Ares Management has held a final closing for its fourth European direct lending fund, Ares Capital Europe IV.

Within six months of its launch, ACE IV was significantly oversubscribed relative to its initial target of €4.5 billion, closing at its hard cap of €6.5 billion of total commitments. ACE IV is the largest European direct lending fund raised to date.

The capital raised for the fund represents a significant increase from ACE IV’s predecessor fund, Ares Capital Europe III, which held its final close in May 2016 at €2.5 billion. Including anticipated leverage, the total available capital for ACE IV will be approximately €10 billion.

ACE IV will continue Ares’ strategy of providing flexible, one-stop and scaled capital solutions to mid-market companies across Europe.

Another recent final close was held by Exeter Property Group for its Exeter Europe Value Venture III, raising €750 million. The European fund is expected to invest as much as