NEW YORK, July 28, 2026 – Proskauer today released its latest Private Credit Default Index (the “Index”), which tracks senior-secured and unitranche loans in the United States. The Index revealed a default rate of 2.51% for the period of April 1, 2026 – June 30, 2026. The rate represents a decrease from 2.73% in Q1 2026.
This quarter’s Index encompasses 716 loans representing $195.6 billion in original principal amount.
"The slight decline in the overall default rate this quarter reinforces the resilience of the private credit market despite continued economic uncertainty,” said Stephen A. Boyko, partner and co-founder of Proskauer’s Private Credit Group. “Although conditions continue to vary by industry, overall default rates remain within the range we have observed over recent quarters. In the software and technology sector, default rates remained stable despite ongoing market attention. We will continue to monitor credit performance and assess trends as the market evolves.”
In companies with EBITDA of less than $25 million, we observed a modest decrease from 2.3% in Q1 2026 to 1.9% in Q2 2026. For those with EBITDA of $25 million to $49.9 million, we observed a modest increase from 3.1% in Q1 2026 to 3.4% in Q2 2026. Companies with EBITDA equal to or greater than $50 million decreased to 2.4% in Q2 2026 from 3.0% in Q1 2026.
The Proskauer Index contains a comparison to default rates published by the rating agencies, a principal-weighted default rate, historical trends by industry and EBITDA bands, defaults by type, defaults in cov-lite loans, and defaults by year of origination. The full report is available only to the Firm’s direct lending clients.
About Proskauer
Proskauer is an elite global law firm with more than 900 lawyers in key financial centers in the United States, Europe, South America, and Asia. Our clients include many of the world’s leading businesses, including asset managers, banks, listed corporations, and private companies. We have deep expertise in several of the fastest-growing and dynamic segments of the market, including sports, technology, life sciences, and health care. We represent hundreds of asset managers across a wide spectrum of sectors and strategies, including private equity, private credit, hedge, real assets, secondaries, and capital solutions.
The Private Credit Group is a cross-disciplinary team of finance and restructuring lawyers dedicated exclusively to representing private credit investors. With professionals based in New York, London, Los Angeles, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago and Paris, we advise credit funds, business development companies, banks and other institutional investors on direct lending transactions, special situations, liability management transactions and other alternative investment strategies. Over the past five years, Proskauer has advised on more than 1,900 private credit transactions for over 100 clients across the U.S. and Europe, with an aggregate transaction value exceeding $475 billion. Our technical strength, combined with our expansive experience, makes us the firm of choice for first-in-kind transactions.