Citigroup has appointed a new head of private credit origination for North America, reinforcing its expansion in one of the fastest-growing areas of corporate finance.
The new hire, Aashish Dhakad, will join in October 2025 and be based in New York. He brings two decades of experience, including senior roles at Ares Management and Bank of America. At Citi, he will report to John McAuley and work alongside Scott Sartorius and Ryan Williams, co-heads of leveraged finance for the region.
The move comes as banks accelerate efforts to capture a larger share of the private credit market, where non-bank lenders provide capital for leveraged buyouts and other complex financings. Citi has already signalled its ambitions in this space through a USD 25 billion direct lending partnership with Apollo Global launched in 2024.
Rather than holding large exposures on its own balance sheet, Citi has focused on originating and structuring transactions for institutional investors—a strategy that allows it to generate fees while limiting capital requirements.
Dhakad’s appointment forms part of a broader recruitment drive under Viswas Raghavan, Citi’s head of banking, who has added senior talent from rivals such as JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs in recent months. The hires aim to strengthen the bank’s investment banking capabilities and deepen its role in alternative financing.
