Richard Byrne on interest rates
From Episode 2: Opportunities in Alternative Credit with Guest Rich Byrne, President, Benefit Street P... · · Franklin Templeton
“The truth is we already hit the iceberg. The iceberg was the rise in interest rates. The base rate on the loans that we make went up by infinity%.”
On , Richard Byrne, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer at FRANKLIN BSP REALTY TRUST IN, spoke about interest rates during Episode 2: Opportunities in Alternative Credit with Guest Rich Byrne, President, Benefit Street P... on Franklin Templeton.
About Richard Byrne
Richard Byrne, President of Benefit Street Partners and Chairman and CEO of Franklin BSP Realty Trust, appeared on two episodes of the Franklin Templeton podcast "Alternative Allocations" in April 2026. He discussed opportunities in commercial real estate debt and alternative credit, describing the current market as a disruptive environment that offers strong relative value for new capital. Byrne stated that "about 50% of all the capital, the debt capital provided to real estate developers has been from banks," with regional banks holding a significant portion of office loans, and suggested that if bank executives could mark assets to market, "they would be very relieved" and could "rip the band-aid off." Byrne characterized the rise in interest rates as an "iceberg" that has already been hit, and noted that while existing portfolios face challenges, "for new capital, there's going to be one of the best investment opportunities we've seen maybe even since the global financial crisis." He also discussed the private credit market, observing that lower leverage and better covenants on new deals create a "lot of margin for error" for lenders.