PineBridge Investments brought former Business Development Corporation of America executives Jim Fisher, Joe Taylor and Doug Lyons aboard its credit platform to form the nucleus of its new middle-market direct lending business.

Fisher will lead the team, based in New York. The trio will focus primarily on U.S.-based middle market companies seeking capital for growth, acquisitions, leveraged buyouts and recapitalizations.

The new direct lending effort will expand PineBridge’s existing $28.5 billion credit platform, which currently includes bank loan CLOs, high yield investments and a junior capital-focused structured capital business.

“Jim and his team are highly regarded in the private credit world and have numerous long term relationships with sponsors, intermediaries and lenders,” said PineBridge CEO Greg Ehret. “They will be a great addition to our existing credit platform.”

Headquartered in New York, PineBridge is majority-owned by a subsidiary of Pacific Century Group, an Asia-based private investment group.