semiconductors, and energy infrastructure. Private credit funds are supplying multi-billion-dollar financing for these projects.

Healthcare

Healthcare - particularly contract manufacturing organisations (CMOs) - continues to attract stable capital raising. Predictable demand and regulatory moats appeal to private lenders.

Renewable Energy

Energy transition projects require blended capital structures, often beyond bank appetite. Private credit fills this gap.

What This Means for Businesses

For businesses, the lesson is clear:

• Banks are no longer the first call for capital.
  
• Non-dilutive, flexible private credit is the new norm.
  
• Venture debt and NAV structures provide funding optionality.
  

What This Means for Investors

For UHNWIs and family offices:

• Access matters - capital raising deals are often invitation-only.
  
• Manager dispersion is wide - top-quartile managers significantly outperform .
  
• Diversification is essential - credit across geographies, sectors, and structures reduces risk.
  

How Jura Capital Fits

At Jura Capital, we recognise that raising capital in 2025 demands innovation, precision, and alignment.

• For Companies: We structure capital raising through private credit, or venture debt to match growth needs.
  
• For Investors: We provide curated access to vetted, high-yield opportunities across credit structures, ensuring transparency and risk discipline.
  

Subtly but clearly, Jura Capital is the bridge between businesses seeking intelligent capital and UHNW investors seeking yield.

FAQs: Capital Raising in 2025

Q: Why are banks lending less in 2025?
Regulation, risk aversion, and high rates push banks to safer, low-risk lending.

Q: How big is the private credit market?
$1T in 2020 → $1.5T in 2024 → projected $3.5T by 2028.

Q: Is venture debt replacing equity?
Not entirely, but it increasingly funds late-stage growth without dilution .

Q: Are hedge funds involved in capital raising?
Yes, leading hedge funds have launched dedicated private credit strategies.

Q: Which sectors dominate capital raising today?
AI, Fintech, Infrastructure, Healthcare, and Energy transition.

A New Playbook for Capital Raising

2025 marks a decisive break from the bank-dominated financing world. Traditional bank lending is insufficient - too rigid, too slow, too cautious.

The future of capital raising lies in private credit, venture debt, NAV financing, evergreen structures, and global diversification. For both businesses and investors, success depends on access, expertise, and trust.

At Jura Capital, we stand at that intersection - helping businesses raise smart capital, and enabling UHNW investors to capture yield, resilience, and opportunity in a world beyond banks.

References

1. Global banks pull back on lending amid regulatory pressure, Financial Times.
2. Private Credit Outlook 2025: Opportunity & Growth, Morgan Stanley.
3. NAV Lending Trends and Guidance, ILPA.
4. Venture Debt Firms Tilt Toward Mature Companies, Wall Street Journal.
5. Evergreen Funds Surge in Europe, Financial Times.
6. Hedge Funds Push Into Private Credit, Financial Times.
7. Apollo Seeks $1.2T Private Loan AUM by 2029, Business Insider.
8. Citi and Apollo’s $25B Credit Partnership, MarketWatch.
9. Affluent Investors Pour $48B into Private Credit, Financial Times.