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From industry analysis to product updates and more, track what Heron has to say.
Investors should think twice about private credit ETFs, says Heron Finance
Benzinga publishes Heron article on three reasons that new retail-friendly private credit products might be risky for investors.
"Private credit is attracting enormous attention in 2025, but not all access points are created equal," said Khang Nguyen, Chief Credit Officer at Heron. "Many of the new ETF and interval fund structures look appealing on the surface, but under the hood, they may introduce risks that most investors don't fully understand."
Private credit’s latest golden moment is hiding the cracks
Bloomberg analyzes the risks of investing in private credit.
"The real areas of worry are “portfolios heavily concentrated in second-lien loans, last-out positions within unitranche structures, or unsecured debt,” says Khang Nguyen, chief credit officer at Heron Finance."
What is private credit, and what are the risks?
Nerdwallet interviews Heron’s Chief Credit Officer, Khang Nguyen, diving into the risks of investing in private credit.
"High and stable returns are one of the upsides of private credit. The asset class averages returns of 9% to 11% per year, Nguyen says, which is significantly higher than what you’d earn with many bond funds."
Private credit's latest golden moment conceals market cracks
InvestmentNews includes Heron’s insights in an exploration of the state of private credit.
"A Heron team analyzed data from the financial crisis between Q3 2008 and Q1 2009 and found first-lien-focused private credit portfolios were down about 3% on average. Those concentrated in junior debt suffered declines of roughly 20%, in line with public markets"
The illusion of liquidity: the potential risks of new private credit ETFs
The Armchair Trader publishes an article by Heron looking at the risks of private credit ETFs.
"The ETF industry has been going through an innovation boom, and while many of these breakthroughs will serve the interests of the end-investor, we at Heron have concerns around whether the ETF structure can effectively handle the idiosyncracies of the private credit marketplace."
Heron Finance brings innovative private credit solution to US investors
The Armchair Trader covers the launch of Heron’s new personalized portfolios.
"The Heron Finance Personalized Private Credit portfolio provides investors with access to fund managers who collectively manage $1 trillion-plus in assets and have 10+ years experience."
New automated private credit solution launches for US wealth market
Alternative Credit Investor covers the launch of Heron’s new personalized portfolios.
"Investment adviser Heron Finance has launched an automated private credit solution to make it easier for US individuals to access the asset class."
Heron Finance Launches Industry-Leading Personalized Private Credit Portfolio
Yahoo Finance covers the launch of Heron’s new personalized portfolios.
"We're excited to introduce a private credit solution that not only provides access to institutional-grade deals but also provides investors with a personalized portfolio based on their preferences," said Mike Sall, co-founder and CEO of Heron Finance.
Invest with confidence.
Your questions answered.
To start, we don't plan to go out of business! We are backed by large institutional investors, generating revenue, and maintaining an ample runway. As any business should, we maintain a continuity plan.
In the highly unlikely event that we did wind down the business, your money is still safe. At a high level, here's what you need to know and how it would wind down:
- All LP shares of funds are held in a separate, bankruptcy-remote legal entity from the one that we use to run our day-to-day operations. Second, Heron Finance works with a qualified custodian, Inspira, that custodies said LP shares.
- In the event that Heron Finance's operating entity were to shut down, we would submit redemption requests to all of the funds.
- Then that separate holding entity and Inspira would work to identify a backup service provider that could manage the redemptions and work to facilitate the return of your capital.
Anyone automatically qualifies as an “accredited investor” if they meet just one of the following criteria:
- Income: Individual income of $200,000, or joint (with a spouse or partner) income of $300,000 for the two prior years, with the same anticipated in the current year
- Net Worth: Individual or combined (with a spouse or partner) net worth of $1 million or greater, excluding your primary residence
- Exam: A Series 7, 65, or 82 in good standing
You can verify your status as an accredited investor as a part of our sign-up process. The documents you need will depend on the method of verification. You only need to verify via one of the following:
- Income verification: Connect your payroll provider, or upload W-2s, K-1s, 1099s, paystubs, or tax returns to verify your income
- Net worth verification: Bank statements, brokerage statements, securities holdings statements, certificates of deposit, tax assessments, or appraisal reports (Note: when you use the net worth verification, we pull a “soft” credit report that will not impact your credit score.)
- 3rd party letter: A letter from an attorney or accountant testifying that you are accredited
To learn more about how to become accredited, see our article: 4 Easy Steps to Becoming an Accredited Investor.
Heron offers several key advantages over a traditional secondary marketplace or a fund:
- End-to-end management. Once you select your strategy and make a deposit, as a robo-advisor, we manage the entire investing process for you. We keep up with inventory across many brokers and marketplaces, manage the bids and offers, and sign documents and help with all of that in reverse when you're ready to sell. We turn what can be a multi-week process to buy shares in a single company into a simplified process that gives you exposure to multiple companies
- Automated, diversified strategies. Compared to manually buying shares of pre-IPO companies, Heron offers ways to get themed access to many companies at once via pre-built strategies, and we will update that list over time automatically.
- Access to institutional deals. As a qualified purchaser (> $25M in investable assets), Heron Finance provides individual investors exposure to institutional pre-IPO company deals that simply won't show up on the marketplaces, or would come with very high minimums.
- Investment minimum. At Heron, you gain exposure to multiple private companies for a single $10,000 investment compared to $5,000 to $1 million+ per company when you buy individual pre-IPO company shares on marketplaces.
- Heron (as of Jan 2026) makes investments monthly (because that's what almost all the underlying funds do). This means clients can deposit at any time, and then once per month, we batch together what we have received and invest in the appropriate funds to match client demand.
- In order to simplify all the requirements of the underlying funds, banks, and custodians, your money must land with us by roughly the 15th of each month (give or take a couple days, depending on how the calendar falls. The actual day will be messaged in the app). We do have same-day ACH, but you should target sending at least 1 business day early to be safe.
- Interest for any given month does not hit your account until 2-8 weeks after the end of a given month, depending on your distribution preferences. In rare cases it could be longer.
- We distribute dividends in batches twice / month for whatever we have received since the last distribution. Typically on the 8th and the 21st of each month.
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Charts, images, and other visual materials are for illustrative purposes only and should not be considered individualized investment advice. The strategies shown may not be suitable for all investors.
The information on this website does not constitute an offer to sell securities or a solicitation of an offer to buy securities. Further, none of the information contained on this website is a recommendation to invest in any securities or a recommendation of any interest in any investment offered by Warbler Labs, Inc. or any of its subsidiaries (collectively, “Warbler”).
Any financial forecasts or financial returns, whether in the form of interest or appreciation displayed on this website are for illustrative purposes only and are not a guarantee of future results. Private credit investments are subject to credit, liquidity, and interest rate risk. In the event of any default by a borrower, you will bear a risk of loss of principal and accrued interest on such loan, which could have a material adverse effect on your investment. A borrower may default for a variety of reasons, including non-payment of principal or interest, as well as breaches of contractual covenants. Credit risks associated with the investments include (among others): (i) the possibility that earnings of a borrower may be insufficient to meet its debt service obligations; (ii) a borrower's assets declining in value; and (iii) the declining creditworthiness, default, and potential for insolvency of a borrower during periods of rising interest rates and economic downturn.
Any investment target return presented here is intended for informational purposes only and does not guarantee future performance or results. This model assumes no variability, including no loan defaults, fluctuations in interest rate, customer withdrawal requests, late payments, or penalties, and our management fees have remained unchanged throughout this projection. Please be aware that all investment involves inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future outcomes. Customers are advised to consult their own legal and tax advisers regarding their specific circumstances and needs. We do not accept any liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of this information or for any actions taken based on this information without seeking professional advice.
Private equity investments involve a high degree of risk, including the potential loss of the entire investment, illiquidity, long holding periods, limited transparency, and sensitivity to economic and market conditions. Diversification does not ensure a profit or protect against loss, and past performance is not indicative of future results. Comparisons to individual private funds, public markets, institutional portfolios, or other benchmarks are provided for illustrative purposes only. These may not represent a direct comparison, may rely on data reported by third-party managers, and may reflect differing methodologies, time periods, or investment universes. Data from underlying fund managers may be subject to reporting lag, estimation, or revision.
Investing in private, pre-IPO companies involves significant risk and is not suitable for all investors. These investments are generally illiquid, may be difficult to value, may be subject to transfer restrictions, and may result in the loss of some or all of your investment. Any information provided is for informational purposes only and should not be viewed as investment, legal, or tax advice or as a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Past performance, estimated valuations, company growth, or secondary market pricing are not indicative of future results. Pre-IPO companies are privately owned and not all private companies will experience an IPO or other liquidity event.
No communication by Heron or any of its affiliates through this website should be construed or is intended to be investment, tax, financial, accounting, or legal advice. Heron Advisory, Inc., d.b.a. Heron Finance is an SEC-registered investment advisor (RIA). Such registration should in no way imply that the SEC has endorsed the entities, products or services discussed herein.