Private Credit Glossary
Key terms and concepts used across PRISM's private credit intelligence and portfolio analytics platform.
B
BDC (Business Development Company)
A publicly traded investment vehicle that provides debt and equity financing to middle-market companies. BDCs are required to file Schedule of Investments (SOI) disclosures with the SEC, providing detailed position-level data that PRISM extracts and analyzes for private credit intelligence.
D
Direct Lending
A form of private credit where non-bank lenders provide loans directly to borrowers without intermediaries. Direct lending has grown significantly as banks have retreated from middle-market lending, and it represents a core segment of BDC investment activity tracked by PRISM.
F
First Lien
A senior secured debt position with the highest priority claim on a borrower's assets in the event of default. First lien loans are the most common investment type in BDC portfolios and typically carry lower risk and lower yields compared to subordinated debt.
FMV (Fair Market Value)
The estimated price at which an asset would trade between a willing buyer and seller. In BDC filings, FMV represents the current valuation of each portfolio position and is compared to cost basis to assess credit quality.
FMV-to-Cost Ratio
A key metric that compares a position's current fair market value to its original cost basis. Ratios below 1.0 indicate markdowns and potential credit deterioration. PRISM uses FMV-to-cost screening to systematically identify distressed positions across BDC portfolios.
M
MCP (Model Context Protocol)
A protocol that enables AI assistants to query structured data sources directly. PRISM's MCP server provides AI tools with native access to private credit datasets, allowing natural-language queries about fund holdings, distress metrics, and market trends.
Middle Market
Companies with annual revenues typically between $10 million and $1 billion. The middle market is the primary lending focus for BDCs and represents the core of the private credit market that PRISM covers.
P
Private Credit
Debt financing provided by non-bank lenders to companies, typically in the middle market. Private credit encompasses direct lending, mezzanine financing, distressed debt, and specialty finance. PRISM is a private credit intelligence and portfolio analytics platform that covers this market.
S
Second Lien
A subordinated secured debt position with a lower priority claim on a borrower's assets compared to first lien debt. Second lien loans carry higher risk and typically offer higher yields to compensate for the subordinated position.
SOI (Schedule of Investments)
A required SEC filing disclosure in which BDCs list every position in their portfolio, including company name, investment type, fair market value, cost basis, interest rate, and maturity date. SOI data is the foundation of PRISM's private credit intelligence.
U
Unitranche
A hybrid debt structure that combines senior and subordinated debt into a single loan facility. Unitranche loans simplify the capital structure for borrowers while offering lenders a blended yield. They are increasingly common in middle-market direct lending transactions tracked by PRISM.