‘Golden’ or ‘Garbage’: Milken Signals New Era for Private Credit

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The number of conference attendees is poised to exceed 4,000, with more than 200 sessions over the course of roughly three days. Regular paid admission started at $35,000. Registration is still open for the costliest package, the “Chairman’s Circle,” for $150,000.

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Those panels, which are set to feature finance leaders including Blackstone Inc.’s Jon Gray, Apollo Global Management Inc.’s James Zelter and Carlyle Group Inc.’s Harvey Schwartz, are of course only the public face of a conference known for countless closed-door meetings between movers and shakers across industries.

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Other discussions will address AI, including a chat with Nvidia Corp. CEO Jensen Huang, plus panels about how to fund the massive infrastructure build-out and how to reimagine the workforce.

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Ahead of pivotal US midterm elections, politicians including Gretchen Whitmer and Ron DeSantis, governors of Michigan and Florida, respectively, are both featured panelists, along with senators Ted Cruz of Texas, Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee and Mark Warner of Virginia. 

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And much of the programming is dedicated to advancements in health innovation and philanthropic goals, along with a splash of Hollywood star power. Milken will interview legendary singer and songwriter Lionel Richie about his book. Elisabeth Moss, star of The Handmaid’s Tale, will make an appearance on a panel about creativity. The conference wraps up with a concert by Pitbull on Wednesday.

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Private Credit

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Still, the most pressing question facing panelists will almost surely be what’s next for private credit, especially after the views expressed only a year ago.

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One voice that won’t be featured at the conference is Blue Owl’s. The firm is scaling back its presence for the first time since 2023, when it started attending the gathering as it rose through the ranks of the private capital industry. This year none of its top executives will be speaking at the event and its logo no longer features among the sponsors. 

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The firm is also scrapping a dinner it hosted at Nerano, an Italian restaurant near the conference site at the Beverly Hilton, which had become a fixture of the evening program.

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“Blue Owl is a big supporter of the Milken Conference,” a company spokesperson said in a statement. “While the decision to not sponsor for 2026 was made nearly a year ago, the firm still plans to have a robust presence this year, sending senior leaders from across the organization.”

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Other speakers from last May’s conference who now look prescient include Oscar Fahlgren, CIO and global head of private equity at Mubadala Capital. He said of direct lenders’ marks: “If you’re sitting in a 2021 vintage private credit fund and it’s marked at par — you’re mistaken.”

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Thoma Bravo’s Medallia has been the poster-child of this issue. A loan made to the software firm in 2021 was valued at higher than 90 cents on the dollar by many major managers in early 2025. Blackstone wrote down the value of the nearly $3 billion loan to 60.3 cents as of March. 

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Orlando Bravo, founder and managing partner at Thoma Bravo, said this week at a Bloomberg event in Miami that the private equity giant wouldn’t inject any fresh capital into the ailing company, meaning creditors will “probably take back the keys.”