Cliffwater
Institutional-grade private credit which is a disciplined, income-generating anchor in a consciously constructed portfolio.
Cliffwater is one of the most respected authorities in private credit. Founded in 2004 and 100% employee-owned, the firm advises many of the country's largest pensions, endowments, and sovereign wealth funds on alternative investments, and manages its own suite of private-debt funds. We invest through Cliffwater's flagship vehicle, the Cliffwater Corporate Lending Fund (CCLFX), a core private-credit allocation within our portfolio.
Why We Hold It
One-pocket investing doesn't mean every dollar chases a headline social outcome. It means every dollar is deployed on purpose, including the foundational allocations that keep a portfolio durable enough to pursue our mission over the long term. Private credit is one of those building blocks: a source of consistent, contractual income with lower volatility than public equities, exactly the kind of ballast a mission-driven balance sheet needs.
CCLFX gives us institutional-quality access to that asset class through a single, semi-liquid vehicle. Rather than betting on one lender, Cliffwater uses its unique vantage point as an institutional consultant to build a highly diversified portfolio co-investing alongside a bench of top-rated direct lenders and originating senior, first-lien, floating-rate loans to middle-market businesses. It is a considered, well-structured way to own an income stream that helps fund everything else we do.
What Makes Cliffwater Distinctive
An authority on private debt. Cliffwater created the Cliffwater Direct Lending Index (CDLI) in 2015 (now the industry benchmark for direct lending) and its leadership authored the definitive text on the asset class.
Diversification by design. CCLFX spreads risk across thousands of underlying loans and a curated set of A-rated lending partners, emphasizing low loan-to-value, senior-secured, floating-rate credit.
Scale and standards. CCLFX has grown into one of the largest private-credit interval funds available, with roughly $32 billion in assets (as of late 2025). In November 2025, S&P Global Ratings assigned the fund an 'A' rating which was a historic first for a private-credit interval fund.
Why It Matters To Us
Cliffwater complements the values-aligned and mission-forward positions elsewhere in our portfolio by doing a different, equally important job: generating steady income and diversification with institutional discipline. It reflects a core conviction of ours, that a flourishing-oriented portfolio isn't built on good intentions alone, but on the same rigor and quality any serious investor demands. Conscious construction runs all the way down, including to the ballast.
Our role: Investor in the Cliffwater Corporate Lending Fund (CCLFX)
Type: Alternative investment manager and advisor (SEC-registered, employee-owned)
Focus: Private credit, primarily senior, first-lien, floating-rate loans to U.S. middle-market companies
The Cliffwater Corporate Lending Fund is managed by Cliffwater LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Fund figures reflect the most recently published data; investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal, and interval funds offer only limited liquidity. This page is informational and not an offer of, or solicitation for, investment.