Australia’s corporate regulator, ASIC, has warned that the rapidly expanding private credit market is showing its first major signs of strain following the collapse of property developer Bathla Group and withdrawal limits imposed by fund manager MA Financial. The warning matters because private credit has become an important funding source for developers unable to borrow from banks, and Australians may be exposed indirectly through superannuation investments.

Bathla Group entered voluntary administration with reported debts of $3.2 billion and up to 25,000 unfinished homes, while MA Financial restricted withdrawals from its $2.3 billion secured property loan fund to 1 per cent a month. Australia’s private credit sector manages an estimated $200 billion in assets; ASIC says liquidity pressures and potential losses are being closely monitored, while economists have warned that failures could spread through related lenders and investments.