The growth of private capital has expanded the range of financing and investment opportunities available to middle-market businesses, creating new possibilities for firms capable of deploying resources across multiple strategies.
For H.I.G. Capital, a global private capital firm focused on the middle market, continued expansion is closely connected to the resources and operational capabilities available to its portfolio companies.
CEO Brian Schwartz discussed that relationship during an October 21, 2026, appearance on Bloomberg Deals, where he outlined the firm's development, competitive advantages, and priorities following his appointment as chief executive earlier this year.
Schwartz's comments offered insight into how H.I.G. has approached growth while maintaining a longstanding focus on middle-market investment opportunities.
Founded in 1993, the Miami-headquartered firm operates across private equity, growth equity, direct lending, special situations credit, real estate, and infrastructure. Its broader investment platform reflects the range of strategies now associated with private capital, an industry that extends beyond traditional private equity ownership.
Brian Schwartz Highlights H.I.G. Capital's Middle-Market Scale
During the Bloomberg interview, Schwartz emphasized the importance of maintaining substantial investment resources while focusing on companies that may not have access to the same financial and operational capabilities as larger businesses.
He noted that H.I.G. had grown from approximately $70 million in capital under management when he joined in 1994 to approximately $75 billion at the time of the interview.
The firm's current website reports approximately $76 billion in capital under management, based on total capital commitments managed by H.I.G. and its affiliates.
That expansion has been accompanied by the development of a global investment organization with more than 500 investment professionals across 18 offices.
However, Schwartz argued that increasing scale has a practical purpose beyond expanding the size of the firm's investment platform.
During the interview, he described H.I.G.'s position within the middle market as a competitive advantage that depends on continued investment in its capabilities.
Those capabilities include an established transaction sourcing network, operating partners, and specialized investment professionals who can support businesses through different stages of development.
For middle-market companies, access to such resources may be particularly valuable when pursuing operational improvements, strategic expansion, or organizational changes.
Schwartz also highlighted H.I.G.'s ability to identify off-market investment opportunities, allowing the firm to evaluate transactions that may not be widely marketed to competing investors.
The approach reflects an important characteristic of middle-market private capital investing: transaction sourcing and operational expertise can be as significant as the amount of capital available.
A Multi-Strategy Approach to Private Capital Investment
H.I.G.'s expansion has also broadened the types of investment opportunities the firm can pursue.
While private equity remains a central part of its history, H.I.G.'s platform includes credit and real asset strategies that address different financing and investment needs.
Its private equity and growth equity activities involve investments in businesses, while its direct lending and special situations strategies provide exposure to corporate credit opportunities. Real estate and infrastructure further extend the firm's activities into physical assets.
These strategies differ in their risk profiles, investment structures, and objectives, but collectively demonstrate the breadth of the private capital market.
For businesses, private capital can provide financing and ownership structures outside traditional public markets, including equity investment and privately negotiated lending.
For institutional investors, multi-strategy managers can offer access to different segments of the private markets through specialized investment teams.
H.I.G. describes its platform as anchored in industry knowledge and operational expertise, with investment professionals seeking opportunities across sectors, geographies, and asset classes.
Schwartz's Bloomberg remarks concentrated primarily on the firm's middle-market operating capabilities rather than detailing each investment strategy. Nevertheless, his emphasis on scale and specialized resources aligns with the broader platform H.I.G. has developed.
The firm's expansion illustrates how a private capital manager can grow beyond its original investment activities while retaining a common focus on identifying and developing opportunities within the middle market.
Operational Resources Remain Central to H.I.G.'s Expansion
Schwartz also described the importance of helping portfolio companies improve earnings, particularly when higher borrowing costs make financial leverage less effective as a source of investment returns.
He identified EBITDA growth as a central measure of operational value creation and explained that institutional investors increasingly examine how much of a firm's investment performance comes from improvements in underlying businesses.
This emphasis reinforces the connection between H.I.G.'s investment resources and its expansion strategy.
Larger investment platforms can maintain teams with specialized expertise in operational management, financial performance, and strategic development. For middle-market businesses, access to those capabilities may support initiatives that would otherwise require substantial internal investment.
H.I.G.'s reported ambition to reach $100 billion in capital under management would represent another stage in its development. Bloomberg referenced that target during the interview, although Schwartz did not independently restate its timeline.
His broader message centered on preserving the capabilities that support the firm's investment approach as its platform continues to expand.
For H.I.G. Capital, growth across private capital strategies has been accompanied by an ongoing commitment to middle-market investing.
Schwartz's remarks suggested that maintaining that combination of global scale and specialized operating resources will remain an important consideration as the firm enters its next phase of development.
