UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

OR

COMMISSION FILE NUMBER: 814-00757

FS KKR Capital Corp.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (215) 495-1150

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.    Yes  ☒    No  ☐.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.    Yes  ☐    No  ☒.

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    Yes  ☒    No  ☐.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).    Yes  ☒    No  ☐.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.  ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.   ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).    Yes  ☐    No  ☒.

The aggregate market value of common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant (assuming solely for the purpose of this disclosure, but without conceding, all executive officers and directors of the registrant are “affiliates”), as of June 30, 2021, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, was approximately $6.1 billion.

There were 284,274,634 shares of the registrant’s common stock outstanding as of February 25, 2022.

Documents Incorporated by Reference

Portions of the registrant’s definitive Proxy Statement relating to the registrant’s 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, to be filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission within 120 days following the end of the registrant’s fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, are incorporated by reference in Part III of this annual report on Form 10-K as indicated herein.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PART I

Many of the amounts and percentages presented in Part I have been rounded for convenience of presentation.

Summary

FS KKR Capital Corp. (NYSE: FSK), or the Company, which may also be referred to as “we,” “us” or “our,” was incorporated under the general corporation laws of the State of Maryland on December 21, 2007 and formally commenced investment operations on January 2, 2009. We are an externally managed, non-diversified, closed-end management investment company that has elected to be regulated as a business development company, or BDC, under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, or the 1940 Act. As such, we are required to comply with certain regulatory requirements. In addition, we have elected to be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and intend to qualify annually, as a regulated investment company, or RIC, under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code. As of December 31, 2021, we had total assets of approximately $17.2 billion.

We are managed by FS/KKR Advisor, LLC, or the Advisor, a registered investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended, or the Advisers Act, which oversees the management of our operations and is responsible for making investment decisions with respect to our portfolio. Our investment objectives are to generate current income and, to a lesser extent, long-term capital appreciation. We seek to meet our investment objectives by:

Our portfolio is comprised primarily of investments in senior secured loans and second lien secured loans of private middle market U.S. companies and, to a lesser extent, subordinated loans and certain asset-based financing loans of private U.S. companies. Although we do not expect a significant portion of our portfolio to be comprised of subordinated loans, there is no limit on the amount of such loans in which we may invest. We may purchase interests in loans or make other debt investments, including investments in senior secured bonds, through secondary market transactions in the “over-the-counter,” or OTC, market or directly from our target companies as primary market or directly originated investments. In connection with our debt investments, we may on occasion receive equity interests such as warrants or options as additional consideration. We may also purchase or otherwise acquire interests in the form of common or preferred equity or equity-related securities, such as rights and warrants that may be converted into or exchanged for common stock or other equity or the cash value of common stock or other equity, including through a co-investment with a financial sponsor or possibly the restructuring of an investment. In addition, a portion of our portfolio may be comprised of corporate bonds, structured products, other debt securities and derivatives, including total return swaps and credit default swaps. The Advisor will seek to tailor our investment focus as market conditions evolve. Depending on market conditions, we may increase or decrease our exposure to less senior portions of the capital structures of our portfolio companies or otherwise make opportunistic investments, such as where the market price of loans, bonds or other securities reflects a lower value than deemed warranted by the Advisor’s fundamental analysis. Such investment opportunities may occur due to general dislocations in the markets, a misunderstanding by the market of a particular company or an industry being out of favor with the broader investment community and may include event driven investments, anchor orders and structured products.

The senior secured loans, second lien secured loans and senior secured bonds in which we invest generally have stated terms of three to seven years and subordinated debt investments that we make generally have stated terms of up to ten years, but the expected average life of such securities is generally three to four years. However, we may invest in loans and securities with any maturity or duration. Our debt investments may be rated by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization, or NRSRO, and, in such case, generally will carry a rating below investment grade (rated lower than “Baa3” by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc., or Moody’s, or lower than “BBB-” by Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services, or S&P). We may invest without limit in debt or other securities of any rating, as well as debt or other securities that have not been rated by a NRSRO.

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To seek to enhance our returns, we employ leverage as market conditions permit and at the discretion of the Advisor, but in no event will leverage employed exceed the maximum amount permitted by the 1940 Act. Prior to June 14, 2019, in accordance with the 1940 Act, we were allowed to borrow amounts such that our asset coverage, calculated pursuant to the 1940 Act, was at least 200% after such borrowing. Effective June 15, 2019, following approval by our stockholders, our asset coverage requirement was reduced from 200% to 150%.

As a BDC, we are subject to certain regulatory restrictions in making our investments. For example, BDCs generally are not permitted to co-invest with certain affiliated entities in transactions originated by the BDC or its affiliates in the absence of an exemptive order from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC. However, BDCs are permitted to, and may, simultaneously co-invest in transactions where price is the only negotiated term. In an order dated January 5, 2021, the SEC granted exemptive relief permitting us, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, to co-invest in certain privately negotiated investment transactions, including investments originated and directly negotiated by the Advisor or KKR Credit Advisors (US) LLC, or KKR Credit, with our co-investment affiliates. We believe this relief enhances our ability to further our investment objectives and strategy. We believe this relief may also increase favorable investment opportunities for us in part by allowing us to participate in larger investments, together with our co-investment affiliates, than would be available to us if such relief had not been obtained.

Reverse Stock Split

On June 15, 2020, we filed Articles of Amendment to our Articles of Incorporation, or the Reverse Stock Split Amendment, with the State Department of Assessments and Taxation of the State of Maryland to effect a 4 to 1 reverse split of our shares of common stock, or the Reverse Stock Split. The Reverse Stock Split became effective in accordance with the terms of the Reverse Stock Split Amendment on June 15, 2020. As a result of the Reverse Stock Split, every four shares of our common stock issued and outstanding were automatically combined into one share of our common stock, and the number of outstanding shares of our common stock was reduced from approximately 495.0 million to approximately 123.8 million as of June 15, 2020. The Reverse Stock Split did not modify the rights or preferences of our common stock. We also filed a separate Articles of Amendment to its Articles of Incorporation with the State Department of Assessments and Taxation of the State of Maryland to provide that there would be no change in the par value of $0.001 per share as a result of the Reverse Stock Split.

FS KKR Capital Corp. II Acquisition

On June 16, 2021, we completed our acquisition of FS KKR Capital Corp. II, or FSKR, pursuant to that certain Agreement and Plan of Merger, or the 2020 Merger Agreement, dated as of November 23, 2020, by and among the Company, FSKR, Rocky Merger Sub, Inc., a former wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, or Merger Sub, and the Advisor. Pursuant to the 2020 Merger Agreement, Merger Sub merged with and into FSKR, with FSKR continuing as the surviving company and as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, or the First Merger, and, immediately thereafter, FSKR merged with and into the Company, with the Company continuing as the surviving company, or together with the First Merger, the 2021 Merger. In accordance with the terms of the 2020 Merger Agreement, each outstanding share of FSKR common stock was converted into the right to receive 0.9498 shares of our common stock. As a result, we issued an aggregate of approximately 161,374,028 shares of its common stock to former FSKR stockholders. Following the consummation of the 2021 Merger, we entered into a new investment advisory agreement with the Advisor, dated as of June 16, 2021, or the investment advisory agreement.

About the Advisor

The Advisor is a Delaware limited liability company, located at 201 Rouse Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19112, registered as an investment adviser with the SEC under the Advisers Act. The Advisor is a partnership between an affiliate of Franklin Square Holdings, L.P. (which does business as FS Investments), or FS Investments, and KKR Credit. Our chairman and chief executive officer, Michael C. Forman, serves as the Advisor’s chairman and chief executive officer.

The Advisor has significant experience in private lending and private equity investing, and has developed an expertise in using all levels of a firm’s capital structure to produce income-generating investments, while focusing on risk management. The Advisor also has extensive knowledge of the managerial, operational and regulatory requirements of publicly registered alternative asset entities, such as BDCs. We believe that the active and ongoing participation by the Advisor, FS Investments, KKR Credit and their respective affiliates in the credit markets, and the depth of experience and disciplined investment approach of the Advisor, will allow the Advisor to successfully execute our investment strategies.

Our board of directors, which is comprised of a majority of independent directors, oversees and monitors our investment performance, and beginning with the second anniversary of the effective date of the investment advisory agreement, will review the investment advisory agreement to determine, among other things, whether the fees payable under such agreement are reasonable in light of the services provided.

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About FS Investments

FS Investments is a leading asset manager dedicated to helping individuals, financial professionals and institutions design better portfolios. The firm provides access to alternative sources of income and growth, and focuses on setting industry standards for investor protection, education and transparency. FS Investments is headquartered in Philadelphia, PA, with offices in New York, NY, Orlando, FL, and Leawood, KS. The firm had approximately $32 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2021.

About KKR Credit

KKR Credit is a Delaware limited liability company, located at 555 California Street, 50th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94104, registered as an investment adviser with the SEC under the Advisers Act. It had approximately $187 billion of assets under management as of December 31, 2021 across investment funds, structured finance vehicles, specialty finance companies and separately managed accounts that invest capital in both liquid and illiquid credit strategies on behalf of some of the largest public and private pension plans, global financial institutions, university endowments and other institutional and public market investors. Its investment professionals utilize an industry and thematic approach to investing and benefit from access, where appropriate, to the broader resources and intellectual capital of KKR & Co. Inc., or KKR & Co.

KKR Credit is a subsidiary of KKR & Co., a leading global investment firm with approximately $471 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2021, that manages investments across multiple asset classes, including private equity, energy, infrastructure, real estate and credit, with strategic manager partnerships that manage hedge funds. KKR & Co. aims to generate attractive investment returns for its fund investors by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and driving growth and value creation with KKR & Co. portfolio companies. KKR & Co. invests its own capital alongside the capital it manages for fund investors and provides financing solutions and investment opportunities through its capital markets business.

Potential Market Opportunity

We believe significant investment opportunities will continue to present themselves in the senior secured and second lien secured loan asset class, as well as investments in debt securities of middle market companies.

Attractive Opportunities in Senior Secured and Second Lien Secured Loans

The variable rate structure of most senior secured and second lien secured loans present significant opportunities across the asset class, particularly within a rising interest rate environment. Additionally, the strong defensive characteristics inherent to many securities across the asset class make them compelling to many investors, especially as financial conditions tighten. Because senior secured debt has priority in payment among an issuer’s security holders (i.e., holders are due to receive payment before junior creditors and equity holders), they carry the least potential risk within the issuer’s capital structure. Further, senior secured debt investments are secured by the issuer’s assets, which may be seized in the event of a default. Senior secured loans generally also carry restrictive covenants aimed at ensuring repayment before junior creditors, including unsecured bondholders and other security holders, preserving collateral to protect against credit deterioration.

Opportunity in Middle Market Private Companies

In addition to investing in senior secured and second lien secured loans, we believe that the market for lending to private companies, particularly middle market private companies within the United States, presents a compelling investment opportunity. The following characteristics support our belief:

Limited Investment Competition. Despite the size of the market, regulatory changes and other factors have diminished the role of traditional financial institutions in providing financing to middle market companies in favor of lending to large corporate clients and leading syndication efforts for capital markets transactions. Further, we believe a limited number of lenders are willing to hold large amounts of middle market loans. As a result, we believe our ability to eliminate syndication risk by holding middle market loans is a competitive advantage.

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Potential Competitive Strengths

We believe that we offer investors the following potential competitive strengths:

Large, scalable, global platform with seasoned investment professionals

We believe that the breadth and depth of the experience of the Advisor and its affiliates, which are dedicated to sourcing, structuring, executing, monitoring and harvesting a broad range of private investments, provide us with a significant competitive advantage in sourcing and analyzing attractive investment opportunities. Our investment platform is supported by approximately 160 dedicated investment professionals at KKR Credit located in nine global cities. We also benefit from the expertise, network and resources of KKR & Co., which has over 400 investment professionals located in 21 global cities. The individual members of these teams have diverse investment backgrounds, with prior experience at investment banks, commercial banks, other asset managers and operating companies. We believe this diverse experience provides an in-depth understanding of the strategic, financial and operational challenges and opportunities of middle-market companies.

Utilization of long-standing relationships and international capital market capabilities to source investments

The Advisor and its affiliates have worked diligently over many years to build strategic relationships with private equity firms, banks and trading desks globally. Our and our affiliates’ long history of serving as a reliable financing partner to middle-market sponsors, even during periods of significant market dislocation, has enhanced our reputation. We believe that our network of relationships will continue to produce attractive investment opportunities.

The Advisor also leverages the intellectual capital, industry experience and global network of KKR & Co.’s Capital Markets franchise to support the origination of new private credit investment opportunities. Through KKR & Co.’s Capital Markets franchise, the Advisor benefits from expanded sources of deal flow, real-time market intelligence on pricing trends and continuous dialogue with issuers and sponsors to provide holistic financing solutions to current and prospective portfolio companies. In addition, KKR & Co.’s Capital Markets franchise gives us the ability to access and originate larger transactions and enhances the Advisor’s ability to manage risk.

Focus on larger middle market companies and customized one-stop credit solutions

We are focused on providing customized credit solutions to private upper middle market companies, which we generally define as companies with annual EBITDA of at least $50 million at the time of our investment. Based on its size and scale, the KKR Credit platform is able to originate, commit to and hold positions in excess of $1 billion in a given transaction. This size allows us to serve in the lead financing role for certain larger middle market companies with more than $100 million in EBITDA. We believe our ability to underwrite an entire transaction provides financial sponsors and companies with a greater degree of financing certainty and further enhances our competitive position. The KKR Credit platform also offers a variety of financing structures and has the flexibility to structure investments to meet the needs of companies. Finally, we believe that the upper end of the middle market is less competitive as fewer lenders have the requisite size and scale to provide holistic solutions for these companies.

Long-term investment horizon

Our long-term investment horizon gives us great flexibility, which we believe allows us to maximize returns on our investments. Unlike most private equity and venture capital funds, as well as many private debt funds, we are not required to

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return capital to our stockholders once we exit a portfolio investment. We believe that freedom from such capital return requirements, which allows us to invest using a longer-term focus, provides us with the opportunity to increase total returns on invested capital, compared to other private company investment vehicles.

Disciplined, income-oriented investment philosophy

The Advisor employs a defensive investment approach focused on long-term credit performance and principal protection. This investment approach involves a multi-stage selection process for each investment opportunity, as well as ongoing monitoring of each investment made, with particular emphasis on early detection of deteriorating credit conditions at portfolio companies which would result in adverse portfolio developments. This strategy is designed to maximize current income and minimize the risk of capital loss while maintaining the potential for long-term capital appreciation.

Investment expertise across all levels of the corporate capital structure

The Advisor believes that its broad expertise and experience investing at all levels of a company’s capital structure enable us to manage risk while affording us the opportunity for significant returns on our investments. We attempt to capitalize on this expertise in an effort to produce and maintain an investment portfolio that will perform in a broad range of economic conditions.

Ability to create bespoke financing solutions through asset-based opportunities

The Advisor believes that there is an expansive and growing opportunity to create customized solutions in underserved asset classes, including across the aircraft, consumer finance and auto and equipment finance sectors. The Advisor will seek to identify investments with strong collateral protection, a low correlation to the broader markets and equity-like upside potential.

Maintenance of portfolio diversification

In addition to focusing our investments in middle-market companies, we seek to invest across various industries. The Advisor monitors our investment portfolio to ensure we have acceptable industry balance, using industry and market metrics as key indicators. By monitoring our investment portfolio for industry balance, we seek to reduce the effects of economic downturns associated with any particular industry or market sector. Notwithstanding our intent to invest across a variety of industries, we may from time to time hold securities of a single portfolio company that comprise more than 5.0% of our total assets and/or more than 10.0% of the outstanding voting securities of the portfolio company. For that reason, we are classified as a non-diversified management investment company under the 1940 Act.

Investment Strategy

Our principal focus is to invest in senior secured and second lien secured loans of private middle market U.S. companies, and to a lesser extent, subordinated loans and certain asset-based financing loans of private U.S. companies. Although we do not expect a significant portion of our portfolio to be comprised of subordinated loans, there is no limit on the amount of such loans in which we may invest. We may purchase interests in loans or make other debt investments, including investments in senior secured bonds, through secondary market transactions in the OTC market or directly from our target companies as primary market or directly originated investments. In connection with our debt investments, we may on occasion receive equity interests such as warrants or options as additional consideration. We may also purchase or otherwise acquire interests in the form of common or preferred equity or equity-related securities, such as rights and warrants that may be converted into or exchanged for common stock or other equity or the cash value of common stock or other equity, including through a co-investment with a financial sponsor or possibly the restructuring of an investment. In addition, a portion of our portfolio may be comprised of bonds, structured products, other debt securities and derivatives. The Advisor will seek to tailor our investment focus as market conditions evolve. Depending on market conditions, we may increase or decrease our exposure to less senior portions of the capital structures of our portfolio companies or otherwise make opportunistic investments, such as where the market price of loans, bonds or other securities reflects a lower value than deemed warranted by the Advisor’s fundamental analysis. Such investment opportunities may occur due to general dislocations in the markets, a misunderstanding by the market of a particular company or an industry being out of favor with the broader investment community and may include event driven investments, anchor orders and structured products.

When identifying prospective portfolio companies, we focus primarily on the attributes set forth below, which we believe will help us generate higher total returns with an acceptable level of risk. While these criteria provide general guidelines for our investment decisions, if we believe the benefits of investing are sufficiently strong, not all of these criteria necessarily will be met by each portfolio company in which we choose to invest. These attributes are:

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Joint Venture

We also co-invest with South Carolina Retirement Systems Group Trust, or SCRS, through Credit Opportunities Partners JV, LLC (formerly konwn as Strategic Credit Opportunities Partners, LLC), or COPJV, a joint venture with SCRS. COPJV invests its capital in a range of investments, including senior secured loans (both first lien and second lien) to middle market companies, broadly syndicated loans, equity, warrants and other investments. We and SCRS each have 50% voting control of COPJV and together are required to agree on all investment decisions as well as certain other significant actions for COPJV. As of December 31, 2021, COPJV had total capital commitments of $2 billion, $1.75 billion of which was from us and the remaining $250 million of which was from SCRS. As of December 31, 2021, we had funded approximately $1.4 billion of our commitment. Additionally, as of December 31, 2021, COPJV had $477.9 million of borrowing capacity. As of December 31, 2021, our investment in COPJV was approximately $1.4 billion at fair value. We do not consolidate COPJV in our consolidated financial statements.

Investment Types

We primarily focus on the following investment types:

Senior Secured Loans

Senior secured loans are situated at the top of a company’s capital structure. Because these loans generally have priority in payment, they carry the least risk among all investments in a firm. Generally, our senior secured loans are expected to have maturities of three to seven years, offer some form of amortization, and have first priority security interests in the assets of the borrower. Generally, we expect that the interest rate on our senior secured loans typically will have variable rates over a standard benchmark, such as the prime rate or the London Interbank Offered Rate, or LIBOR.

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Second Lien Secured Loans

Second lien secured loans are immediately junior to senior secured loans and have substantially the same maturities, collateral and covenant structures as senior secured loans. Second lien secured loans, however, are granted a second priority security interest in the assets of the borrower, which means that any realization of collateral will generally be applied to pay senior secured loans in full before second lien secured loans are paid and the value of the collateral may not be sufficient to repay in full both senior secured loans and second lien secured loans. In return for this junior ranking, second lien secured loans generally offer higher returns compared to senior secured debt. These higher returns come in the form of higher interest and in some cases the potential for equity participation through warrants, though to a lesser extent than with subordinated loans. Generally, we expect these loans to carry a fixed rate, or a floating current yield over a standard benchmark. In addition, we may receive additional returns from any warrants we may receive in connection with these investments.

Senior Secured Bonds

Senior secured bonds are generally secured by collateral on a senior, pari passu or junior basis with other debt instruments in an issuer’s capital structure and have similar maturities and covenant structures as senior secured loans. Generally, we expect these investments to carry a fixed rate.

Subordinated Debt

In addition to senior secured loans, second lien secured loans and senior secured bonds, we may invest a portion of our assets in subordinated debt. Subordinated debt investments usually rank junior in priority of payment to senior debt and are often unsecured, but are situated above preferred equity and common equity in the capital structure. In return for their junior status compared to senior debt, subordinated debt investments typically offer higher returns through both higher interest rates and possible equity ownership in the form of warrants, enabling the lender to participate in the capital appreciation of the borrower. These warrants typically require only a nominal cost to exercise. We generally target subordinated debt with interest-only payments throughout the life of the security, with the principal due at maturity. Typically, subordinated debt investments have maturities of five to ten years. Generally, we expect these securities to carry a fixed rate, or a floating current yield over a standard benchmark. In addition, we may receive additional returns from any warrants we may receive in connection with these investments. In some cases, a portion of the total interest may accrue or be paid-in-kind, or PIK.

Equity and Equity-Related Securities

While we intend to maintain our focus on investments in debt securities, from time to time, when we see the potential for extraordinary gain, or in connection with securing particularly favorable terms in a debt investment, we may enter into investments in preferred or common equity, typically in conjunction with a private equity sponsor we believe to be sophisticated and seasoned. In addition, we may receive the right to make equity investments in a portfolio company whose debt securities we hold in connection with the next equity financing round for that company. This right may provide us with the opportunity to further enhance our returns over time through equity investments in our portfolio companies. In addition, we may hold equity-related securities, such as rights and warrants that may be converted into or exchanged for common stock or other equity or the cash value of common stock or other equity, generally obtained in conjunction with one of our debt investments or through a co-investment with a financial sponsor, such as an institutional investor or private equity firm. In the future, we may achieve liquidity through a merger or acquisition of a portfolio company, a public offering of a portfolio company’s stock or by exercising our right, if any, to require a portfolio company to repurchase the equity-related securities we hold.

Convertible Securities

We may invest in convertible securities, such as bonds, debentures, notes, preferred stocks or other securities that may be converted into, or exchanged for, a specified amount of common stock of the same or different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula.

Non-U.S. Securities

We may invest in non-U.S. securities, which may include securities denominated in U.S. dollars or in non-U.S. currencies and securities of companies in emerging markets, to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act.

Investments in Asset-Based Opportunities

We may invest in asset-based opportunities through joint ventures, investment platforms, private investment funds or other business entities that provide one or more of the following services: origination or sourcing of potential investment opportunities, due diligence and negotiation of potential investment opportunities and/or servicing, development and management (including

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turnaround) and disposition of investments. Such investments may be in or alongside existing or newly formed operators, consultants and/or managers that pursue such opportunities and may or may not include capital and/or assets contributed by third party investors. Such investments may include opportunities to direct-finance physical assets, such as airplanes and ships, and/or operating assets, such as financial service entities, as opposed to investment securities, or to invest in origination and/or servicing platforms directly. These asset-based opportunities are expected to offer mezzanine-like structural downside protection as well as asset collateral, and equity-like upside that can be achieved through appreciation at the asset-level or, in the case of platforms, through growth of the enterprise value. Key areas of focus include, without limitation, aircraft, real estate and consumer finance.

Structured Products

We may invest in structured products, which may include collateralized debt obligations, collateralized bond obligations, collateralized loan obligations, structured notes and credit-linked notes. The issuers of such investment products may be structured as trusts or other types of pooled investment vehicles. Such products may also involve the deposit with or purchase by an entity of the underlying investments and the issuance by that entity of one or more classes of securities backed by, or representing interests in, the underlying investments or referencing an indicator related to such investments.

Derivatives

We may also invest from time to time in derivatives, including total return swaps, interest rate swaps, credit default swaps and foreign currency forward contracts. We anticipate that any use of derivatives would primarily be as a substitute for investing in conventional securities or to hedge potential risk that is identified by the Advisor.

Investments with Third-Parties

We may co-invest with third parties through partnerships, joint ventures or other entities, thereby acquiring jointly-controlled or non-controlling interests in certain investments in conjunction with participation by one or more third parties in such investment. Such joint venture partners or third party managers may include former personnel of the Advisor or its affiliates or associated persons.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

We may maintain a certain level of cash or equivalent instruments, including money market funds, to make follow-on investments, if necessary, in existing portfolio companies or to take advantage of new opportunities.

Comparison of Targeted Debt Investments to Corporate Bonds

Loans to private companies are debt instruments that can be compared to corporate bonds to aid an investor’s understanding. As with corporate bonds, loans to private companies can range in credit quality depending on security-specific factors, including total leverage, amount of leverage senior to the security in question, variability in the issuer’s cash flows, the quality of assets securing debt and the degree to which such assets cover the subject company’s debt obligations. As is the case in the corporate bond market, we will require greater returns for securities that we perceive to carry increased risk. The companies in which we invest may be leveraged, often as a result of leveraged buyouts or other recapitalization transactions, and, in many cases, will not be rated by national rating agencies. When our targeted debt investments do carry ratings from a NRSRO, we believe that such ratings generally will be below investment grade (rated lower than “Baa3” by Moody’s or lower than “BBB-” by S&P). To the extent we make unrated investments, we believe that such investments would likely receive similar ratings if they were to be examined by a NRSRO. Compared to below- investment grade corporate bonds that are typically available to the public, our targeted senior secured and second lien secured loan investments are higher in the capital structure, have priority in receiving payment, are secured by the issuer’s assets, allow the lender to seize collateral if necessary, and generally exhibit higher rates of recovery in the event of default. Corporate bonds, on the other hand, are often unsecured obligations of the issuer.

The market for loans to private companies possesses several key differences compared to the corporate bond market. For instance, due to a possible lack of debt ratings for certain middle market firms, and also due to the reduced availability of information for private companies, investors must conduct extensive due diligence investigations before committing to an investment. This intensive due diligence process gives the investor significant access to management, which is often not possible in the case of corporate bondholders, who rely on underwriters, debt rating agencies and publicly available information for due diligence reviews and monitoring of corporate issuers. While holding these investments, private debt investors often receive monthly or quarterly updates on the portfolio company’s financial performance, along with possible representation on the company’s board of directors, which allows the investor to take remedial action quickly if conditions happen to deteriorate. Due to reduced liquidity, the relative scarcity of capital and extensive due diligence and expertise required on the part of the investor, we believe that private debt securities typically offer higher returns than corporate bonds of equivalent credit quality.

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Investment Process

The investment professionals employed by the Advisor or its affiliates have spent their careers developing the resources necessary to invest in private companies. Our current transaction process is highlighted below.

Our Transaction Process

Sourcing

The relationships of the Advisor and its affiliates provide us with access to a robust and established pipeline of investment opportunities sourced from a variety of different investment channels, including private equity sponsors, non-sponsored corporates, financial advisors, banks, brokers and family offices.

Evaluation

Screening. Once a potential investment has been identified, the Advisor screens the opportunity and makes a preliminary determination concerning whether to proceed with a more comprehensive deal-level due diligence review.

Pipeline/Risk Update. Upon review of the full deal pipeline, the Advisor raises key risks and issues to determine whether or not an investment meets our basic investment criteria and offers an acceptable probability of attractive returns with identifiable downside risk. The objective is for the Advisor to identify a suitable and attractive opportunity for a more comprehensive due diligence review based on the facts and circumstances surrounding the investment.

Deal-level Q&A: After an investment has been identified and preliminary due diligence has been completed, screening memos and a credit research analysis is prepared. These reports are reviewed by the Advisor’s investment committee, or the Investment Committee, to discuss key diligence and structuring issues. Following the Advisor’s review, the Investment Committee will complete any incremental due diligence prior to formal Investment Committee approval. Though each transaction may involve a somewhat different approach, the Advisor’s diligence of each opportunity could include:

Execution

Following any incremental due diligence, the Investment Committee is presented with a formal recommendation for approval. Once the Investment Committee has determined that the portfolio company is suitable for investment, the Advisor works with the management team of the prospective company to finalize the structure and terms of the investment. We believe that structuring transactions appropriately is a key factor to producing strong investment results. Accordingly, we will actively consider transaction structures and seek to process and negotiate terms that provide the best opportunities for superior risk-adjusted returns.

Post-Investment Monitoring

Portfolio Monitoring. The Advisor monitors our portfolio with a focus toward anticipating negative credit events. To maintain portfolio company performance and help to ensure a successful exit, the Advisor works closely with, as applicable, the

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lead equity sponsor, loan syndicator, portfolio company management, consultants, advisers and other security holders to discuss financial position, compliance with covenants, financial requirements and execution of the company’s business plan. In addition, depending on the size, nature and performance of the transaction, we may occupy a seat or serve as an observer on a portfolio company’s board of directors or similar governing body.

Typically, the Advisor receives financial reports detailing operating performance, sales volumes, cost of goods sold, operating expenses, operating margins, cash flows, financial position and other key operating metrics on a quarterly basis from our portfolio companies. The Advisor uses this data, combined with due diligence gained through contact with the company’s customers, suppliers, competitors, market research and other methods, to conduct an ongoing, rigorous assessment of the company’s operating performance and prospects.

In addition to various risk management and monitoring tools, the Advisor uses an investment rating system to characterize and monitor the expected level of returns on each investment in our portfolio. The Advisor uses an investment rating scale of 1 to 4. See “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Portfolio Asset Quality” for a description of the conditions associated with each investment rating.

Valuation Process. We determine the net asset value of our investment portfolio each quarter. Securities are valued at fair value as determined in good faith by our board of directors. In connection with that determination, the Advisor provides our board of directors with portfolio company valuations which are based on relevant inputs, including, but not limited to, indicative dealer quotes, values of like securities, recent portfolio company financial statements and forecasts, and valuations prepared by independent third-party valuation services.

Accounting Standards Codification Topic 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosure, or ASC Topic 820, issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, or FASB, clarifies the definition of fair value and requires companies to expand their disclosure about the use of fair value to measure assets and liabilities in interim and annual periods subsequent to initial recognition. ASC Topic 820 defines fair value as the price that would be received from the sale of an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. ASC Topic 820 also establishes a three-tier fair value hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used in measuring fair value. These tiers include: Level 1, defined as observable inputs such as quoted prices in active markets; Level 2, which includes inputs such as quoted prices for similar securities in active markets and quoted prices for identical securities where there is little or no activity in the market; and Level 3, defined as unobservable inputs for which little or no market data exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions.

With respect to investments for which market quotations are not readily available, we undertake a multi-step valuation process each quarter, as described below:

Determination of fair value involves subjective judgments and estimates. Accordingly, the notes to our consolidated financial statements refer to the uncertainty with respect to the possible effect of such valuations and any change in such

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valuations on our consolidated financial statements. In making its determination of fair value, our board of directors may use any approved independent third-party pricing or valuation services. However, our board of directors is not required to determine fair value in accordance with the valuation provided by any single source, and may use any relevant data, including information obtained from the Advisor or any approved independent third-party valuation or pricing service that our board of directors deems to be reliable in determining fair value under the circumstances. Below is a description of factors that the Advisor, any approved independent third-party valuation services and our board of directors may consider when determining the fair value of our investments.

Valuation of fixed income investments, such as loans and debt securities, depends upon a number of factors, including prevailing interest rates for like securities, expected volatility in future interest rates, call features, put features and other relevant terms of the debt. For investments without readily available market prices, we may incorporate these factors into discounted cash flow models to arrive at fair value. Other factors that may be considered include the borrower’s ability to adequately service its debt, the fair market value of the borrower in relation to the face amount of its outstanding debt and the quality of collateral securing our debt investments.

For convertible debt securities, fair value generally approximates the fair value of the debt plus the fair value of an option to purchase the underlying security (i.e., the security into which the debt may convert) at the conversion price. To value such an option, a standard option pricing model may be used.

Our equity interests in portfolio companies for which there is no liquid public market are valued at fair value. Our board of directors, in its determination of fair value, may consider various factors, such as multiples of EBITDA, cash flows, net income, revenues or, in limited instances, book value or liquidation value. All of these factors may be subject to adjustments based upon the particular circumstances of a portfolio company or our actual investment position. For example, adjustments to EBITDA may take into account compensation to previous owners or acquisition, recapitalization, restructuring or other related items.

The Advisor, any approved independent third-party valuation services and our board of directors may also consider private merger and acquisition statistics, public trading multiples discounted for illiquidity and other factors, valuations implied by third-party investments in the portfolio companies or industry practices in determining fair value. The Advisor, any approved independent third-party valuation services and our board of directors may also consider the size and scope of a portfolio company and its specific strengths and weaknesses, and may apply discounts or premiums, where and as appropriate, due to the higher (or lower) financial risk and/or the smaller size of portfolio companies relative to comparable firms, as well as such other factors as our board of directors, in consultation with the Advisor and any approved independent third-party valuation services, if applicable, may consider relevant in assessing fair value. Generally, the value of our equity interests in public companies for which market quotations are readily available is based upon the most recent closing public market price. Portfolio securities that carry certain restrictions on sale are typically valued at a discount from the public market value of the security.

When we receive warrants or other equity securities at nominal or no additional cost in connection with an investment in a debt security, the cost basis in the investment will be allocated between the debt securities and any such warrants or other equity securities received at the time of origination. Our board of directors subsequently values these warrants or other equity securities received at their fair value.

The fair values of our investments are determined in good faith by our board of directors. Our board of directors is responsible for the valuation of our portfolio investments at fair value as determined in good faith pursuant to our valuation policy and consistently applied valuation process. Our board of directors has delegated day-to-day responsibility for implementing our valuation policy to the Advisor, and has authorized the Advisor to utilize independent third-party valuation and pricing services that have been approved by our board of directors. The valuation committee is responsible for overseeing the Advisor’s implementation of the valuation process.

Managerial Assistance. As a BDC, we must offer, and provide upon request, managerial assistance to certain of our portfolio companies. This assistance could involve, among other things, monitoring the operations of our portfolio companies, participating in board and management meetings, consulting with and advising officers of portfolio companies and providing other organizational and financial guidance. Depending on the nature of the assistance required, the Advisor will provide such managerial assistance on our behalf to portfolio companies that request this assistance. To the extent fees are paid for these services, we, rather than the Advisor, will retain any fees paid for such assistance.

Exit

While we attempt to invest in securities that may be sold in a privately negotiated OTC market, providing us a means by which we may exit our positions, we expect that a large portion of our portfolio may not be sold on this secondary market. For

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any investments that are not able to be sold within this market, we focus primarily on investing in companies whose business models and growth prospects offer attractive exit possibilities, including repayment of our investments, an initial public offering of equity securities, a merger, a sale or a recapitalization, in each case with the potential for capital gains to the extent we maintain an equity interest in the underlying portfolio company.

Risk Management

We seek to limit the downside potential of our investment portfolio by, among other things:

We may also enter into interest rate hedging transactions at the sole discretion of the Advisor. Such transactions will enable us to selectively modify interest rate exposure as market conditions dictate.

Affirmative Covenants

Affirmative covenants require borrowers to take actions that are meant to ensure the solvency of the company, facilitate the lender’s monitoring of the borrower, and ensure payment of interest and loan principal due to lenders. Examples of affirmative covenants include covenants requiring the borrower to maintain adequate insurance, accounting and tax records, and to produce frequent financial reports for the benefit of the lender.

Negative Covenants

Negative covenants impose restrictions on the borrower and are meant to protect lenders from actions that the borrower may take that could harm the credit quality of the lender’s investments. Examples of negative covenants include restrictions on the payment of dividends and restrictions on the issuance of additional debt without the lender’s approval. In addition, certain covenants restrict a borrower’s activities by requiring it to meet certain earnings interest coverage ratio and leverage ratio requirements. These covenants are also referred to as financial or maintenance covenants.

Operating and Regulatory Structure

Our investment activities are managed by the Advisor and supervised by our board of directors, a majority of whom are independent. Under the investment advisory agreement, we have agreed to pay the Advisor an annual base management fee based on the average weekly value of our gross assets (excluding cash and cash equivalents) and an incentive fee based on our performance. See Notes 2 and 4 to our consolidated financial statements included in this annual report on Form 10-K for a description of the fees we pay to the Advisor.

From time to time, the Advisor may enter into sub-advisory relationships with registered investment advisers that possess skills or attributes that the Advisor believes will aid it in achieving our investment objectives. The Advisor oversees our day-to-day operations, including the provision of general ledger accounting, fund accounting, legal services, investor relations, certain government and regulatory affairs activities, and other administrative services. The Advisor also performs, or oversees the performance of, our corporate operations and required administrative services, which includes being responsible for the financial records that we are required to maintain and preparing reports for our stockholders and reports filed with the SEC. In addition, the Advisor assists us in calculating our net asset value, overseeing the preparation and filing of tax returns and the printing and dissemination of reports to our stockholders, and generally overseeing the payment of our expenses and the performance of administrative and professional services rendered to us by others.

Pursuant to our administration agreement, dated April 9, 2018, or the administration agreement, we reimburse the Advisor for expenses necessary to perform services related to our administration and operations, including the Advisor’s allocable portion of the compensation and related expenses of certain personnel of FS Investments and KKR Credit providing administrative

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services to us on behalf of the Advisor. We reimburse the Advisor no less than quarterly for all costs and expenses incurred by the Advisor in performing its obligations and providing personnel and facilities under the administration agreement. The Advisor allocates the cost of such services to us based on factors such as total assets, revenues, time allocations and/or other reasonable metrics. Our board of directors reviews the methodology employed in determining how the expenses are allocated to us and the proposed allocation of administrative expenses among us and certain affiliates of the Advisor. Our board of directors then assesses the reasonableness of such reimbursements for expenses allocated to us based on the breadth, depth and quality of such services as compared to the estimated cost to us of obtaining similar services from third-party service providers known to be available. In addition, our board of directors considers whether any single third-party service provider would be capable of providing all such services at comparable cost and quality. Finally, our board of directors compares the total amount paid to the Advisor for such services as a percentage of our net assets to the same ratio as reported by other comparable BDCs.

We have contracted with State Street Bank and Trust Company to provide various accounting and administrative services, including, but not limited to, preparing preliminary financial information for review by the Advisor, preparing and monitoring expense budgets, maintaining accounting and corporate books and records, processing trade information provided by us and performing testing with respect to RIC compliance.

As a BDC, we are required to comply with certain regulatory requirements. Also, while we are permitted to finance investments using debt, our ability to use debt will be limited in certain significant respects pursuant to the 1940 Act. Within the limits of existing regulation, we will adjust our use of debt, according to market conditions, to the level we believe will allow us to generate maximum risk-adjusted returns. See “—Regulation.” We have elected to be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and intend to qualify annually, as a RIC under the Code.

Regulation

We have elected to be regulated as a BDC under the 1940 Act and as a RIC under the Code. The 1940 Act contains prohibitions and restrictions relating to transactions between BDCs and their affiliates, principal underwriters and affiliates of those affiliates or underwriters, as described below. The 1940 Act also requires that a majority of our directors be persons other than “interested persons,” as that term is defined in the 1940 Act. In addition, the 1940 Act provides that we may not change the nature of our business so as to cease to be, or to withdraw our election as, a BDC unless approved by a majority of our outstanding voting securities. The 1940 Act defines “a majority of the outstanding voting securities” as the lesser of (i) 67% or more of the voting securities present at a meeting if the holders of more than 50% of our outstanding voting securities are present or represented by proxy or (ii) 50% of our outstanding voting securities.

We will generally not be able to issue and sell our common stock at a price per share, after deducting underwriting commissions and discounts, that is below our net asset value per share. We may, however, sell our common stock, or warrants, options or rights to acquire our common stock, at a price below the then-current net asset value of our common stock if our board of directors determines that such sale is in our best interests and the best interests of our stockholders, and our stockholders approve such sale. At the 2021 annual stockholders meeting, our stockholders approved the sale of shares of our common stock at a price below the then-current net asset value per share, subject to certain conditions, during the period beginning on December 10, 2021 and expiring on December 10, 2022. We currently do not intend to utilize this authority to sell shares of our common stock at a price below the then-current net asset value per share. In addition, we may generally issue new shares of our common stock at a price below net asset value per share in rights offerings to existing stockholders, in payment of dividends and in certain other limited circumstances.

As a BDC, we are subject to certain regulatory restrictions in making our investments. For example, BDCs generally are not permitted to co-invest with certain affiliated entities in transactions originated by the BDC or its affiliates in the absence of an exemptive order from the SEC. However, BDCs are permitted to, and may, simultaneously co-invest in transactions where price is the only negotiated term. In an order dated January 5, 2021, the SEC granted exemptive relief permitting us, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, to co-invest in certain privately negotiated investment transactions, including investments originated and directly negotiated by the Advisor or KKR Credit, with our co-investment affiliates. Under the terms of this relief, a “required majority” (as defined in Section 57(o) of the 1940 Act) of our independent directors must make certain conclusions in connection with a co-investment transaction, including that (1) the terms of the proposed transaction, including the consideration to be paid, are reasonable and fair to us and our stockholders and do not involve overreaching of us or our stockholders on the part of any person concerned and (2) the transaction is consistent with the interests of our stockholders and is consistent with our investment objectives and strategy and any criteria established by our board of directors.

Under the 1940 Act, we may only invest up to 30% of our portfolio in entities that are not considered “eligible portfolio companies” under the 1940 Act, including companies located outside of the United States, entities that are operating pursuant to

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certain exceptions under the 1940 Act and publicly traded entities whose public equity market capitalization exceeds the levels provided for under the 1940 Act.

We may invest up to 100% of our assets in securities acquired directly from issuers in privately negotiated transactions. Our intention is to not write (sell) or buy put or call options to manage risks associated with the publicly traded securities of our portfolio companies. We may enter into hedging transactions to manage the risks associated with interest rate and currency fluctuations. We may purchase or otherwise receive warrants or options to purchase the common stock of our portfolio companies in connection with acquisition financings or other investments. In connection with such an acquisition, we may acquire rights to require the issuers of acquired securities or their affiliates to repurchase them under certain circumstances.

We also do not intend to acquire securities issued by any investment company that exceed the limits imposed by the 1940 Act. Under these limits, we generally cannot acquire more than 3% of the voting stock of any investment company (as defined in the 1940 Act), invest more than 5% of the value of our total assets in the securities of one investment company or invest more than 10% of the value of our total assets in the securities of investment companies in the aggregate. With regard to that portion of our portfolio invested in securities issued by investment companies, it should be noted that such investments might subject our stockholders to additional expenses.

On June 14, 2019, our stockholders approved the application of the modified asset coverage requirement set forth in Section 61(a)(2) of the 1940 Act, as amended by the Small Business Credit Availability Act. As a result, we are permitted, under specified conditions, to issue multiple classes of debt and one class of stock senior to our common stock if our asset coverage, as defined in the 1940 Act, is at least equal to 150% immediately after each such issuance, such that the Company’s maximum debt to equity ratio increased from a prior maximum of 1.0x (equivalent of $1 of debt outstanding for each $1 equity) to a maximum of 2.0x (equivalent to $2 of debt outstanding for each $1 of equity). In addition, while any senior securities remain outstanding, we must make provisions to prohibit any distribution to our stockholders or the repurchase of such securities or shares unless we meet the applicable asset coverage ratios at the time of the distribution or repurchase. We may also borrow amounts up to 5% of the value of our total assets for temporary purposes without regard to asset coverage.

During 2021, compliance with material governmental regulations applicable to us did not have a material effect on our capital expenditures, earnings, or competitive position.

Securities Exchange Act and Sarbanes-Oxley Act Compliance

We are subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, including the filing of quarterly, annual and current reports, proxy statements and other required items. In addition, we are subject to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which imposes a wide variety of regulatory requirements on publicly-held companies and their insiders. Many of these requirements affect us. For example:

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires us to review our current policies and procedures to determine whether we comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder. We monitor our compliance with all regulations that are adopted under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and take actions necessary to ensure that we are in compliance therewith.

The New York Stock Exchange Corporate Governance Regulations

The New York Stock Exchange, or NYSE, has adopted corporate governance regulations with which listed companies must comply. We believe we currently are in compliance with such corporate governance listing standards. We intend to monitor our compliance with all future listing standards and to take reasonably necessary actions to ensure that we stay in compliance.

Taxation as a RIC

We have elected to be subject to tax as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code. As a RIC, we generally will not have to pay corporate-level U.S. federal income taxes on any ordinary income or capital gains that we timely distribute each tax year as

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distributions to our stockholders. To qualify for and maintain our qualification as a RIC, we must, among other things, meet certain source-of-income and asset diversification requirements (as described below). In addition, in order to maintain RIC tax treatment, we must distribute to our stockholders, for each tax year, distributions generally of an amount at least equal to 90% of our “investment company taxable income,” which is generally the sum of our net ordinary income plus the excess, if any, of realized net short-term capital gains over realized net long-term capital losses, determined without regard to any deduction for distributions paid, or the Annual Distribution Requirement.

If we:

then we will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on the portion of our income or capital gains we distribute (or are deemed to distribute) as distributions to our stockholders. We will be subject to U.S. federal income tax at the regular corporate rates on any income or capital gains not distributed (or deemed distributed) as distributions to our stockholders.

As a RIC, we will be subject to a 4% nondeductible federal excise tax on certain undistributed income unless we distribute distributions in a timely manner to our stockholders generally of an amount at least equal to the sum of (1) 98% of our net ordinary income (taking into account certain deferrals and elections) for the calendar year, (2) 98.2% of our capital gain net income, which is the excess of capital gains in excess of capital losses, or “capital gain net income” (as adjusted for certain ordinary losses), for the one-year period ending October 31 of that calendar year and (3) any net ordinary income and capital gain net income for the preceding years that were not distributed during such years and on which we paid no U.S. federal income tax, or the Excise Tax Avoidance Requirement. Any distribution declared by us during October, November or December of any calendar year, payable to stockholders of record on a specified date in such a month and actually paid during January of the following calendar year, will be treated as if it had been paid by us, as well as received by our U.S. stockholders, on December 31 of the calendar year in which the distribution was declared.

We have previously incurred, and may incur in the future, such excise tax on a portion of our income and capital gains. While we intend to distribute income and capital gains to minimize exposure to the 4% excise tax, we may not be able to, or may choose not to, distribute amounts sufficient to avoid the imposition of the tax entirely. In that event, we generally will be liable for the excise tax only on the amount by which we do not meet the excise tax avoidance requirement.

In order to qualify as a RIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we must, among other things:

A RIC is limited in its ability to deduct expenses in excess of its investment company taxable income. If our expenses in a given tax year exceed our investment company taxable income, we may experience a net operating loss for that tax year. However, a RIC is not permitted to carry forward net operating losses to subsequent tax years and such net operating losses do not pass through to its stockholders. In addition, deductible expenses can be used only to offset investment company taxable income, not net capital gain. A RIC may not use any net capital losses (that is, the excess of realized capital losses over realized capital gains) to offset its investment company taxable income, but may carry forward such net capital losses, and use them to offset future capital gains, indefinitely. Due to these limits on deductibility of expenses and net capital losses, we may for tax purposes have aggregate taxable income for several years that we are required to distribute and that is taxable to our stockholders even if such taxable income is greater than the net income we actually earn during those years.

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For U.S. federal income tax purposes, we may be required to recognize taxable income in circumstances in which we do not receive a corresponding payment in cash. For example, if we hold debt instruments that are treated under applicable tax rules as having original issue discount (such as debt instruments with PIK interest or, in certain cases, increasing interest rates or debt instruments that were issued with warrants), we must include in income each tax year a portion of the original issue discount that accrues over the life of the obligation, regardless of whether cash representing such income is received by us in the same tax year. We may also have to include in income other amounts that we have not yet received in cash, such as deferred loan origination fees that are paid after origination of the loan or are paid in non-cash compensation such as warrants or stock. We anticipate that a portion of our income may constitute original issue discount or other income required to be included in taxable income prior to receipt of cash. Further, we have elected to amortize market discount and include such amounts in our taxable income in the current tax year, instead of upon their disposition, as an election not to do so would limit our ability to deduct interest expense for tax purposes.

We invest a portion of our net assets in below investment grade instruments. Investments in these types of instruments may present special tax issues for us. U.S. federal income tax rules are not entirely clear about issues such as when we may cease to accrue interest, original issue discount or market discount, when and to what extent deductions may be taken for bad debts or worthless instruments, how payments received on obligations in default should be allocated between principal and income and whether exchanges of debt instruments in a bankruptcy or workout context are taxable. We will address these and other issues to the extent necessary in order to seek to ensure that we distribute sufficient income to avoid any material U.S. federal income or excise tax.

Because any original issue discount or other amounts accrued will be included in our investment company taxable income for the tax year of the accrual, we may be required to make a distribution to our stockholders in order to satisfy the Annual Distribution Requirement, even though we will not have received any corresponding cash amount. As a result, we may have difficulty meeting the Annual Distribution Requirement necessary to maintain RIC tax treatment under Subchapter M of the Code. We may have to sell or otherwise dispose of some of our investments at times and/or at prices we would not consider advantageous, raise additional debt or equity capital or forgo new investment opportunities for this purpose. If we are not able to obtain cash from other sources, we may fail to qualify for RIC tax treatment and thus become subject to corporate-level income tax.

Although we do not presently expect to do so, we are authorized to borrow funds and to sell or otherwise dispose of assets in order to satisfy distribution requirements. However, under the 1940 Act, we are not permitted to make distributions to our stockholders while our debt obligations and other senior securities are outstanding unless certain “asset coverage” tests are met. See “—Regulation—Senior Securities.” Moreover, our ability to sell or otherwise dispose of assets to meet the Annual Distribution Requirement may be limited by (1) the illiquid nature of our portfolio and/or (2) other requirements relating to our status as a RIC, including the Diversification Tests. If we sell or otherwise dispose of assets in order to meet the Annual Distribution Requirement or the Excise Tax Avoidance Requirement, we may make such dispositions at times that, from an investment standpoint, are not advantageous.

A portfolio company in which we invest may face financial difficulties that require us to work-out, modify or otherwise restructure our investment in the portfolio company. Any such transaction could, depending upon the specific terms of the transaction, result in unusable capital losses and future non-cash income. Any such transaction could also result in our receiving assets that give rise to non-qualifying income for purposes of the 90% Income Test or otherwise would not count toward satisfying the Diversification Tests.

Some of the income that we might otherwise earn, such as fees for providing managerial assistance, certain fees earned with respect to our investments, income recognized in a work-out or restructuring of a portfolio investment, or income recognized from an equity investment in an operating partnership, may not satisfy the 90% Income Test. To manage the risk that such income might disqualify us as a RIC for failure to satisfy the 90% Income Test, one or more subsidiary entities treated as U.S. corporations for entity-level income tax purposes may be employed to earn such income and (if applicable) hold the related asset. Such subsidiary entities will be required to pay U.S. federal income tax on their earnings, which ultimately will reduce the yield to our stockholders on such fees and income.

Competition

Our primary competitors for investments include other BDCs and investment funds (including private equity funds, mezzanine funds and CLO funds). In addition, alternative investment vehicles, such as hedge funds, have begun to invest in areas in which they have not traditionally invested, including making investments in middle market private U.S. companies. We also compete with traditional financial services companies such as commercial banks. We believe we will be able to compete with these entities for financing opportunities on the basis of, among other things, the experience of the Advisor and its affiliates.

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Some of our competitors are substantially larger and have considerably greater financial, technical and marketing resources than we do. For example, some competitors may have a lower cost of capital and access to funding sources that are not available to us. In addition, some of our competitors may have higher risk tolerances or different risk assessments than we have and may not be subject to the regulatory restrictions that the 1940 Act imposes on us as a BDC or the restrictions that the Code imposes on us as a RIC. These characteristics could allow our competitors to consider a wider variety of investments, establish more relationships and offer better pricing and more flexible structuring than us.

Employees

We do not currently have any employees. Each of our executive officers is a principal, officer or employee of the Advisor or its affiliates, which manages and oversees our investment operations. In the future, the Advisor may directly retain personnel based upon its needs.

Available Information

We file with or submit to the SEC annual, quarterly and current periodic reports, proxy statements and other information meeting the informational requirements of the Exchange Act. This information is available free of charge by calling us collect at (215) 495-1150 or on our website at www.fskkradvisor.com. Information contained on our website is not incorporated into this annual report on Form 10-K and you should not consider such information to be part of this annual report on Form 10-K. Such information is also available from the EDGAR database on the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov.

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Investing in our securities involves a number of significant risks. In addition to the other information contained in this annual report on Form 10-K, investors should consider carefully the following information before making an investment in our securities. If any of the following events occur, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected. In such case, the net asset value and market price of our common stock could decline or the value of our debt or equity investments may decline, and investors may lose all or part of their investment.

Summary of Risk Factors

The following is a summary of the principal risk factors associated with an investment in the Company. Further details regarding each risk included in the below summary list can be found further below.

Risks Related to Our Business and Structure

Risks Related to the Advisor and its Affiliates

Risks Related to Business Development Companies and RICs

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Risks Related to our Investments

Risks Related to Debt Financing

Risks Related to an Investment in Our Common Stock

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General Risk Factors

Risks Related to Our Business and Structure

Our ability to achieve our investment objectives depends on the Advisor’s ability to manage and support our investment process and if our agreement with the Advisor were to be terminated, or if the Advisor loses any members of its senior management team, our ability to achieve our investment objectives could be significantly harmed.

Because we have no employees, we depend on the investment expertise, skill and network of business contacts of the Advisor. The Advisor evaluates, negotiates, structures, executes, monitors and services our investments. Our future success depends to a significant extent on the continued service of the Advisor, as well as its senior management team. The departure of any members of the Advisor’s senior management team could have a material adverse effect on our ability to achieve our investment objectives.

Our ability to achieve our investment objectives depends on the Advisor’s ability to identify, analyze, invest in, finance and monitor companies that meet our investment criteria. The Advisor’s capabilities in structuring the investment process, providing competent, attentive and efficient services to us, and facilitating access to financing on acceptable terms depend on the employment of investment professionals in an adequate number and of adequate sophistication to match the corresponding flow of transactions. To achieve our investment objectives, the Advisor may need to hire, train, supervise and manage new investment professionals to participate in our investment selection and monitoring process. The Advisor may not be able to find investment professionals in a timely manner or at all. Failure to support our investment process could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

In addition, each of our investment advisory agreement and administration agreement with the Advisor has termination provisions that allow the parties to terminate the agreements without penalty. The investment advisory agreement and administration agreement may each be terminated at any time, without penalty, by the Advisor, upon 60 days’ notice to us. If the investment advisory agreement is terminated, it may adversely affect the quality of our investment opportunities. In addition, in the event such agreement is terminated, it may be difficult for us to replace the Advisor and the termination of such agreement may adversely impact the terms of any existing or future financing arrangement, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and financial condition.

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The Advisor is a recently-formed investment adviser with a limited track record of acting as an investment adviser to a BDC, and any failure by the Advisor to manage and support our investment process may hinder the achievement of our investment objectives.

The Advisor is a recently-formed investment adviser jointly operated by an affiliate of FS Investments and KKR Credit with limited prior experience acting as an investment adviser to a BDC. The 1940 Act and the Code impose numerous constraints on the operations of BDCs that do not apply to other investment vehicles. While both affiliates of FS Investments and KKR Credit have individually acted as investment advisers to BDCs previously, the Advisor’s limited experience in managing a portfolio of assets under the constraints of the 1940 Act and the Code may hinder the Advisor’s ability to take advantage of attractive investment opportunities and, as a result, may adversely affect our ability to achieve our investment objectives. FS Investments’ and KKR Credit’s individual track records and achievements are not necessarily indicative of the future results they will achieve as a joint investment adviser. Accordingly, we can offer no assurance that we will replicate the historical performance of other investment companies with which FS Investments and KKR Credit have been affiliated, and we caution that our investment returns could be lower than the returns achieved by such other companies.

Because our business model depends to a significant extent upon relationships with private equity sponsors, investment banks and commercial banks, the inability of the Advisor to maintain or develop these relationships, or the failure of these relationships to generate investment opportunities, could adversely affect our business.

If the Advisor fails to maintain its existing relationships with private equity sponsors, investment banks and commercial banks on which it relies to provide us with potential investment opportunities, or develop new relationships with other sponsors or sources of investment opportunities, we may not be able to grow our investment portfolio. In addition, individuals with whom the Advisor has relationships generally are not obligated to provide us with investment opportunities, and, therefore, there is no assurance that such relationships will generate investment opportunities for us.

We operate in a highly competitive market for investment opportunities, which could reduce returns and result in losses.

A number of entities compete with us to make the types of investments that we plan to make and we believe that recent market trends, including sustained periods of low interest rates, have increased the number of competitors seeking to invest in loans to private, middle market companies in the United States. We compete with public and private funds, commercial and investment banks, commercial financing companies and, to the extent they provide an alternative form of financing, private equity and hedge funds. Many of our competitors are substantially larger and have considerably greater financial, technical and marketing resources than we do. For example, we believe some of our competitors have access to funding sources that are not available to us. In addition, some of our competitors could have higher risk tolerances or different risk assessments, which could allow them to consider a wider variety of investments and establish more relationships than us. Furthermore, many of our competitors are not subject to the regulatory restrictions that the 1940 Act imposes on us as a business development company or the source of income, asset diversification and distribution requirements we must satisfy to maintain our qualification as a RIC. The competitive pressures we face could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. As a result of this competition, we can provide no assurance that we will be able to take advantage of attractive investment opportunities that arise from time to time, and we can provide no assurance that we will be able to identify and make investments that are consistent with our investment objective.

The amount of capital in the private debt markets and overall competition for loans could result in short term returns for us that are lower than our long-term targets. In addition, one of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic has been a decrease in the number of new investment opportunities in U.S. middle market companies during 2020, and we can offer no assurance about when, or if, the number of U.S. middle market company investing opportunities will equal or exceed those available prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the event these conditions continue for an extended amount of time, they could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Identifying, structuring and consummating investments involves competition among capital providers and market and transaction uncertainty. The Advisor can provide no assurance that it will able to identify a sufficient number of suitable investment opportunities or to avoid prepayment of existing investments to satisfy our investment objectives, including as necessary to effectively structure credit facilities or other forms of leverage. The loan origination market is very competitive, which can result in loan terms that are more favorable to borrowers, and conversely less favorable to lenders, such as lower interest rates and fees, weaker borrower financial and other covenants, borrower rights to cure defaults, and other terms more favorable to borrowers than current or historical norms. Increased competition could cause us to make more loans that are “cov-lite” in nature and, in a distressed scenario, there can be no assurance that these loans will retain the same value as loans with a full package of covenants. As a result of these conditions, the market for leveraged loans could become less advantageous than expected for us, and this

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could increase default rates, decrease recovery rates or otherwise harm our returns. The risk of prepayment is also higher in the current competitive environment if borrowers are offered more favorable terms by other lenders. The financial markets have experienced substantial fluctuations in prices and liquidity for leveraged loans. Any further disruption in the credit and other financial markets could have substantial negative effects on general economic conditions, the availability of required capital for companies and the operating performance of such companies. These conditions also could result in increased default rates and credit downgrades, and affect the liquidity and pricing of the investments made by us. Conversely, periods of economic stability and increased competition among capital providers could increase the difficulty of locating investments that are desirable for us.

With respect to the investments we make, we do not seek to compete based primarily on the interest rates we offer, and we believe that some of our competitors could make loans with interest rates that will be lower than the rates we offer. In the secondary market for acquiring existing loans, we compete generally on the basis of pricing terms. With respect to all investments, we could lose some investment opportunities if we do not match our competitors’ pricing, terms and structure. However, if we match our competitors’ pricing, terms and structure, we could experience decreased net interest income, lower yields and increased risk of credit loss. We could also compete for investment opportunities with accounts managed or sponsored by Advisor or its affiliates. Although Advisor allocates opportunities in accordance with its allocation policy, allocations to such other accounts will reduce the amount and frequency of opportunities available to us and thus not necessarily be in the best interests of us and our securityholders. Moreover, the performance of investments will not be known at the time of allocation.

We may be unable to realize the benefits anticipated by the 2021 Merger, including estimated cost savings, or it may take longer than anticipated to achieve such benefits.

The realization of certain benefits anticipated as a result of the 2021 Merger will depend in part on the integration of FSKR’s investment portfolio with ours. There can be no assurance that FSKR’s investment portfolio can be operated profitably or integrated successfully into our operations in a timely fashion or at all. The dedication of the Advisor’s resources to such integration may detract attention from the day-to-day business of the Company and there can be no assurance that there will not be substantial costs associated with the transition process or there will not be other material adverse effects as a result of these integration efforts. Such effects, including, but not limited to, incurring unexpected costs or delays in connection with such integration and failure of FSKR’s investment portfolio to perform as expected, could have a material adverse effect on our financial results.

It is also possible that our estimates of the 2021 Merger-related potential cost savings could ultimately be incorrect. If our estimates turn out to be incorrect or if we are not able to successfully combine FSKR’s investment portfolio with our operations, the anticipated cost savings may not be fully realized or realized at all or may take longer to realize than expected.

Our board of directors may change our operating policies and strategies without prior notice or stockholder approval.

Our board of directors has the authority to modify or waive our current operating policies, investment criteria and strategies without prior notice and without stockholder approval. Moreover, we have significant investment flexibility within our investment strategies. Therefore, we may invest our assets in ways with which investors may not agree. We also cannot predict the effect any changes to our current operating policies, investment criteria and strategies would have on our business, net asset value, operating results and the value of our stock. However, the effects might be adverse, which could negatively impact our ability to pay stockholders distributions and cause them to lose all or part of their investment.

Changes in laws or regulations governing our operations or the operations of our business partners may adversely affect our business or cause us to alter our business strategy.

We, our portfolio companies and our business partners are subject to regulation at the local, state and federal level. New legislation may be enacted, amended or repealed or new interpretations, rulings or regulations could be adopted, including those governing the types of investments we are permitted to make and the deductibility of interest expense by our portfolio companies, potentially with retroactive effect. For example, certain provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act, which influences many aspects of the financial services industry, have been amended or repealed and the Code has been substantially amended and reformed. New or repealed legislation, interpretations, rulings or regulations could require changes to certain business practices of us or our portfolio companies, negatively impact the operations, cash flows or financial condition of us or our portfolio companies, impose additional costs on us or our portfolio companies or otherwise adversely affect our business or the business of our portfolio companies. In addition, any changes to the laws and regulations governing our operations, including with respect to permitted investments, may cause us to alter our investment strategy to avail ourselves of new or different opportunities or make other changes to our business. Such changes could result in material differences to our strategies and plans as set forth in this annual report on Form 10-K and may result in our investment focus shifting from the areas of expertise of the Advisor to other types of

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investments in which the Advisor may have less expertise or little or no experience. Thus, any such changes, if they occur, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and the value of a stockholder’s investment.

The SBCA Act allows us to incur additional leverage.

On March 23, 2018, the Small Business Credit Availability Act, or the SBCA Act, became law. The SBCA Act, among other things, amends Section 61(a) of the 1940 Act to add a new Section 61(a)(2) which reduces the asset coverage requirements for senior securities applicable to BDCs from 200% to 150% provided that certain disclosure and approval requirements are met. Effective June 15, 2019, following approval by our stockholders, our asset coverage requirement was reduced from 200% to 150%, such that the Company’s maximum debt to equity ratio increased from a prior maximum of 1.0x (equivalent of $1 of debt outstanding for each $1 of equity) to a maximum of 2.0x (equivalent to $2 of debt outstanding for each $1 of equity). As a result, we are able to incur substantial additional indebtedness, and, therefore the risk of an investment in us may increase. See “Risks Related to Debt Financing—We currently incur indebtedness to make investments, which magnifies the potential for gain or loss on amounts invested in our common stock and may increase the risk of investing in our common stock.”

Future legislation or rules could modify how we treat derivatives and other financial arrangements, or place conditions on our use of derivatives and other financial arrangements.

Future legislation or rules may modify how we treat derivatives and other financial arrangements, or place conditions on our use of derivatives and other financial arrangements. For example, the SEC in October 2020 adopted Rule 18f-4, which is designed to modernize the regulation of the use of derivatives by registered investment companies and BDCs. Among other things, Rule 18f-4 limits a fund’s derivatives exposure through a value-at-risk test and requires the adoption and implementation of a derivatives risk management program for certain derivatives users. Additionally, subject to certain conditions, funds that do not invest heavily in derivatives may be deemed limited derivatives users and would not be subject to the full requirements of Rule 18f-4. In connection with the adoption of Rule 18f-4, the SEC also eliminated the asset segregation and cover framework arising from prior SEC guidance for covering derivatives and certain financial instruments. Compliance with Rule 18f-4 will be required in August 2022. Rule 18f-4 could limit the Company’s ability to engage in certain derivatives and other transactions and/or increase the costs of such transactions, which could adversely affect the value or performance of the Company.

As a public company, we are subject to regulations not applicable to private companies, such as provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Efforts to comply with such regulations will involve significant expenditures, and non-compliance with such regulations may adversely affect us.

As a public company, we incur legal, accounting and other expenses, including costs associated with the periodic reporting requirements applicable to a company whose securities are registered under the Exchange Act, as well as additional corporate governance requirements, including requirements under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and other rules implemented by the SEC and the listing standards of the NYSE. Our management is required to report on our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and rules and regulations of the SEC thereunder. In particular, our management is required to review on an annual basis our internal control over financial reporting, and on a quarterly and annual basis to evaluate and disclose changes in our internal control over financial reporting. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act also generally requires an attestation from our independent registered public accounting firm on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting.

We incur significant expenses in connection with our compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other regulations applicable to public companies, which may negatively impact our financial performance and our ability to make distributions. Compliance with such regulations also requires a significant amount of our management’s time and attention. For example, we cannot be certain as to the timing of the completion of our Sarbanes-Oxley mandated evaluations, testings and remediation actions, if any, or the impact of the same on our operations, and we may not be able to ensure that the process is effective or that our internal control over financial reporting are or will be deemed effective in the future. In the event that we are unable to maintain an effective system of internal control and maintain compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and related rules, we may be adversely affected.

We may experience fluctuations in our quarterly results.

We could experience fluctuations in our quarterly operating results due to a number of factors, including our ability or inability to make investments in companies that meet our investment criteria, the interest rate payable on the debt securities we acquire, the level of our expenses, variations in and the timing of fee income and the recognition of realized and unrealized gains or losses, the degree to which we encounter competition in our markets and general economic conditions. As a result of these factors, results for any previous period should not be relied upon as being indicative of performance in future periods.

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If we, our affiliates and our and their respective third-party service providers are unable to maintain the availability of electronic data systems and safeguard the security of data, our ability to conduct business may be compromised, which could impair our liquidity, disrupt our business, damage our reputation or otherwise adversely affect our business.

Cybersecurity refers to the combination of technologies, processes, and procedures established to protect information technology systems and data from unauthorized access, attack, or damage. We, our affiliates and our and their respective third-party service providers are subject to cybersecurity risks. Cybersecurity risks have significantly increased in recent years and, while we have not experienced any material losses relating to cyber attacks or other information security breaches, we could suffer such losses in the future. Our, our affiliates and our and their respective third-party service providers’ computer systems, software and networks may be vulnerable to unauthorized access, computer viruses or other malicious code and other events that could have a security impact. If one or more of such events occur, this potentially could jeopardize confidential and other information, including nonpublic personal information and sensitive business data, processed and stored in, and transmitted through, computer systems and networks, or otherwise cause interruptions or malfunctions in our operations or the operations of our affiliates and our and their respective third-party service providers. This could result in significant losses, reputational damage, litigation, regulatory fines or penalties, or otherwise adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. Privacy and information security laws and regulation changes, and compliance with those changes, may result in cost increases due to system changes and the development of new administrative processes. In addition, we may be required to expend significant additional resources to modify our protective measures and to investigate and remediate vulnerabilities or other exposures arising from operational and security risks.

We and our Advisor could be the target of litigation.

We and our Advisor could become the target of securities class action litigation or other similar claims if our common stock price fluctuates significantly or for other reasons. The proceedings could continue without resolution for long periods of time and the outcome of any such proceedings could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, and/or operating results. Any litigation or other similar claims could consume substantial amounts of our management’s time and attention, and that time and attention and the devotion of associated resources could, at times, be disproportionate to the amounts at stake. Litigation and other claims are subject to inherent uncertainties, and a material adverse impact on our financial statements could occur for the period in which the effect of an unfavorable final outcome in litigation or other similar claims becomes probable and reasonably estimable. In addition, we could incur expenses associated with defending ourselves against litigation and other similar claims, and these expenses could be material to our earnings in future periods.

Our business and operations could be negatively affected if we become subject to stockholder activism, which could cause us to incur significant expense, hinder the execution of our investment strategy or impact our stock price.

Stockholder activism, which could take many forms, including making public demands that we consider certain strategic alternatives for the Company, engaging in public campaigns to attempt to influence our corporate governance and/or our management, and commencing proxy contests to attempt to elect the activists’ representatives or others to our board of directors, or arise in a variety of situations, has been increasing in the BDC space recently. While we are currently not subject to any stockholder activism, potential volatility of our stock price and for a variety of other reasons, we may in the future become the target of stockholder activism. Stockholder activism could result in substantial costs and divert management’s and our board of directors’ attention and resources from our business. Additionally, such stockholder activism could give rise to perceived uncertainties as to our future and adversely affect our relationships with service providers and our portfolio companies. Also, we may be required to incur significant legal and other expenses related to any activist stockholder matters. Further, our stock price could be subject to significant fluctuation or otherwise be adversely affected by the events, risks and uncertainties of any stockholder activism.

Risks Related to the Advisor and its Affiliates

The Advisor and its affiliates, including our officers and some of our directors, face conflicts of interest as a result of compensation arrangements between us and the Advisor, which could result in actions that are not in the best interests of our stockholders.

The Advisor and its affiliates receive substantial fees from us in return for their services, and these fees could influence the advice provided to us. We pay to the Advisor an incentive fee that is based on the performance of our portfolio and an annual base management fee that is based on the average weekly value of our gross assets. Because the incentive fee is based on the performance of our portfolio, the Advisor may be incentivized to make investments on our behalf that are riskier or more speculative than would be the case in the absence of such compensation arrangement. The way in which the incentive fee is

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determined may also encourage the Advisor to use leverage to increase the return on our investments. In addition, because the base management fee is based upon the average weekly value of our gross assets, which includes any borrowings for investment purposes, the Advisor may be incentivized to recommend the use of leverage or the issuance of additional equity to make additional investments and increase the average weekly value of our gross assets. Under certain circumstances, the use of leverage may increase the likelihood of default, which could disfavor holders of our common stock. Our compensation arrangements could therefore result in our making riskier or more speculative investments, or relying more on leverage to make investments, than would otherwise be the case. This could result in higher investment losses, particularly during cyclical economic downturns.

We may be obligated to pay the Advisor incentive compensation on income that we have not received.

Any incentive fee payable by us that relates to our net investment income may be computed and paid on income that may include interest that has been accrued but not yet received. If a portfolio company defaults on a loan that is structured to provide accrued interest, it is possible that accrued interest previously included in the calculation of the incentive fee will become uncollectible. The Advisor is not under any obligation to reimburse us for any part of the incentive fee it received that was based on accrued income that we never received as a result of a default by an entity on the obligation that resulted in the accrual of such income, and such circumstances would result in our paying an incentive fee on income we never received.

For U.S. federal income tax purposes, we are required to recognize taxable income (such as deferred interest that is accrued as original issue discount) in some circumstances in which we do not receive a corresponding payment in cash. Under such circumstances, we may have difficulty meeting the Annual Distribution Requirement necessary to maintain RIC tax treatment under the Code. This difficulty in making the required distribution may be amplified to the extent that we are required to pay an incentive fee with respect to such accrued income. As a result, we may have to sell some of our investments at times and/or at prices we would not consider advantageous, raise additional debt or equity capital, or forgo new investment opportunities for this purpose. If we are not able to obtain cash from other sources, we may fail to qualify for RIC tax treatment and thus become subject to corporate-level income tax.

There may be conflicts of interest related to obligations the Advisor’s senior management and investment teams have to our affiliates and to other clients.

The members of the senior management and investment teams of the Advisor serve or may serve as officers, directors or principals of entities that operate in the same or a related line of business as we do, or of investment vehicles managed by the same personnel. For example, the officers, managers and other personnel of the Advisor serve and may serve in the future in similar or other capacities for the investment advisers to future investment vehicles affiliated with FS Investments or KKR Credit. In serving in these multiple and other capacities, they may have obligations to other clients or investors in those entities, the fulfillment of which may not be in our best interests or in the best interest of our stockholders. Our investment objectives may overlap with the investment objectives of such investment funds, accounts or other investment vehicles. For example, we rely on the Advisor to manage our day-to-day activities and to implement our investment strategy. The Advisor and certain of its affiliates are presently, and plan in the future to continue to be, involved with activities which are unrelated to us. As a result of these activities, the Advisor, its employees and certain of its affiliates will have conflicts of interest in allocating their time between us and other activities in which they are or may become involved, including the management of other entities affiliated with FS Investments or KKR Credit. The Advisor and its employees will devote only as much of its or their time to our business as the Advisor and its employees, in their judgment, determine is reasonably required, which may be substantially less than their full time.

The time and resources that the Advisor and individuals employed by the Advisor devote to us may be diverted and we may face additional competition due to the fact that the Advisor and individuals employed by the Advisor are not prohibited from raising money for or managing another entity that makes the same types of investments that we target.

Neither the Advisor, nor persons providing services to us on behalf of the Advisor, are prohibited from raising money for and managing another investment entity that makes the same types of investments as those we target. As a result, the time and resources that these individuals may devote to us may be diverted. In addition, we may compete with any such investment entity for the same investors and investment opportunities.

The Advisor’s liability is limited under each of the investment advisory agreement and the administration agreement, and we are required to indemnify it against certain liabilities, which may lead it to act in a riskier manner on our behalf than it would when acting for its own account.

Pursuant to each of the investment advisory agreement and the administration agreement, the Advisor and its officers, managers, partners, members (and their members, including the owners of their members), agents, employees, controlling persons

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and any other person or entity affiliated with, or acting on behalf of, the Advisor will not be liable to us for their acts under the investment advisory agreement or the administration agreement, as applicable, absent willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence in the performance of their duties. We have agreed to indemnify, defend and protect the Advisor and its officers, managers, partners, members (and their members, including the owners of their members), agents, employees, controlling persons and any other person or entity affiliated with, or acting on behalf of, the Advisor with respect to all damages, liabilities, costs and expenses resulting from acts of the Advisor not arising out of willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence in the performance of their duties under the investment advisory agreement or the administration agreement, as applicable. These protections may lead the Advisor to act in a riskier manner when acting on our behalf than it would when acting for its own account.

Risks Related to Business Development Companies

Failure to maintain our status as a BDC would reduce our operating flexibility.

If we do not remain a BDC, we might be regulated as a closed-end investment company under the 1940 Act, which would subject us to substantially more regulatory restrictions under the 1940 Act and correspondingly decrease our operating flexibility.

We are uncertain of our sources for funding our future capital needs and if we cannot obtain debt or equity financing on acceptable terms, or at all, our ability to acquire investments and to expand our operations will be adversely affected.

Any working capital reserves we maintain may not be sufficient for investment purposes, and we may require debt or equity financing to operate. We may also need to access the capital markets to refinance existing debt obligations to the extent maturing obligations are not repaid with cash flows from operations. In order to maintain RIC tax treatment, we must distribute distributions to our stockholders each tax year on a timely basis generally of an amount at least equal to 90% of our investment company taxable income, determined without regard to any deduction for distributions paid, and the amounts of such distributions will therefore not be available to fund investment originations or to repay maturing debt. In addition, with certain limited exceptions, we are only allowed to borrow amounts or issue debt securities or preferred stock, which we refer to collectively as “senior securities,” such that our asset coverage, as calculated pursuant to the 1940 Act, equals at least 150% immediately after such borrowing, which, in certain circumstances, may restrict our ability to borrow or issue debt securities or preferred stock. In the event that we develop a need for additional capital in the future for investments or for any other reason, and we cannot obtain debt or equity financing on acceptable terms, or at all, our ability to acquire investments and to expand our operations will be adversely affected. As a result, we would be less able to allocate our portfolio among various issuers and industries and achieve our investment objectives, which may negatively impact our results of operations and reduce our ability to make distributions to our stockholders.

The requirement that we invest a sufficient portion of our assets in qualifying assets could preclude us from investing in accordance with our current business strategy; conversely, the failure to invest a sufficient portion of our assets in qualifying assets could result in our failure to maintain our status as a BDC.

As a BDC, we may not acquire any assets other than “qualifying assets” unless, at the time of such acquisition, at least 70% of our total assets are qualifying assets. Therefore, we may be precluded from investing in what we believe are attractive investments if such investments are not qualifying assets. Similarly, these rules could prevent us from making additional investments in existing portfolio companies, which could result in the dilution of our position, or could require us to dispose of investments at an inopportune time to comply with the 1940 Act. If we were forced to sell non-qualifying investments in the portfolio for compliance purposes, the proceeds from such sale could be significantly less than the current value of such investments. Conversely, if we fail to invest a sufficient portion of our assets in qualifying assets, we could lose our status as a BDC, which would subject us to substantially more regulatory restrictions and significantly decrease our operating flexibility.

Regulations governing our operation as a BDC and a RIC will affect our ability to raise, and the way in which we raise, additional capital or borrow for investment purposes, which may have a negative effect on our growth.

As a result of our need to satisfy the Annual Distribution Requirement in order to maintain RIC tax treatment under Subchapter M of the Code, we may need to periodically access the capital markets to raise cash to fund new investments. We may issue “senior securities,” as defined in the 1940 Act, including issuing preferred stock, borrowing money from banks or other financial institutions, or issuing debt securities only in amounts such that our asset coverage, as defined in the 1940 Act, equals at least 150% after such incurrence or issuance. Our ability to issue certain other types of securities is also limited. Under the 1940 Act, we are also generally prohibited from issuing or selling our common stock at a price per share, after deducting underwriting commissions, that is below our net asset value per share, without first obtaining approval for such issuance from our stockholders and our independent directors. Compliance with these limitations on our ability to raise capital may unfavorably limit our

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investment opportunities. These limitations may also reduce our ability in comparison to other companies to profit from favorable spreads between the rates at which we can borrow and the rates at which we can lend.

In addition, because we incur indebtedness for investment purposes, if the value of our assets declines, we may be unable to satisfy the asset coverage test under the 1940 Act, which would prohibit us from paying distributions and, as a result, could cause us to be subject to corporate-level tax on our income and capital gains, regardless of the amount of distributions paid. If we cannot satisfy the asset coverage test, we may be required to sell a portion of our investments and, depending on the nature of our debt financing, repay a portion of our indebtedness at a time when such sales may be disadvantageous.

Our ability to enter into transactions with our affiliates is restricted.

We are prohibited under the 1940 Act from participating in certain transactions with certain of our affiliates without the prior approval of a majority of the independent members of our board of directors and, in some cases, the SEC. Any person that owns, directly or indirectly, 5% or more of our outstanding voting securities will be our affiliate for purposes of the 1940 Act, and we will generally be prohibited from buying or selling any securities from or to such affiliate, absent the prior approval of our board of directors. The 1940 Act also prohibits certain “joint” transactions with certain of our affiliates, which could include investments in the same portfolio company (whether at the same or different times), without prior approval of our board of directors and, in some cases, the SEC. In an order dated January 5, 2021, the SEC granted exemptive relief permitting us, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, to co-invest in certain privately negotiated investment transactions, including investments originated and directly negotiated by the Advisor or KKR Credit, with our co-investment affiliates. If a person acquires more than 25% of our voting securities, we will be prohibited from buying or selling any security from or to such person or certain of that person’s affiliates, or entering into prohibited joint transactions with such persons to the extent not covered by the exemptive relief, absent the prior approval of the SEC. Similar restrictions limit our ability to transact business with our officers or directors or their respective affiliates. As a result of these restrictions, we may be prohibited from buying or selling any security from or to any portfolio company of a fund managed by the Advisor without the prior approval of the SEC, which may limit the scope of investment opportunities that would otherwise be available to us.

Risks Related to Our Investments

Our investments in prospective portfolio companies may be risky, and we could lose all or part of our investment.

Our investments in senior secured loans, second lien secured loans, senior secured bonds, subordinated debt and equity of private U.S. companies, including middle market companies, may be risky and there is no limit on the amount of any such investments in which we may invest.

Senior Secured Loans, Second Lien Secured Loans and Senior Secured Bonds. There is a risk that any collateral pledged by portfolio companies in which we have taken a security interest may decrease in value over time or lose its entire value, may be difficult to sell in a timely manner, may be difficult to appraise and may fluctuate in value based upon the success of the business and market conditions, including as a result of the inability of the portfolio company to raise additional capital. To the extent our debt investment is collateralized by the securities of a portfolio company’s subsidiaries, such securities may lose some or all of their value in the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of the portfolio company. Also, in some circumstances, our security interest may be contractually or structurally subordinated to claims of other creditors. In addition, deterioration in a portfolio company’s financial condition and prospects, including its inability to raise additional capital, may be accompanied by deterioration in the value of the collateral for the debt. Secured debt that is under-collateralized involves a greater risk of loss. In addition, second lien secured debt is granted a second priority security interest in collateral, which means that any realization of collateral will generally be applied to pay senior secured debt in full before second lien secured debt is paid. Consequently, the fact that debt is secured does not guarantee that we will receive principal and interest payments according to the debt’s terms, or at all, or that we will be able to collect on the debt should we be forced to enforce our remedies.

Subordinated Debt. Our subordinated debt investments will generally rank junior in priority of payment to senior debt and will generally be unsecured. This may result in a heightened level of risk and volatility or a loss of principal, which could lead to the loss of the entire investment. These investments may involve additional risks that could adversely affect our investment returns. To the extent interest payments associated with such debt are deferred, such debt may be subject to greater fluctuations in valuations, and such debt could subject us and our stockholders to non-cash income. Because we will not receive any principal repayments prior to the maturity of some of our subordinated debt investments, such investments will be of greater risk than amortizing loans.

Equity and Equity-Related Securities. We may make select equity investments. In addition, in connection with our debt investments, we on occasion receive equity interests such as warrants or options as additional consideration. The equity interests

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we receive may not appreciate in value and, in fact, may decline in value. Accordingly, we may not be able to realize gains from our equity interests, and any gains that we do realize on the disposition of any equity interests may not be sufficient to offset any other losses we experience.

Convertible Securities. We may invest in convertible securities, such as bonds, debentures, notes, preferred stocks or other securities that may be converted into, or exchanged for, a specified amount of common stock of the same or different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula. A convertible security may be subject to redemption at the option of the issuer at a price established in the convertible security’s governing instrument. If a convertible security held by us is called for redemption, it will be required to permit the issuer to redeem the security, convert it into the underlying common stock or sell it to a third party. Any of these actions could have an adverse effect on our ability to achieve our investment objective.

Non-U.S. Securities. We may invest in non-U.S. securities, which may include securities denominated in U.S. dollars or in non-U.S. currencies and securities of companies in emerging markets, to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act. Because evidences of ownership of such securities usually are held outside the United States, we would be subject to additional risks if we invested in non-U.S. securities, which include possible adverse political and economic developments, seizure or nationalization of foreign deposits and adoption of governmental restrictions which might adversely affect or restrict the payment of principal and interest on the non-U.S. securities to investors located outside the country of the issuer, whether from currency blockage or otherwise. Because non-U.S. securities may be purchased with and payable in foreign currencies, the value of these assets as measured in U.S. dollars may be affected unfavorably by changes in currency rates and exchange control regulations. In addition, investing in securities of companies in emerging markets involves many risks, including potential inflationary economic environments, regulation by foreign governments, different accounting standards, political uncertainties and economic, social, political, financial, tax and security conditions in the applicable emerging market, any of which could negatively affect the value of companies in emerging markets or investments in their securities.

Investments in Asset-Based Opportunities. We may invest in asset-based opportunities through joint ventures, investment platforms, private investment funds or other business entities that provide one or more of the following services: origination or sourcing of potential investment opportunities, due diligence and negotiation of potential investment opportunities and/or servicing, development and management (including turnaround) and disposition of investments. Such investments may be in or alongside existing or newly formed operators, consultants and/or managers that pursue such opportunities and may or may not include capital and/or assets contributed by third party investors. Such investments may include opportunities to direct-finance physical assets, such as airplanes and ships, and/or operating assets, such as financial service entities, as opposed to investment securities, or to invest in origination and/or servicing platforms directly. In valuing our investments, we rely primarily on information provided by operators, consultants and/or managers. Valuations of illiquid securities involve various judgments and consideration of factors that may be subjective. There is a risk that inaccurate valuations could adversely affect the value of our common stock. We may not be able to promptly withdraw our investment in these asset-based opportunities, which may result in a loss to us and adversely affect our investment returns.

Structured Products. We may invest in structured products, which may include collateralized debt obligations, collateralized bond obligations, collateralized loan obligations, structured notes and credit-linked notes. When investing in structured products, we may invest in any level of the subordination chain, including subordinated (lower-rated) tranches and residual interests (the lowest tranche). Structured products may be highly levered and therefore, the junior debt and equity tranches that we may invest in are subject to a higher risk of total loss and deferral or nonpayment of interest than the more senior tranches to which they are subordinated. In addition, we will generally have the right to receive payments only from the issuer or counterparty, and will generally not have direct rights against the underlying borrowers or entities. Furthermore, the investments we make in structured products are at times thinly traded or have only a limited trading market. As a result, investments in such structured products may be characterized as illiquid securities.

Derivatives. We may invest from time to time in derivatives, including total return swaps, interest rate swaps, credit default swaps and foreign currency forward contracts. Derivative investments have risks, including: the imperfect correlation between the value of such instruments and our underlying assets, which creates the possibility that the loss on such instruments may be greater than the gain in the value of the underlying assets in our portfolio; the loss of principal; the possible default of the other party to the transaction; and illiquidity of the derivative investments. If a counterparty becomes bankrupt or otherwise fails to perform its obligations under a derivative contract due to financial difficulties, we may experience significant delays in obtaining any recovery under the derivative contract in a bankruptcy or other reorganization proceeding, or may not recover at all. In addition, in the event of the insolvency of a counterparty to a derivative transaction, the derivative contract would typically be terminated at its fair market value. If we are owed this fair market value in the termination of the derivative contract and our claim is unsecured, we will be treated as a general creditor of such counterparty and will not have any claim with respect to the underlying security. Certain of the derivative investments in which we may invest may, in certain circumstances, give rise to a form of

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financial leverage, which may magnify the risk of owning such instruments. The ability to successfully use derivative investments depends on the ability of the Advisor to predict pertinent market movements, which cannot be assured. In addition, amounts paid by us as premiums and cash or other assets held in margin accounts with respect to our derivative investments would not be available to it for other investment purposes, which may result in lost opportunities for gain.

Below Investment Grade Risk. In addition, we invest in securities that are rated below investment grade by rating agencies or that would be rated below investment grade if they were rated. Below investment grade securities, which are often referred to as “junk,” have predominantly speculative characteristics with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal. They may also be difficult to value and illiquid.

International investments create additional risks.

We expect to make investments in portfolio companies that are domiciled outside of the United States. We anticipate that up to 30% of our investments may be in these types of assets. Our investments in foreign portfolio companies are deemed “non-qualifying assets,” which means, as required by the 1940 Act, they, along with other non-qualifying assets, may not constitute more than 30% of our total assets at the time of our acquisition of any asset, after giving effect to the acquisition. Notwithstanding the limitation on our ownership of foreign portfolio companies, such investments subject us to many of the same risks as our domestic investments, as well as certain additional risks, including the following:

In addition, we may make investments in countries whose governments or economies may prove unstable. Certain of the countries in which we may invest may have political, economic and legal systems that are unpredictable, unreliable or otherwise inadequate with respect to the implementation, interpretation and enforcement of laws protecting asset ownership and economic interests. In some of the countries in which we may invest, there may be a risk of nationalization, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, which may have an adverse effect on our portfolio companies in those countries and the rates of return that we are able to achieve on such investments. We may also lose the total value of any investment which is nationalized, expropriated or confiscated. The financial results and investment opportunities available to us, particularly in developing countries and emerging markets, may be materially and adversely affected by any or all of these political, economic and legal risks.

Our investments in private investment funds, including hedge funds, private equity funds, limited liability companies and other business entities, subject us indirectly to the underlying risks of such private investment funds and additional fees and expenses.

We may invest in private investment funds, including hedge funds, private equity funds, limited liability companies and other business entities which would be required to register as investment companies but for an exemption under Sections 3(c)(1)

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and 3(c)(7) of the 1940 Act. Our investments in private funds are subject to substantial risks. Investments in such private investment funds expose us to the risks associated with the businesses of such funds or entities as well as such private investment funds’ portfolio companies. These private investment funds may or may not be registered investment companies and, thus, may not be subject to protections afforded by the 1940 Act, covering, among other areas, liquidity requirements, governance by an independent board, affiliated transaction restrictions, leverage limitations, public disclosure requirements and custody requirements.

We rely primarily on information provided by managers of private investment funds in valuing our investments in such funds. There is a risk that inaccurate valuations provided by managers of private investment funds could adversely affect the value of our common stock. In addition, there can be no assurance that a manager of a private investment fund will provide advance notice of any material change in such private investment fund’s investment program or policies and thus, our investment portfolio may be subject to additional risks which may not be promptly identified by the Advisor. Moreover, we may not be able to withdraw our investments in certain private investment funds promptly after we make a decision to do so, which may result in a loss to us and adversely affect our investment returns.

Investments in the securities of private investment funds may also involve duplication of advisory fees and certain other expenses. By investing in private investment funds indirectly through us, you bear a pro rata portion of our advisory fees and other expenses, and also indirectly bear a pro rata portion of the advisory fees, performance-based allocations and other expenses borne by us as an investor in the private investment funds. In addition, the purchase of the shares of some private investment funds requires the payment of sales loads and (in the case of closed-end investment companies) sometimes substantial premiums above the value of such investment companies’ portfolio securities.

In addition, certain private investment funds may not provide us with the liquidity we require and would thus subject us to liquidity risk. Further, even if an investment in a private investment fund is deemed liquid at the time of investment, the private investment fund may, in the future, alter the nature of our investments and cease to be a liquid investment fund, subjecting us to liquidity risk.

We may acquire various structured financial instruments for purposes of “hedging” or reducing our risks, which may be costly and ineffective and could reduce the cash available to service debt or for distribution to stockholders.

We may seek to hedge against interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations and credit risk by using structured financial instruments such as futures, options, swaps and forward contracts, subject to the requirements of the 1940 Act. Use of structured financial instruments for hedging purposes may present significant risks, including the risk of loss of the amounts invested. Defaults by the other party to a hedging transaction can result in losses in the hedging transaction. Hedging activities also involve the risk of an imperfect correlation between the hedging instrument and the asset being hedged, which could result in losses both on the hedging transaction and on the instrument being hedged. Use of hedging activities may not prevent significant losses and could increase our losses. Further, hedging transactions may reduce cash available to service our debt or pay distributions to our stockholders.

Investing in middle market companies involves a number of significant risks, any one of which could have a material adverse effect on our operating results.

Investments in middle market companies involve some of the same risks that apply generally to investments in larger, more established companies. However, such investments have more pronounced risks in that they:

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Our portfolio companies may incur debt that ranks equally with, or senior to, our investments in such companies.

Our portfolio companies may have, or may be permitted to incur, other debt that ranks equally with, or senior to, the debt in which we invest. By their terms, such debt instruments may entitle the holders to receive payment of interest or principal on or before the dates on which we are entitled to receive payments with respect to the debt instruments in which we invest. Also, in the event of insolvency, liquidation, dissolution, reorganization or bankruptcy of a portfolio company, holders of debt instruments ranking senior to our investment in that portfolio company would typically be entitled to receive payment in full before we receive any proceeds. After repaying such senior creditors, such portfolio company may not have any remaining assets to use for repaying its obligation to us. In the case of debt ranking equally with debt instruments in which we invest, we would have to share on an equal basis any distributions with other creditors holding such debt in the event of an insolvency, liquidation, dissolution, reorganization or bankruptcy of the relevant portfolio company.

There may be circumstances where our debt investments could be subordinated to claims of other creditors or we could be subject to lender liability claims.

If one of our portfolio companies were to go bankrupt, depending on the facts and circumstances, including the extent to which we actually provided managerial assistance to that portfolio company, a bankruptcy court might recharacterize our debt investment and subordinate all or a portion of our claim to that of other creditors. In situations where a bankruptcy carries a high degree of political significance, our legal rights may be subordinated to other creditors. We may also be subject to lender liability claims for actions taken by us with respect to a borrower’s business or in instances where we exercise control over the borrower or render significant managerial assistance.

Second priority liens on collateral securing debt investments that we make to our portfolio companies may be subject to control by senior creditors with first priority liens. If there is a default, the value of the collateral may not be sufficient to repay in full both the first priority creditors and us.

Certain debt investments that we make in portfolio companies may be secured on a second priority basis by the same collateral securing first priority debt of such companies. The first priority liens on the collateral will secure the portfolio company’s obligations under any outstanding senior debt and may secure certain other future debt that may be permitted to be incurred by such company under the agreements governing the loans. The holders of obligations secured by the first priority liens on the collateral will generally control the liquidation of and be entitled to receive proceeds from any realization of the collateral to repay their obligations in full before us. In addition, the value of the collateral in the event of liquidation will depend on market and economic conditions, the availability of buyers and other factors. There can be no assurance that the proceeds, if any, from the sale or sales of all of the collateral would be sufficient to satisfy the debt obligations secured by the second priority liens after payment in full of all obligations secured by the first priority liens on the collateral. If such proceeds are not sufficient to repay amounts outstanding under the debt obligations secured by the second priority liens, then we, to the extent not repaid from the proceeds of the sale of the collateral, will only have an unsecured claim against such company’s remaining assets, if any.

We may also make unsecured debt investments in portfolio companies, meaning that such investments will not benefit from any interest in collateral of such companies. Liens on any such portfolio company’s collateral, if any, will secure the portfolio company’s obligations under its outstanding secured debt and may secure certain future debt that is permitted to be incurred by the portfolio company under its secured debt agreements. The holders of obligations secured by such liens will generally control the liquidation of, and be entitled to receive proceeds from, any realization of such collateral to repay their obligations in full before us. In addition, the value of such collateral in the event of liquidation will depend on market and economic conditions, the availability of buyers and other factors. There can be no assurance that the proceeds, if any, from sales of such collateral would be sufficient to satisfy our unsecured debt obligations after payment in full of all secured debt obligations. If such proceeds were not sufficient to repay the outstanding secured debt obligations, then our unsecured claims would rank equally with the unpaid portion of such secured creditors’ claims against the portfolio company’s remaining assets, if any.

The rights we may have with respect to the collateral securing the debt investments we make in our portfolio companies with senior debt outstanding may also be limited pursuant to the terms of one or more intercreditor agreements that we enter into with the holders of senior debt. Under such an intercreditor agreement, at any time that obligations that have the benefit of the

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first priority liens are outstanding, any of the following actions that may be taken in respect of the collateral will be at the direction of the holders of the obligations secured by the first priority liens: the ability to cause the commencement of enforcement proceedings against the collateral; the ability to control the conduct of such proceedings; the approval of amendments to collateral documents; releases of liens on the collateral; and waivers of past defaults under collateral documents. We may not have the ability to control or direct such actions, even if our rights are adversely affected.

We generally will not control our portfolio companies.

We do not expect to control most of our portfolio companies, even though we may have board representation or board observation rights, and our debt agreements with such portfolio companies may contain certain restrictive covenants. As a result, we are subject to the risk that a portfolio company in which we invest may make business decisions with which we disagree and the management of such company, as representatives of the holders of their common equity, may take risks or otherwise act in ways that do not serve our interests as debt investors. Due to the lack of liquidity for our investments in non-traded companies, we may not be able to dispose of our interests in our portfolio companies as readily as we would like or at an appropriate valuation. As a result, a portfolio company may make decisions that could decrease the value of our portfolio holdings.

Declines in market values or fair market values of our investments could result in significant net unrealized depreciation of our portfolio, which in turn would reduce our net asset value.

Under the 1940 Act, we are required to carry our investments at market value or, if no market value is ascertainable, at fair value as determined in good faith by or under the direction of our board of directors. While most of our investments are not publicly traded, applicable accounting standards require us to assume as part of our valuation process that our investments are sold in a principal market to market participants (even if we plan on holding an investment through its maturity) and impairments of the market values or fair market values of our investments, even if unrealized, must be reflected in our financial statements for the applicable period as unrealized depreciation, which could result in a significant reduction to our net asset value for a given period.

A significant portion of our investment portfolio does not have a readily available market price and is and will be recorded at fair value as determined in good faith by our board of directors and, as a result, there is and will be uncertainty as to the value of our portfolio investments.

Under the 1940 Act, we are required to carry our portfolio investments at market value or, if there is no readily available market value, at fair value, as determined by our board of directors. There is not a public market for the securities of the privately held companies in which we invest. Most of our investments are not publicly traded or actively traded on a secondary market but are, instead, traded on a privately negotiated OTC secondary market for institutional investors or are not traded at all. As a result, we value these securities quarterly at fair value as determined in good faith by our board of directors.

Certain factors that may be considered in determining the fair value of our investments include dealer quotes for securities traded on the secondary market for institutional investors, the nature and realizable value of any collateral, the portfolio company’s earnings and its ability to make payments on its indebtedness, the markets in which the portfolio company does business, comparison to comparable publicly traded companies, discounted cash flows and other relevant factors. Because such valuations, and particularly valuations of private securities and private companies, are inherently uncertain, may fluctuate over short periods of time and may be based on estimates, our determinations of fair value may differ materially from the values that would have been used if a ready market for these non-traded securities existed. Due to this uncertainty, our fair value determinations may cause our net asset value on a given date to materially understate or overstate the value that we may ultimately realize upon the sale of one or more of our investments.

We are exposed to risks associated with changes in interest rates, including with respect to the phase out of LIBOR.

We are subject to financial market risks, including changes in interest rates. General interest rate fluctuations may have a substantial negative impact on our investments, investment opportunities and cost of capital and, accordingly, may have a material adverse effect on our investment objectives, our rate of return on invested capital and our ability to service our debt and make distributions to our stockholders. In addition, an increase in interest rates would make it more expensive to use debt for our financing needs, if any.

Our investment portfolio primarily consists of senior secured debt with maturities typically ranging from three to seven years. The longer the duration of these securities, generally, the more susceptible they are to changes in market interest rates. As market interest rates increase, those securities with a lower yield-at-cost can experience a mark-to-market unrealized loss. An impairment of the fair market value of our investments, even if unrealized, must be reflected in our financial statements for the applicable period and may therefore have a material adverse effect on our results of operations for that period.

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Because we incur indebtedness to make investments, our net investment income is dependent, in part, upon the difference between the rate at which we borrow funds or pay interest on outstanding debt securities and the rate at which we invest these funds. An increase in interest rates would make it more expensive to use debt to finance our investments or to refinance our current financing arrangements. In addition, certain of our financing arrangements provide for adjustments in the loan interest rate along with changes in market interest rates. Therefore, in periods of rising interest rates, our cost of funds will increase, which could materially reduce our net investment income. Any reduction in the level of interest rates on new investments relative to interest rates on our current investments could also adversely impact our net investment income.

We have and may continue to structure the majority of our debt investments with floating interest rates to position our portfolio for rate increases. However, there can be no assurance that this will successfully mitigate our exposure to interest rate risk. For example, in the event of a rising interest rate environment, payments under floating rate debt instruments generally would rise and there may be a significant number of issuers of such floating rate debt instruments that would be unable or unwilling to pay such increased interest costs and may otherwise be unable to repay their loans. Rising interest rates could also cause portfolio companies to shift cash from other productive uses to the payment of interest, which may have a material adverse effect on their business and operations and could, over time, lead to increased defaults. Investments in floating rate debt instruments may also decline in value in response to rising interest rates if the interest rates of such investments do not rise as much, or as quickly, as market interest rates in general. Similarly, during periods of rising interest rates, our fixed rate investments may decline in value because the fixed rate of interest paid thereunder may be below market interest rates.

On March 5, 2021, the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority publicly announced that all U.S. Dollar LIBOR settings will either cease to be provided by any administrator or no longer be representative (i) immediately after December 31, 2021 for one-week and two-month U.S. Dollar LIBOR settings and (ii) immediately after June 30, 2023 for the remaining U.S. Dollar LIBOR settings. In addition, as a result of supervisory guidance from U.S. regulators, some U.S. regulated entities will cease to enter into new LIBOR contracts after January 1, 2022. At this time, no consensus exists as to what rate or rates will become accepted alternatives to LIBOR, although the Alternative Reference Rates Committee, a steering committee convened by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and comprised of large U.S. financial institutions, has recommended the use of the Secured Overnight Financing Rate, SOFR. There are many uncertainties regarding a transition from LIBOR to SOFR or any other alternative benchmark rate that may be established, including, but not limited to, the timing of any such transition, the need to amend all contracts with LIBOR as the referenced rate and, given the inherent differences between LIBOR and SOFR or any other alternative benchmark rate, how any transition may impact the cost and performance of impacted securities, variable rate debt and derivative financial instruments. In addition, SOFR or another alternative benchmark rate may fail to gain market acceptance, which could adversely affect the return on, value of and market for securities, variable rate debt and derivative financial instruments linked to such rates. In addition, SOFR or other replacement rates may fail to gain market acceptance. Any failure of SOFR or alternative reference rates to gain market acceptance could adversely affect the return on, value of and market for securities linked to such rates.

The effect of the establishment of alternative reference rates or any other reforms to LIBOR or other reference rates (including whether LIBOR will continue to be an acceptable market benchmark) cannot be predicted at this time, and the transition away from LIBOR and other current reference rates to alternative reference rates is complex and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Factors such as the pace of the transition to replacement or reformed rates, the specific terms and parameters for and market acceptance of any alternative reference rate, prices of and the liquidity of trading markets for products based on alternative reference rates, and our ability to transition and develop appropriate systems and analytics for one or more alternative reference rates could also have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. We may also need to renegotiate any credit or similar agreements extending beyond 2021 with our portfolio companies that utilize LIBOR as a factor in determining the interest rate and certain of our existing credit facilities to replace LIBOR with the new standard that is established. If the agreements with our portfolio companies are unable to be renegotiated, our investments may bear interest at a lower rate, which would decrease investment income and potentially the value of such investments.

Alteration of the terms of a debt instrument or a modification of the terms of other types of contracts to replace an interbank offered rate with a new reference rate could result in a taxable exchange and the realization of income and gain/loss for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The IRS has issued final regulations regarding the tax consequences of the transition from interbank offered rates to new reference rates in debt instruments and non-debt contracts. Under the final regulations, alteration or modification of the terms of a debt instrument to replace an operative rate that uses a discontinued interbank offered rate with a qualified rate (as defined in the final regulations), add a qualified rate as a fallback rate to a contract whose operative rate uses a discontinued interbank offered rate or replace a fallback rate that uses a discontinued interbank offered rate with a qualified rate would not be taxable. The IRS may provide additional guidance, with potential retroactive effect.

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Furthermore, because a rise in the general level of interest rates can be expected to lead to higher interest rates applicable to our debt investments, an increase in interest rates would make it easier for us to meet or exceed the incentive fee hurdle rate in the investment advisory agreement and may result in a substantial increase of the amount of incentive fees payable to the Advisor with respect to pre-incentive fee net investment income.

Inflation may adversely affect the business, results of operations and financial condition of our portfolio companies.

Certain of our portfolio companies are in industries that may be impacted by inflation. If such portfolio companies are unable to pass any increases in their costs of operations along to their customers, it could adversely affect their operating results and impact their ability to pay interest and principal on our loans, particularly if interest rates rise in response to inflation. In addition, any projected future decreases in our portfolio companies’ operating results due to inflation could adversely impact the fair value of those investments. Any decreases in the fair value of our investments could result in future realized or unrealized losses and therefore reduce our net assets resulting from operations.

A covenant breach by our portfolio companies may harm our operating results.

A portfolio company’s failure to satisfy financial or operating covenants imposed by us or other lenders could lead to defaults and, potentially, termination of its loans and foreclosure on its secured assets, which could trigger cross-defaults under other agreements and jeopardize a portfolio company’s ability to meet its obligations under the debt or equity securities that we hold. We may incur expenses to the extent necessary to seek recovery upon default or to negotiate new terms, which may include the waiver of certain financial covenants, with a defaulting portfolio company.

Our portfolio companies may be highly leveraged.

Some of our portfolio companies may be highly leveraged, which may have adverse consequences to these companies and to us as an investor. These companies may be subject to restrictive financial and operating covenants and the leverage may impair these companies’ ability to finance their future operations and capital needs. As a result, these companies’ flexibility to respond to changing business and economic conditions and to take advantage of business opportunities may be limited. Further, a leveraged company’s income and net assets will tend to increase or decrease at a greater rate than if borrowed money were not used.

We may not realize gains from our equity investments.

Certain investments that we may make may include equity related securities, such as rights and warrants that may be converted into or exchanged for common stock or the cash value of the common stock. In addition, we may make direct equity investments in portfolio companies. The equity interests we receive may not appreciate in value and, in fact, may decline in value. Accordingly, we may not be able to realize gains from our equity interests and any gains that we do realize on the disposition of any equity interests may not be sufficient to offset any other losses we experience. We may also be unable to realize any value if a portfolio company does not have a liquidity event, such as a sale of the business, recapitalization or public offering, which would allow us to sell the underlying equity interests. We may be unable to exercise any put rights we acquire, which grant us the right to sell our equity securities back to the portfolio company, for the consideration provided in our investment documents if the issuer is in financial distress.

An investment strategy focused primarily on privately held companies presents certain challenges, including the lack of available information about these companies.

Our investments are primarily in privately held companies. Investments in private companies pose significantly greater risks than investments in public companies. First, private companies have reduced access to the capital markets, resulting in diminished capital resources and the ability to withstand financial distress. As a result, these companies, which may present greater credit risk than public companies, may be unable to meet the obligations under their debt securities that we hold. Second, the investments themselves often may be illiquid. The securities of most of the companies in which we invest are not publicly traded or actively traded on the secondary market and are, instead, traded on a privately negotiated OTC secondary market for institutional investors. In addition, such securities may be subject to legal and other restrictions on resale. As such, we may have difficulty exiting an investment promptly or at a desired price prior to maturity or outside of a normal amortization schedule. In addition, in a restructuring, we may receive substantially different securities than our original investment in a portfolio company, including securities in a different part of the capital structure. These investments may also be difficult to value because little public information generally exists about private companies, requiring an experienced due diligence team to analyze and value the potential portfolio company. Finally, these companies often may not have third-party debt ratings or audited financial statements. We must therefore rely on the ability of the Advisor to obtain adequate information through due diligence to evaluate the creditworthiness and potential returns from investing in these companies. These companies and their financial information

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will generally not be subject to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other rules and regulations that govern public companies. If we are unable to uncover all material information about these companies, we may not make a fully informed investment decision, and we may lose money on our investments.

A lack of liquidity in certain of our investments may adversely affect our business.

We invest in certain companies whose securities are not publicly traded or actively traded on the secondary market and are, instead, traded on a privately negotiated OTC secondary market for institutional investors and whose securities are subject to legal and other restrictions on resale or are otherwise less liquid than publicly traded securities. The illiquidity of certain of our investments may make it difficult for us to sell these investments when desired. In addition, if we are required to liquidate all or a portion of our portfolio quickly, we may realize significantly less than the value at which we had previously recorded these investments. The reduced liquidity of our investments may make it difficult for us to dispose of them at a favorable price or at all, and, as a result, we may suffer losses.

We may not have the funds or ability to make additional investments in our portfolio companies.

We may not have the funds or ability to make additional investments in our portfolio companies. After our initial investment in a portfolio company, we may be called upon from time to time to provide additional funds to such company or have the opportunity to increase our investment through the exercise of a warrant to purchase common stock. There is no assurance that we will make, or will have sufficient funds to make, follow-on investments. Any decisions not to make a follow-on investment or any inability on our part to make such an investment may have a negative impact on a portfolio company in need of such an investment, may result in a missed opportunity for us to increase our participation in a successful operation or may reduce the expected return on the investment.

Prepayments of our debt investments by our portfolio companies could adversely impact our results of operations and reduce our return on equity.

We are subject to the risk that the investments we make in our portfolio companies may be repaid prior to maturity. When this occurs, we will generally reinvest these proceeds in temporary investments, pending their future investment in new portfolio companies. These temporary investments will typically have substantially lower yields than the debt being prepaid and we could experience significant delays in reinvesting these amounts. Any future investment in a new portfolio company may also be at lower yields than the debt that was repaid. As a result, our results of operations could be materially adversely affected if one or more of our portfolio companies elect to prepay amounts owed to us. Additionally, prepayments, net of prepayment fees, could negatively impact our return on equity.

Our investments may include original issue discount and PIK instruments.

To the extent that we invest in original issue discount or PIK instruments and the accretion of original issue discount or PIK interest income constitutes a portion of our income, we will be exposed to risks associated with the requirement to include such non-cash income in taxable and accounting income prior to receipt of cash, including the following:

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We may from time to time enter into total return swaps, credit default swaps or other derivative transactions which expose us to certain risks, including credit risk, market risk, liquidity risk and other risks similar to those associated with the use of leverage.

We may from time to time enter into total return swaps, credit default swaps or other derivative transactions that seek to modify or replace the investment performance of a particular reference security or other asset. These transactions are typically individually negotiated, non-standardized agreements between two parties to exchange payments, with payments generally calculated by reference to a notional amount or quantity. Swap contracts and similar derivative contracts are not traded on exchanges; rather, banks and dealers act as principals in these markets. These investments may present risks in excess of those resulting from the referenced security or other asset. Because these transactions are not an acquisition of the referenced security or other asset itself, the investor has no right directly to enforce compliance with the terms of the referenced security or other asset and has no voting or other consensual rights of ownership with respect to the referenced security or other asset. In the event of insolvency of a counterparty, we will be treated as a general creditor of the counterparty and will have no claim of title with respect to the referenced security or other asset.

A total return swap is a contract in which one party agrees to make periodic payments to another party based on the change in the market value of the referenced security or other assets underlying the total return swap during a specified period, in return for periodic payments based on a fixed or variable interest rate.

A total return swap is subject to market risk, liquidity risk and risk of imperfect correlation between the value of the total return swap and the debt obligations underlying the total return swap. In addition, we may incur certain costs in connection with a total return swap that could in the aggregate be significant.

A credit default swap is a contract in which one party buys or sells protection against a credit event with respect to an issuer, such as an issuer’s failure to make timely payments of interest or principal on its debt obligations, bankruptcy or restructuring during a specified period. Generally, if we sell credit protection using a credit default swap, we will receive fixed payments from the swap counterparty and if a credit event occurs with respect to the applicable issuer, we will pay the swap counterparty par for the issuer’s defaulted debt securities and the swap counterparty will deliver the defaulted debt securities to us. Generally, if we buy credit protection using a credit default swap, we will make fixed payments to the counterparty and if a credit event occurs with respect to the applicable issuer, we will deliver the issuer’s defaulted securities underlying the swap to the swap counterparty and the counterparty will pay us par for the defaulted securities. Alternatively, a credit default swap may be cash settled and the buyer of protection would receive the difference between the par value and the market value of the issuer’s defaulted debt securities from the seller of protection.

Credit default swaps are subject to the credit risk of the underlying issuer. If we are selling credit protection, there is a risk that we will not properly assess the risk of the underlying issuer, a credit event will occur and we will have to pay the counterparty. If we are buying credit protection, there is a risk that we will not properly assess the risk of the underlying issuer, no credit event will occur and we will receive no benefit for the premium paid.

A derivative transaction is also subject to the risk that a counterparty will default on its payment obligations thereunder or that we will not be able to meet our obligations to the counterparty. In some cases, we may post collateral to secure our obligations to the counterparty, and we may be required to post additional collateral upon the occurrence of certain events such as a decrease in the value of the reference security or other asset. In some cases, the counterparty may not collateralize any of its obligations to us.

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Derivative investments effectively add leverage to a portfolio by providing investment exposure to a security or market without owning or taking physical custody of such security or investing directly in such market. In addition to the risks described above, such arrangements are subject to risks similar to those associated with the use of leverage.

We may invest through joint ventures, partnerships or other special purpose vehicles and our investments through these vehicles may entail greater risks, and investments in which we have a non-controlling interest may involve risks specific to third-party management of those investments.

We may co-invest with third parties through partnerships, joint ventures or other entities, such as COPJV, thereby acquiring jointly-controlled or non-controlling interests in certain investments in conjunction with participation by one or more third parties in such investment. We may have interests or objectives that are inconsistent with those of the third-party partners or co-venturers. Although we may not have full control over these investments and therefore, may have a limited ability to protect its position therein, we expect that we will negotiate appropriate rights to protect our interests. Nevertheless, such investments may involve risks not present in investments where a third party is not involved, including the possibility that a third-party partner or co-venturer may have financial difficulties, resulting in a negative impact on such investment, may have economic or business interests or goals which are inconsistent with ours, or may be in a position to take (or block) action in a manner contrary to the our investment objectives or the increased possibility of default by, diminished liquidity or insolvency of, the third party, due to a sustained or general economic downturn. Third-party partners or co-venturers may opt to liquidate an investment at a time during which such liquidation is not optimal for us. In addition, we may in certain circumstances be liable for the actions of its third-party partners or co-venturers. In those circumstances where such third parties involve a management group, such third parties may receive compensation arrangements relating to such investments, including incentive compensation arrangements

Risks Related to Debt Financing

We currently incur indebtedness to make investments, which magnifies the potential for gain or loss on amounts invested in our common stock and may increase the risk of investing in our common stock.

The use of borrowings and other types of financing, also known as leverage, magnifies the potential for gain or loss on amounts invested and, therefore, increases the risks associated with investing in our common stock. When we use leverage to partially finance our investments, through borrowing from banks and other lenders or issuing debt securities, we, and therefore our stockholders, will experience increased risks of investing in our common stock. Any lenders and debt holders would have fixed dollar claims on our assets that are senior to the claims of our stockholders. If the value of our assets increases, then leverage would cause the net asset value attributable to our common stock to increase more sharply than it would have had we not utilized leverage. Conversely, if the value of our assets decreases, leverage would cause net asset value to decline more sharply than it otherwise would have had we not utilized leverage. Similarly, any increase in our income in excess of interest payable on our indebtedness would cause our net investment income to increase more than it would without leverage, while any decrease in our income would cause net investment income to decline more sharply than it would have had we not utilized leverage. Such a decline could negatively affect our ability to make distributions to stockholders. Leverage is generally considered a speculative investment technique.

In addition, the decision to utilize leverage will increase our assets and, as a result, will increase the amount of base management fees payable to the Advisor. See “Risks Related to the Advisor and its Affiliates—The Advisor and its affiliates, including our officers and some of our directors, face conflicts of interest as a result of compensation arrangements between us and the Advisor, which could result in actions that are not in the best interests of our stockholders.”

Illustration. The following table illustrates the effect of leverage on returns from an investment in shares of our common stock assuming various annual returns, net of expenses. The calculations in the table below are hypothetical and actual returns may be higher or lower than those appearing below. The calculation assumes (i) $18.3 billion in total assets, (ii) a weighted average cost of funds of 3.45%, (iii) $10.8 billion in debt outstanding and (iv) $7.7 billion in stockholders’ equity. In order to compute the “Corresponding return to stockholders,” the “Assumed Return on Our Portfolio (net of expenses)” is multiplied by the assumed total assets to obtain an assumed return to us. From this amount, the interest expense is calculated by multiplying the assumed weighted average cost of funds times the assumed debt outstanding, and the product is subtracted from the assumed return to us in order to determine the return available to stockholders. The return available to stockholders is then divided by our stockholders’ equity to determine the “Corresponding return to stockholders.” Actual interest payments may be different.

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Similarly, assuming (i) $18.3 billion in total assets, (ii) a weighted average cost of funds of 3.45% and (iii) $10.8 billion in debt outstanding, our assets would need to yield an annual return (net of expenses) of approximately 2.01% in order to cover the annual interest payments on our outstanding debt.

The agreements governing our debt financing arrangements contain, and agreements governing future debt financing arrangements may contain, various covenants which, if not complied with, could have a material adverse effect on our ability to meet our investment obligations and to pay distributions to our stockholders.

The agreements governing certain of our debt financing arrangements contain, and agreements governing future debt financing arrangements may contain, certain financial and operational covenants. These covenants require us and our subsidiaries to, among other things, maintain certain financial ratios, including asset coverage and minimum stockholders’ equity. Compliance with these covenants depends on many factors, some of which are beyond our and their control. In the event of deterioration in the capital markets and pricing levels subsequent to this period, net unrealized depreciation in our and our subsidiaries’ portfolios may increase in the future and could result in non-compliance with certain covenants, or our taking actions which could disrupt our business and impact our ability to meet our investment objectives.

There can be no assurance that we and our subsidiaries will continue to comply with the covenants under our financing arrangements. Failure to comply with these covenants could result in a default which, if we and our subsidiaries were unable to obtain a waiver, consent or amendment from the debt holders, could accelerate repayment under any or all of our and their debt instruments and thereby force us to liquidate investments at a disadvantageous time and/or at a price which could result in losses, or allow our lenders to sell assets pledged as collateral under our financing arrangements in order to satisfy amounts due thereunder. These occurrences could have a material adverse impact on our liquidity, financial condition, results of operations and ability to pay distributions. See “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Financial Condition, Liquidity and Capital Resources” for a more detailed discussion of the terms of our debt financings.

Risks Related to an Investment in Our Common Stock

There is a risk that investors in our common stock may not receive distributions.

We cannot assure stockholders that we will achieve investment results that will allow us to make a specified level of cash distributions. All distributions will be paid at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend on our earnings, our net investment income, our financial condition, maintenance of our RIC status, compliance with applicable BDC regulations and such other factors as our board of directors may deem relevant from time to time. Furthermore, we are permitted to issue senior securities, including multiple classes of debt and one class of stock senior to our shares of common stock. If any such senior securities are outstanding, we are prohibited from paying distributions to holders of shares of our common stock unless we meet the applicable asset coverage ratios at the time of distribution. As a result, we may be limited in our ability to make distributions.

Our distribution proceeds may exceed our earnings. Therefore, portions of the distributions that we make may represent a return of capital to stockholders, which will lower their tax basis in their shares of common stock.

The tax treatment and characterization of our distributions may vary significantly from time to time due to the nature of our investments. The ultimate tax characterization of our distributions made during a tax year may not finally be determined until after the end of that tax year. We may make distributions during a tax year that exceed our investment company taxable income and net capital gains for that tax year. In such a situation, the amount by which our total distributions exceed investment company taxable income and net capital gains generally would be treated as a return of capital up to the amount of a stockholder’s tax basis in the shares, with any amounts exceeding such tax basis treated as a gain from the sale or exchange of such shares. A return of capital generally is a return of a stockholder’s investment rather than a return of earnings or gains derived from our investment activities. Moreover, we may pay all or a substantial portion of our distributions from the proceeds of the sale of shares of our common stock or from borrowings in anticipation of future cash flow, which could constitute a return of stockholders’ capital and will lower such stockholders’ tax basis in our shares, which may result in increased tax liability to stockholders when they sell such shares.

Our shares of common stock may trade at a discount to net asset value, and such discount may be significant.

Shares of closed-end investment companies, including BDCs, may trade at a market price that is less than the net asset value that is attributable to those shares. This characteristic of closed-end investment companies is separate and distinct from the risk that our net asset value per share may decline. It is not possible to predict whether shares of our common stock will trade at, above, or below net asset value. If our common stock is trading at a price below its net asset value per share, we will generally not

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be able to issue additional shares of our common stock at their market price without first obtaining approval for such issuance from our stockholders and our independent directors. In past years, we obtained the approval of our stockholders to issue shares of common stock at prices below the then-current net asset value of our common stock, subject to certain conditions, during the twelve-month periods beginning on the dates of such approvals. The current authorization expires on December 10, 2022. We may again seek the approval of our stockholders to issue shares of our common stock at prices below the then-current net asset value per share for a twelve-month period following stockholder approval. However, we may not obtain the necessary approvals to sell shares of common stock below net asset value after December 10, 2022.

We may pay distributions from offering proceeds, borrowings or the sale of assets to the extent our cash flows from operations, net investment income or earnings are not sufficient to fund declared distributions.

We may fund distributions from the uninvested proceeds of a securities offering and borrowings, and we have not established limits on the amount of funds we may use from such proceeds or borrowings to make any such distributions. We have paid and may continue to pay distributions from the sale of assets to the extent distributions exceed our earnings or cash flows from operations. Distributions from offering proceeds or from borrowings could reduce the amount of capital we ultimately invest in our portfolio companies.

A stockholder’s interest in us will be diluted if we issue additional shares, which could reduce the overall value of an investment in us.

Our investors do not have preemptive rights to any shares we issue in the future. Our charter authorizes us to issue 750,000,000 shares of common stock. Pursuant to our charter, a majority of our entire board of directors may amend our charter to increase the number of authorized shares of stock without stockholder approval. After an investor purchases shares, our board of directors may elect to sell additional shares in the future, issue equity interests in private offerings or issue share-based awards to our independent directors or employees of the Advisor. To the extent we issue additional equity interests after an investor purchases our shares, an investor’s percentage ownership interest in us will be diluted. In addition, depending upon the terms and pricing of any additional offerings and the value of our investments, an investor may also experience dilution in the book value and fair value of his or her shares.

Stockholders may experience dilution in their ownership percentage if they do not participate in our distribution reinvestment plan.

Stockholders who do not participate in our distribution reinvestment plan may experience accretion to the net asset value of their shares if our shares are trading at a premium to net asset value and dilution if our shares are trading at a discount to net asset value. The level of accretion or discount would depend on various factors, including the proportion of our stockholders who participate in the plan, the level of premium or discount at which our shares are trading and the amount of the distribution payable to a stockholder.

Certain provisions of our charter and bylaws as well as provisions of the Maryland General Corporation Law could deter takeover attempts and have an adverse impact on the value of our common stock.

The Maryland General Corporation Law, or the MGCL, and our charter and bylaws contain certain provisions that may have the effect of discouraging, delaying or making difficult a change in control of our company or the removal of our incumbent directors. Under the Business Combination Act of the MGCL, certain business combinations between us and an “interested stockholder” (defined generally to include any person who beneficially owns 10% or more of the voting power of our outstanding shares) or an affiliate thereof is prohibited for five years and thereafter is subject to special stockholder voting requirements, to the extent that such statute is not superseded by applicable requirements of the 1940 Act. However, our board of directors has adopted a resolution exempting from the Business Combination Act any business combination between us and any person to the extent that such business combination receives the prior approval of our board of directors, including a majority of our directors who are not “interested persons” as defined in the 1940 Act. Under the Control Share Acquisition Act of the MGCL, “control shares” acquired in a “control share acquisition” have no voting rights except to the extent approved by a vote of two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast on the matter, excluding shares owned by the acquirer, by officers or by directors who are employees of the corporation. Our bylaws contain a provision exempting from the Control Share Acquisition Act any and all acquisitions by any person of shares of our common stock, but such provision may be repealed at any time (before or after a control share acquisition). However, we will amend our bylaws to repeal such provision (so as to be subject to the Control Share Acquisition Act) only if our board of directors determines that it would be in our best interests and if the staff of the SEC does not object to our determination that our being subject to the Control Share Acquisition Act does not conflict with the 1940 Act. The Business Combination Act (if our board of directors should repeal the resolution) and the Control Share Acquisition Act (if we amend our bylaws to be subject to that Act) may discourage others from trying to acquire control of us and increase the difficulty of consummating any offer.

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We have also adopted measures that may make it difficult for a third party to obtain control of us, including provisions of our charter: (a) classifying our board of directors into three classes serving staggered three-year terms, (b) providing that a director may be removed only for cause and only by vote of at least two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast, and (c) authorizing our board of directors to (i) classify or reclassify shares of our stock into one or more classes or series, (ii) cause the issuance of additional shares of our stock, and (iii) amend our charter from time to time, without stockholder approval, to increase or decrease the aggregate number of shares of stock or the number of shares of stock of any class or series that we have authority to issue. These provisions, as well as other provisions of our charter and bylaws, may discourage, delay, defer, make more difficult or prevent a transaction or a change in control that might otherwise be in the best interest of our stockholders.

The net asset value of our common stock may fluctuate significantly.

The net asset value and liquidity, if any, of the market for shares of our common stock may be significantly affected by numerous factors, some of which are beyond our control and may not be directly related to our operating performance. These factors include: (i) changes in regulatory policies or tax guidelines, particularly with respect to RICs or BDCs; (ii) loss of RIC or BDC status; (iii) changes in earnings or variations in operating results; (iv) changes in the value of our portfolio of investments; (v) changes in accounting guidelines governing valuation of our investments; (vi) any shortfall in revenue or net income or any increase in losses from levels expected by investors; (vii) departure of our investment adviser or certain of its key personnel; (viii) general economic trends and other external factors; and (ix) loss of a major funding source.

The market price of our common stock may fluctuate significantly.

The market price and liquidity of the market for our common stock may be significantly affected by numerous factors, some of which are beyond our control and may not be directly related to our operating performance. These factors include:

In the past, following periods of volatility in the market price of a company’s securities, securities class action litigation has often been brought against that company. If the market price of our common stock fluctuates significantly, we may be the target of securities litigation in the future. Securities litigation could result in substantial costs and divert management’s attention and resources from our business. See “Risks Related to Our Business and Structure—We and our Advisor could be the target of litigation.”

Future sales of our common stock in the public market or the issuance of securities senior to our common stock could adversely affect the trading price of our common stock and our ability to raise funds in new stock offerings.

Future sales of substantial amounts of our common stock or equity-related securities in the public market, or the perception that such sales could occur, could adversely affect prevailing trading prices of our common stock and could impair our ability to

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raise capital through future offerings of equity or equity-related securities. No prediction can be made as to the effect, if any, that future sales of shares of common stock or the availability of shares of common stock for future sale, will have on the trading price of our common stock.

If we issue preferred stock, debt securities or convertible debt securities, the net asset value and market value of our common stock may become more volatile.

We also cannot assure you that the issuance of preferred stock, debt securities or convertible debt securities would result in a higher yield or return to the holders of our common stock. The issuance of preferred stock, debt securities or convertible debt securities would likely cause the net asset value and market value of our common stock to become more volatile. If the dividend rate on the preferred stock, or the interest rate on the debt securities, were to approach the net rate of return on our investment portfolio, the benefit of leverage to the holders of our common stock would be reduced. If the dividend rate on the preferred stock, or the interest rate on the debt securities, were to exceed the net rate of return on our portfolio, the use of leverage would result in a lower rate of return to the holders of common stock than if we had not issued the preferred stock or debt securities. Any decline in the net asset value of our investment would be borne entirely by the holders of our common stock. Therefore, if the market value of our portfolio were to decline, the leverage would result in a greater decrease in net asset value to the holders of our common stock than if we were not leveraged through the issuance of preferred stock. This decline in net asset value would also tend to cause a greater decline in the market price for our common stock.

There is also a risk that, in the event of a sharp decline in the value of our net assets, we would be in danger of failing to maintain required asset coverage ratios which may be required by the preferred stock, debt securities, convertible debt or units or of a downgrade in the ratings of the preferred stock, debt securities, convertible debt or units or our current investment income might not be sufficient to meet the dividend requirements on the preferred stock or the interest payments on the debt securities. In order to counteract such an event, we might need to liquidate investments in order to fund redemption of some or all of the preferred stock, debt securities or convertible debt. In addition, we would pay (and the holders of our common stock would bear) all costs and expenses relating to the issuance and ongoing maintenance of the preferred stock, debt securities, convertible debt or any combination of these securities. Holders of preferred stock, debt securities or convertible debt may have different interests than holders of common stock and may at times have disproportionate influence over our affairs.

Holders of any preferred stock that we may issue will have the right to elect members of the board of directors and have class voting rights on certain matters.

The 1940 Act requires that holders of shares of preferred stock must be entitled as a class to elect two directors at all times and to elect a majority of the directors if dividends on such preferred stock are in arrears by two years or more, until such arrearage is eliminated. In addition, certain matters under the 1940 Act require the separate vote of the holders of any issued and outstanding preferred stock, including changes in fundamental investment restrictions and conversion to open-end status and, accordingly, preferred stockholders could veto any such changes. Restrictions imposed on the declarations and payment of dividends or other distributions to the holders of our common stock and preferred stock, both by the 1940 Act and by requirements imposed by rating agencies, might impair our ability to maintain our qualification as a RIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

We have obtained the approval of our stockholders to issue shares of our common stock at prices below the then-current net asset value per share of our common stock, and any such issuance could materially dilute our stockholders’ interest in our common stock and reduce our net asset value per share.

We have obtained the approval of our stockholders to issue shares of our common stock at prices below the then-current net asset value of our common stock, subject to certain conditions, during the twelve-month period concluding on December 10, 2022. Any sale or other issuance of shares of our common stock at a price below net asset value per share would result in an immediate dilution to our common stock and a reduction of our net asset value per share. This dilution would occur as a result of a proportionately greater decrease in a stockholder’s interest in our earnings and assets and voting interest in us than the increase in our assets resulting from such issuance. Such dilutive effects may be material.

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Risks Related to U.S. Federal Income Tax

We will be subject to corporate-level income tax if we are unable to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code or to satisfy the RIC annual distribution requirements.

Besides maintaining our election to be treated as a BDC under the 1940 Act, in order for us to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code, we must meet the following annual distribution, income source and asset diversification requirements. See “Item 1. Business—Taxation as a RIC.”

We must satisfy these tests on an ongoing basis in order to maintain RIC tax treatment, and may be required to make distributions to stockholders at times when it would be more advantageous to invest cash in our existing or other investments, or when we do not have funds readily available for distribution. Compliance with the RIC tax requirements may hinder our ability to operate solely on the basis of maximizing profits and the value of our stockholders’ investments. Also, the rules applicable to our qualification as a RIC are complex, with many areas of uncertainty. If we fail to qualify for or maintain RIC tax treatment for any reason and are subject to corporate income tax, the resulting corporate taxes could substantially reduce our net assets, the amount of income available for distribution and the amount of our distributions. Such a failure may have a material adverse effect on us and on any investment in us. The Code provides certain forms of relief from RIC disqualification due to failures of the 90% Income Test or any of the Diversification Tests, although there may be additional taxes due in such cases. We cannot assure you that we would qualify for any such relief should we fail either the 90% Income Test or any of the Diversification Tests.

Some of our investments may be subject to corporate-level income tax.

We may invest in certain debt and equity investments through taxable subsidiaries and the taxable income of these taxable subsidiaries will be subject to federal and state corporate income taxes. We may invest in certain foreign debt and equity investments which could be subject to foreign taxes (such as income tax, withholding and value added taxes).

We may have difficulty paying our required distributions if we recognize income before or without receiving cash representing such income.

For U.S. federal income tax purposes, we may be required to recognize taxable income in circumstances in which we do not receive a corresponding payment in cash. For example, our investments may include debt instruments that are treated under applicable tax rules as having original issue discount (such as debt instruments with PIK interest or, in certain cases, increasing interest rates or debt instruments that were issued with warrants). To the extent original issue discount or PIK interest constitutes a portion of our income, we must include in taxable income each tax year a portion of the original issue discount or PIK interest

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that accrues over the life of the instrument, regardless of whether cash representing such income is received by us in the same tax year. We may also have to include in income other amounts that we have not yet received in cash, such as deferred loan origination fees that are paid after origination of the loan or are paid in non-cash compensation such as warrants or stock. We anticipate that a portion of our income may constitute original issue discount or other income required to be included in taxable income prior to receipt of cash. Further, we may elect to amortize market discount and include such amounts in our taxable income in the current tax year, instead of upon disposition, as not making the election would limit our ability to deduct interest expenses for tax purposes.

Because any original issue discount or other amounts accrued will be included in our investment company taxable income for the tax year of the accrual, we may be required to make a distribution to our stockholders in order to satisfy the Annual Distribution Requirement, even though we will not have received any corresponding cash amount. As a result, we may have difficulty meeting the Annual Distribution Requirement necessary to qualify for and maintain RIC tax treatment under Subchapter M of the Code. We may have to sell some of our investments at times and/or at prices we would not consider advantageous, raise additional debt or equity capital or forgo new investment opportunities for this purpose. If we are not able to obtain cash from other sources, we may fail to qualify for or maintain RIC tax treatment and thus become subject to corporate-level income tax.

Furthermore, we may invest in the equity securities of non-U.S. corporations (or other non-U.S. entities classified as corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes) that could be treated under the Code and U.S. Treasury regulations as “passive foreign investment companies” and/or “controlled foreign corporations.” The rules relating to investment in these types of non-U.S. entities are designed to ensure that U.S. taxpayers are either, in effect, taxed currently (or on an accelerated basis with respect to corporate level events) or taxed at increased tax rates at distribution or disposition. In certain circumstances, these rules also could require us to recognize taxable income or gains where we do not receive a corresponding payment in cash and, unless the income and gains are related to our business of investing in stocks and securities, all or a portion of such taxable income and gains may not be considered qualifying income for purposes of the 90% Income Test.

Our portfolio investments may present special tax issues.

Investments in below-investment grade debt instruments and certain equity securities may present special tax issues for us. U.S. federal income tax rules are not entirely clear about issues such as when we may cease to accrue interest, original issue discount or market discount, when and to what extent deductions may be taken for bad debts or worthless debt in equity securities, how payments received on obligations in default should be allocated between principal and interest income, as well as whether exchanges of debt instruments in a bankruptcy or workout context are taxable. Such matters could cause us to recognize taxable income for U.S. federal income tax purposes, even in the absence of cash or economic gain, and require us to make taxable distributions to our stockholders to maintain our RIC status or preclude the imposition of either U.S. federal corporate income or excise taxation. Additionally, because such taxable income may not be matched by corresponding cash received by us, we may be required to borrow money or dispose of other investments to be able to make distributions to our stockholders. These and other issues will be considered by us, to the extent determined necessary, in order that we minimize the level of any U.S. federal income or excise tax that we would otherwise incur. See “Item 1. Business—Taxation as a RIC.”

If we do not qualify as a “publicly offered regulated investment company,” as defined in the Code, you will be taxed as though you received a distribution of some of our expenses.

A “publicly offered regulated investment company” is a RIC whose shares are either (i) continuously offered pursuant to a public offering, (ii) regularly traded on an established securities market or (iii) held by at least 500 persons at all times during the tax year. If we do not qualify as a publicly offered regulated investment company for any tax year, a noncorporate stockholder’s allocable portion of our affected expenses, including our management fees, will be treated as an additional distribution to the stockholder and will be deductible by such stockholder only to the extent permitted under the limitations described below. For noncorporate stockholders, including individuals, trusts, and estates, significant limitations generally apply to the deductibility of certain expenses of a non-publicly offered regulated investment company, including management fees. In particular, these expenses, referred to as miscellaneous itemized deductions, are deductible to an individual only to the extent they exceed 2% of such a stockholder’s adjusted gross income for the taxable years after 2025 and are entirely not deductible against gross income before 2026, are not deductible for alternative minimum tax purposes and are subject to the overall limitation on itemized deductions imposed by the Code. Although we believe that we are currently considered a publicly offered regulated investment company, as defined in the Code, there can be no assurance, however, that we will be considered a publicly offered regulated investment company in the future.

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Legislative or regulatory tax changes could adversely affect investors.

At any time, the federal income tax laws governing RICs or the administrative interpretations of those laws or regulations may be amended. Any of those new laws, regulations or interpretations may take effect retroactively and could adversely affect the taxation of us or our stockholders. Therefore, changes in tax laws, regulations or administrative interpretations or any amendments thereto could diminish the value of an investment in our shares or the value or the resale potential of our investments.

General Risks

Events outside of our control, including public health crises, could negatively affect our portfolio companies and our results of operations.

Periods of market volatility have occurred and could continue to occur in response to pandemics or other events outside of our control. These types of events have adversely affected, and could continue to adversely affect operating results for us and for our portfolio companies. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the following in many affected jurisdictions, including the United States: (i) restrictions on travel and the temporary closure of many corporate offices, retail stores, and manufacturing facilities and factories, resulting in significant disruption to the business of many companies, (ii) increased defaults by borrowers, (iii) volatility in credit markets and (iv) rapidly evolving action by government officials to address the economic and market problems. In addition to these developments having adverse consequences for us and our portfolio companies, the operations of the Advisor have been, and could continue to be, adversely impacted, including through quarantine measures and travel restrictions imposed on its personnel or service providers based or temporarily located in affected countries, or any related health issues of such personnel or service providers.

As the potential impact of COVID-19 is difficult to predict, the extent to which COVID-19 could negatively affect our and our portfolio companies’ operating results or the duration of any potential business or supply-chain disruption is uncertain. Any potential impact to our results of operations will depend to a large extent on future developments and new information that could emerge regarding the duration and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic and the actions taken by authorities and other entities to contain the spread of COVID-19 or treat its impact, all of which are beyond our control. These potential impacts, while uncertain, could adversely affect our and our portfolio companies’ operating results.

We are currently operating in a period of capital markets disruption and economic uncertainty.

The U.S. capital markets have experienced extreme volatility and disruption following the global outbreak of COVID-19 that began in December 2019. Disruptions in the capital markets have increased the spread between the yields realized on risk-free and higher risk securities, resulting in illiquidity in parts of the capital markets. These and future market disruptions and/or illiquidity would be expected to have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Unfavorable economic conditions also would be expected to increase our funding costs, limit our access to the capital markets or result in a decision by lenders not to extend credit to us. These events have limited and could continue to limit our investment originations, limit our ability to grow and have a material negative impact on our operating results and the fair values of our debt and equity investments. In addition, while recent government stimulus measures worldwide have reduced volatility in the financial markets, volatility may return as such measures are phased out, and the long-term impacts of such stimulus on fiscal policy and inflation remain unknown.

If the current period of capital market disruption and instability continues for an extended period of time, there is a risk that investors in our equity securities may not receive distributions consistent with historical levels or at all or that our distributions may not grow over time and a portion of our distributions may be a return of capital.

Our ability to pay distributions consistent with our historical range or to continue to pay our distribution fully in cash rather than shares of common stock might be adversely affected by the impact of one or more of the risk factors described in this annual report on Form 10-K, including the COVID-19 pandemic. If we are unable to satisfy the asset coverage test applicable to us under the 1940 Act as a business development company or if we violate certain covenants under our existing or future credit facilities or other leverage, we may also be limited in our ability to make distributions. If we declare a distribution and if more stockholders opt to receive cash distributions rather than participate in our dividend reinvestment plan, we may be forced to sell some of our investments in order to make cash distribution payments. To the extent we make distributions to stockholders that include a return of capital, such portion of the distribution essentially constitutes a return of the stockholder’s investment. Although such return of capital may not be taxable, such distributions would generally decrease a stockholder’s basis in our common stock and may therefore increase such stockholder’s tax liability for capital gains upon the future sale of such stock. A return of capital distribution may cause a stockholder to recognize a capital gain from the sale of our common stock even if the stockholder sells its shares for less than the original purchase price.

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Future disruptions or instability in capital markets could negatively impact the valuation of our investments and our ability to raise capital.

From time to time, the global capital markets may experience periods of disruption and instability, which could be prolonged and which could materially and adversely impact the broader financial and credit markets, have a negative impact on the valuations of our investments and reduce the availability to us of debt and equity capital. For example, between 2008 and 2009, instability in the global capital markets resulted in disruptions in liquidity in the debt capital markets, significant write-offs in the financial services sector, the re-pricing of credit risk in the broadly syndicated credit market and the failure of major domestic and international financial institutions. In particular, the financial services sector was negatively impacted by significant write-offs as the value of the assets held by financial firms declined, impairing their capital positions and abilities to lend and invest. While market conditions have recovered from the events of 2008 and 2009, there have been continuing periods of volatility (e.g., the ongoing COVID-pandemic). For example, continued uncertainty surrounding the negotiation of trade deals between Britain and the European Union following the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union and uncertainty between the United States and other countries with respect to trade policies, treaties, and tariffs, among other factors, have caused disruption in the global markets. There can be no assurance that market conditions will not worsen in the future.

While most of our investments are not publicly traded, applicable accounting standards require us to assume as part of our valuation process that our investments are sold in a principal market to market participants (even if we plan on holding an investment through its maturity) and impairments of the market values or fair market values of our investments, even if unrealized, must be reflected in our financial statements for the applicable period, which could result in significant reductions to our net asset value for the period. With certain limited exceptions, we are only allowed to borrow amounts or issue debt securities if our asset coverage, as calculated pursuant to the 1940 Act, equals at least 150% immediately after such borrowing. Equity capital may also be difficult to raise during periods of adverse or volatile market conditions because, subject to some limited exceptions, as a BDC, we are generally not able to issue additional shares of our common stock at a price less than net asset value without first obtaining approval for such issuance from our stockholders and our independent directors. If we are unable to raise capital or refinance existing debt on acceptable terms, then we may be limited in our ability to make new commitments or to fund existing commitments to our portfolio companies. Significant changes in the capital markets may also affect the pace of our investment activity and the potential for liquidity events involving our investments. Thus, the illiquidity of our investments may make it difficult for us to sell such investments to access capital if required, and as a result, we could realize significantly less than the value at which we have recorded our investments if we were required to sell them for liquidity purposes.

Global economic, political and market conditions, including downgrades of the U.S. credit rating, may adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

The current global financial market situation, as well as various social and political tensions in the United States and around the world (including the current conflict in Ukraine), may contribute to increased market volatility, may have long-term effects on the United States and worldwide financial markets and may cause economic uncertainties or deterioration in the U.S. and worldwide. The impact of downgrades by rating agencies to the U.S. government’s sovereign credit rating or its perceived creditworthiness as well as potential government shutdowns and uncertainty surrounding transfers of power could adversely affect the U.S. and global financial markets and economic conditions. Since 2010, several European Union countries have faced budget issues, some of which may have negative long-term effects for the economies of those countries and other European Union countries. There is concern about national-level support for the Euro and the accompanying coordination of fiscal and wage policy among European Economic and Monetary Union member countries. In addition, the fiscal policy of foreign nations, such as Russia and China, may have a severe impact on the worldwide and U.S. financial markets. The United Kingdom’s decision to leave the EU (the so-called “Brexit”) led to volatility in global financial markets. On December 24, 2020, a trade agreement was concluded between the EU and the United Kingdom (the “TCA”), which has applied provisionally after the end of the transition period ending on December 31, 2020 and which formally took effect on May 1, 2021 and now governs the relationship between the United Kingdom and the EU. There remains uncertainty as to the scope, nature and terms of the relationship between the United Kingdom and the EU and the effect and implications of the TCA, and the actual and potential consequences of Brexit. Additionally, trade wars and volatility in the U.S. repo market, the U.S. high yield bond markets, the Chinese stock markets and global markets for commodities may affect other financial markets worldwide. In addition, while recent government stimulus measures worldwide have reduced volatility in the financial markets, volatility may return as such measures are phased out, and the long-term impacts of such stimulus on fiscal policy and inflation remain unknown. We cannot predict the effects of these or similar events in the future on the U.S. and global economies and securities markets or on our investments. We monitor developments in economic, political and market conditions and seek to manage our investments in a manner consistent with achieving our investment objective, but there can be no assurance that we will be successful in doing so.

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Changes to United States tariff and import/export regulations may have a negative effect on our portfolio companies.

There have been significant changes to United States trade policies, treaties and tariffs, and in the future there may be additional significant changes. These and any future developments, and continued uncertainty surrounding trade policies, treaties and tariffs, may have a material adverse effect on global economic conditions and the stability of global financial markets, and may significantly reduce global trade and, in particular, trade between the impacted nations and the United States. Any of these factors could depress economic activity and restrict our portfolio companies’ access to suppliers or customers and could have material adverse effects on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Economic sanction laws in the United States and other jurisdictions may prohibit us and our affiliates from transacting with certain countries, individuals and companies.

Economic sanction laws in the United States and other jurisdictions may prohibit us or our affiliates from transacting with certain countries, individuals and companies. In the United States, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control administers and enforces laws, executive orders and regulations establishing U.S. economic and trade sanctions, which prohibit, among other things, transactions with, and the provision of services to, certain non-U.S. countries, territories, entities and individuals. These types of sanctions may significantly restrict or completely prohibit investment activities in certain jurisdictions, and if we, our portfolio companies or other issuers in which we invest were to violate any such laws or regulations, we may face significant legal and monetary penalties.

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, and other anti-corruption laws and regulations, as well as anti-boycott regulations, may also apply to and restrict our activities, our portfolio companies and other issuers of our investments. If an issuer or we were to violate any such laws or regulations, such issuer or we may face significant legal and monetary penalties. The U.S. government has indicated that it is particularly focused on FCPA enforcement, which may increase the risk that an issuer or us becomes the subject of such actual or threatened enforcement. In addition, certain commentators have suggested that private investment firms and the funds that they manage may face increased scrutiny and/or liability with respect to the activities of their underlying portfolio companies. As such, a violation of the FCPA or other applicable regulations by us or an issuer of our portfolio investments could have a material adverse effect on us. We are committed to complying with the FCPA and other anti-corruption laws and regulations, as well as anti-boycott regulations, to which it is subject. As a result, we may be adversely affected because of its unwillingness to enter into transactions that violate any such laws or regulations.

Future economic recessions or downturns could impair our portfolio companies and harm our operating results.

Many of our portfolio companies may be susceptible to economic slowdowns or recessions and may be unable to repay our debt investments during these periods. Therefore, our non-performing assets are likely to increase, and the value of our portfolio is likely to decrease during these periods. Adverse economic conditions may also decrease the value of any collateral securing our debt investments. A prolonged recession may further decrease the value of such collateral and result in losses of value in our portfolio and a decrease in our revenues, net income and net asset value. Unfavorable economic conditions also could increase our funding costs, limit our access to the capital markets or result in a decision by lenders not to extend credit to us on terms we deem acceptable. These events could prevent us from increasing investments and harm our operating results. Economic downturns or recessions may also result in a portfolio company’s failure to satisfy financial or operating covenants imposed by us or other lenders, which could lead to defaults and, potentially, acceleration of the time when the loans are due and foreclosure on its assets representing collateral for its obligations, which could trigger cross defaults under other agreements and jeopardize our portfolio company’s ability to meet its obligations under the debt that we hold and the value of any equity securities we own. We may incur expenses to the extent necessary to seek recovery upon default or to negotiate new terms with a defaulting portfolio company.

A prolonged continuation of depressed oil and natural gas prices could negatively impact the energy and power industry and energy-related investments within our investment portfolio.

Prices for oil and natural gas, which historically have been volatile and may continue to be volatile, may be subject to large fluctuations in response to relatively minor changes in the supply of and demand for oil and natural gas. A prolonged continuation of depressed oil and natural gas prices would adversely affect the credit quality and performance of certain of our debt and equity investments in energy and power and related companies. A decrease in credit quality and performance would, in turn, negatively affect the fair value of these investments, which would consequently negatively affect our net asset value. Should a prolonged period of depressed oil and natural gas prices occur, the ability of certain of our portfolio companies in the energy and power and related industries to satisfy financial or operating covenants imposed by us or other lenders may be adversely affected, which could, in turn, negatively impact their financial condition and their ability to satisfy their debt service and other obligations.

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Likewise, should a prolonged period of depressed oil and natural gas prices occur, it is possible that the cash flow and profit generating capacity of these portfolio companies could also be adversely affected thereby negatively impacting their ability to pay us dividends or distributions on our investments.

None.

We do not own any real estate or other physical properties materially important to our operation. Our headquarters are located at 201 Rouse Boulevard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19112. We believe that our office facilities are suitable and adequate for our business as it is presently conducted.

We are not currently subject to any material legal proceedings, nor, to our knowledge, is any material legal proceeding threatened against us. From time to time, we may be party to certain legal proceedings in the ordinary course of business, including proceedings relating to the enforcement of our rights under contracts with our portfolio companies. While the outcome of any legal proceedings cannot be predicted with certainty, we do not expect that these proceedings will have a material adverse effect upon our financial condition or results of operations.

Not applicable.

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PART II

Many of the amounts and percentages presented in Part II have been rounded for convenience of presentation, and all dollar amounts, excluding share and per share amounts, are presented in millions unless otherwise noted.

Market Information

Our common stock has been listed on the NYSE since April 16, 2014. Our common stock traded under the ticker symbol “FSIC” until December 19, 2018 and has traded under the ticker symbol “FSK” since December 20, 2018. Prior to April 16, 2014, there was no public market for our common stock. Our shares of common stock have historically traded at prices both above and below our net asset value per share. It is not possible to predict whether shares of our common stock will trade at, above or below our net asset value in the future. See “Risk Factors—Risks Related to an Investment in Our Common Stock—Our shares of common stock may trade at a discount to net asset value.”

As of February 24, 2022, we had 13,074 record holders of our common stock which does not include beneficial owners of shares of common stock held in “street name” by brokers and other institutions on behalf of stockholders.

Distributions

Subject to applicable legal restrictions and the sole discretion of our board of directors, we intend to declare and pay regular cash distributions on a quarterly basis. From time to time, we may also pay special interim distributions in the form of cash or shares of our common stock at the discretion of our board of directors. The timing and amount of any future distributions to stockholders are subject to applicable legal restrictions and the sole discretion of our board of directors.

The following table reflects the cash distributions per share that we have declared on our common stock during the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019:

See “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—RIC Status and Distributions” and Note 5 to our consolidated financial statements contained in this annual report on Form 10-K for additional information regarding our distributions and our distribution reinvestment plan.

Stock Repurchase Programs

September 2021 Share Repurchase Program

In November 2020, the Company’s board of directors authorized a stock repurchase program, which went into effect in September 2021 following the consummation of the 2021 Merger, or the September 2021 Share Repurchase Program. Under the September 2021 Share Repurchase Program, the Company may repurchase up to $100 in the aggregate of its outstanding common stock in the open market at prices below the then-current net asset value per share. The timing, manner, price and amount of any share repurchases was determined by the Company based upon the evaluation of economic and market conditions, the Company’s stock price, applicable legal and regulatory requirements and other factors. The September 2021 Share Repurchase Program is expected to be in effect for one year from the effective date, unless extended, or until the aggregate repurchase amount that has been approved by the Company’s board of directors has been expended, or the plan otherwise terminates pursuant to its terms. The September 2021 Share Repurchase Program does not require the Company to repurchase any specific number of shares and the Company cannot assure stockholders that any shares will be repurchased under the program. The September 2021 Share Repurchase Program may be suspended, extended, modified or discontinued at any time.

During the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company repurchased 586,902 shares of common stock pursuant to the September 2021 Share Repurchase Program at an average price per share (inclusive of commissions paid) of $21.44 (totaling

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$12). During the period from January 1, 2022 to February 24, 2022, the Company repurchased 268,457 shares of common stock pursuant to the September 2021 Share Repurchase Program at an average price per share (inclusive of commissions paid) of $21.79 (totaling $6).

Affiliated Purchaser Programs

As previously disclosed, certain affiliates of the owners of the Advisor committed $100 to a $350 investment vehicle that may invest from time to time in shares of the Company. In September 2021, that investment vehicle entered into a written trading plan with a third party broker in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 and Rule 10b-18 promulgated under the Exchange Act, or the September 2021 Affiliated Purchaser Program, to facilitate the purchase of shares of our common stock pursuant to the terms and conditions of such plan. The September 2021 Affiliated Purchaser Program provided for the purchase of up to $100 worth of shares of our common stock, subject to the limitations provided therein. The September 2021 Affiliated Purchaser Program has concluded since the aggregate repurchase amount that was approved by the Company’s board of directors has been expended.

In December 2021, that investment vehicle entered into a written trading plan with a third party broker in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 and Rule 10b-18 promulgated under the Exchange Act, or the December 2021 Affiliated Purchaser Program, to facilitate the purchase of shares of our common stock pursuant to the terms and conditions of such plan. The December 2021 Affiliated Purchaser Program provides for the purchase of up to $70 worth of shares of our common stock, subject to the limitations provided therein.

During the year ended December 31, 2021, the September 2021 Affiliated Purchaser Program and the December 2021 Affiliated Purchaser Program purchased 4,775,154 shares of common stock at an average price per share (inclusive of commissions paid) of $21.36 (totaling $102).

The table below provides information concerning purchases of our shares of common stock by or on behalf of the Company or any “affiliated purchaser,” as defined by Rule 10b-18(a)(3) promulgated under the Exchange Act during the quarterly period ended December 31, 2021. Dollar amounts in the table below and the related notes are presented in millions, except for share and per share amounts.

Stock Performance Graph

This performance graph shall not be deemed “soliciting material” or to be “filed” with the SEC for purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act or otherwise subject to the liabilities under that Section, and shall not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any filing of FS KKR Capital Corp. under the Securities Act.

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The following graph shows a comparison from April 16, 2014 (the date our shares of common stock commenced trading on the NYSE) through December 31, 2021 of the cumulative total return for our common stock, the S&P 500 Index, the Russell 2000 Financial Services Index and the MVIS US Business Development Companies Index. The graph assumes that $100 was invested at the market close on April 16, 2014 in our common stock, the S&P 500 Index, the Russell 2000 Financial Services Index and the MVIS US Business Development Companies Index, is based on historical stock prices and assumes all dividends or distributions are reinvested on the respective dividend or distribution payment dates without commissions. The stock price performance reflected by the following graph is not necessarily indicative of future stock price performance.

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Omitted pursuant to SEC Final Rule Release No. 33-10890, Management’s Discussion and Analysis, Selected Financial Data, and Supplementary Financial Information, with respect to Item 301, which went effective February 10, 2021.

The information contained in this section should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes thereto appearing elsewhere in this annual report on Form 10-K.

Forward-Looking Statements

Some of the statements in this annual report on Form 10-K constitute forward-looking statements because they relate to future events or our future performance or financial condition. The forward-looking statements contained in this annual report on Form 10-K may include statements as to:

In addition, words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “expect” and “intend” indicate a forward-looking statement, although not all forward-looking statements include these words. The forward-looking statements contained in this annual report on Form 10-K involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those implied or expressed in the forward-looking statements for any reason, including those factors set forth in “Item 1A. Risk Factors.” Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include:

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We have based the forward-looking statements included in this annual report on Form 10-K on information available to us on the date of this annual report on Form 10-K. Except as required by the federal securities laws, we undertake no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Stockholders are advised to consult any additional disclosures that we may make directly to stockholders or through reports that we may file in the future with the SEC, including annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. The forward-looking statements and projections contained in this annual report on Form 10-K are excluded from the safe harbor protection provided by Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Exchange Act.

Overview

We were incorporated under the general corporation laws of the State of Maryland on December 21, 2007 and formally commenced investment operations on January 2, 2009. We are an externally managed, non-diversified, closed-end management investment company that has elected to be regulated as a BDC under the 1940 Act and has elected to be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and intends to qualify annually, as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code.

We are externally managed by the Advisor pursuant to the investment advisory agreement and supervised by our board of directors, a majority of whom are independent.

Our investment objectives are to generate current income and, to a lesser extent, long-term capital appreciation. We seek to meet our investment objectives by:

We pursue our investment objective by investing primarily in the debt of middle market U.S. companies with a focus on originated transactions sourced through the network of the Advisor and its affiliates. We define direct originations as any investment where the Company’s investment adviser, sub-adviser or their affiliates had negotiated the terms of the transaction beyond just the price, which, for example, may include negotiating financial covenants, maturity dates or interest rate terms. These directly originated transactions include participation in other originated transactions where there may be third parties involved, or a bank acting as an intermediary, for a closely held club, or similar transactions. These direct originations include investments originated by FB Income Advisor, GDFM or their affiliates.

Our portfolio is comprised primarily of investments in senior secured loans and second lien secured loans of private middle market U.S. companies and, to a lesser extent, subordinated loans and certain asset-based financing loans of private U.S. companies. Although we do not expect a significant portion of our portfolio to be comprised of subordinated loans, there is no limit on the amount of such loans in which we may invest. We may purchase interests in loans or make other debt investments, including investments in senior secured bonds, through secondary market transactions in the OTC market or directly from our target companies as primary market or directly originated investments. In connection with our debt investments, we may on occasion receive equity interests such as warrants or options as additional consideration. We may also purchase or otherwise acquire interests in the form of common or preferred equity or equity-related securities, such as rights and warrants that may be converted into or exchanged for common stock or other equity or the cash value of common stock or other equity, including through a co-investment with a financial sponsor or possibly the restructuring of an investment. In addition, a portion of our portfolio may be comprised of corporate bonds, structured products, other debt securities and derivatives, including total return

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swaps and credit default swaps. The Advisor will seek to tailor our investment focus as market conditions evolve. Depending on market conditions, we may increase or decrease our exposure to less senior portions of the capital structures of our portfolio companies or otherwise make opportunistic investments, such as where the market price of loans, bonds or other securities reflects a lower value than deemed warranted by the Advisor’s fundamental analysis. Such investment opportunities may occur due to general dislocations in the markets, a misunderstanding by the market of a particular company or an industry being out of favor with the broader investment community and may include event driven investments, anchor orders and structured products.

The senior secured loans, second lien secured loans and senior secured bonds in which we invest generally have stated terms of three to seven years and subordinated debt investments that we make generally have stated terms of up to ten years, but the expected average life of such securities is generally three to four years. However, we may invest in loans and securities with any maturity or duration. Our debt investments may be rated by a NRSRO and, in such case, generally will carry a rating below investment grade (rated lower than “Baa3” by Moody’s or lower than “BBB-” by S&P). We may invest without limit in debt or other securities of any rating, as well as debt or other securities that have not been rated by a NRSRO.

Acquisition of FSKR

On June 16, 2021, we completed the 2021 Merger. Pursuant to the 2020 Merger Agreement, Merger Sub merged with and into FSKR, with FSKR continuing as the surviving company and as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, or the First Merger, and, immediately thereafter, FSKR merged with and into the Company, with the Company continuing as the surviving company. In accordance with the terms of the 2020 Merger Agreement, (i) each outstanding share of FSKR common stock was converted into the right to receive 0.9498 shares of the Company’s common stock. This exchange ratio was determined based on the closing net asset value, or NAV, per share of $26.77 and $25.42 for the Company and FSKR, respectively, as of June 14, 2021, to ensure that the NAV of shares investors will own in FSK is equal to the NAV of the shares they held in FSKR. As a result, the Company issued an aggregate of approximately 161,374,028 shares of its common stock to former FSKR stockholders. Following the consummation of the 2021 Merger, we entered into the investment advisory agreement.

Revenues

The principal measure of our financial performance is net increase in net assets resulting from operations, which includes net investment income, net realized gain or loss on investments, net realized gain or loss on foreign currency, net unrealized appreciation or depreciation on investments and net unrealized gain or loss on foreign currency. Net investment income is the difference between our income from interest, dividends, fees and other investment income and our operating and other expenses. Net realized gain or loss on investments is the difference between the proceeds received from dispositions of portfolio investments and their amortized cost, including the respective realized gain or loss on foreign currency for those foreign denominated investment transactions. Net realized gain or loss on foreign currency is the portion of realized gain or loss attributable to foreign currency fluctuations. Net unrealized appreciation or depreciation on investments is the net change in the fair value of our investment portfolio, including the respective unrealized gain or loss on foreign currency for those foreign denominated investments. Net unrealized gain or loss on foreign currency is the net change in the value of receivables or accruals due to the impact of foreign currency fluctuations.

We principally generate revenues in the form of interest income on the debt investments we hold. In addition, we generate revenues in the form of non-recurring commitment, closing, origination, structuring or diligence fees, monitoring fees, fees for providing managerial assistance, consulting fees, prepayment fees and performance-based fees. We may also generate revenues in the form of dividends and other distributions on the equity or other securities we hold.

Expenses

Our primary operating expenses include the payment of management and incentive fees and other expenses under the investment advisory agreement and the administration agreement, interest expense from financing arrangements and other indebtedness, and other expenses necessary for our operations. The management and incentive fees compensate the Advisor for its work in identifying, evaluating, negotiating, executing, monitoring and servicing our investments.

The Advisor oversees our day-to-day operations, including the provision of general ledger accounting, fund accounting, legal services, investor relations, certain government and regulatory affairs activities, and other administrative services. The Advisor also performs, or oversees the performance of, our corporate operations and required administrative services, which includes being responsible for the financial records that we are required to maintain and preparing reports for our stockholders and reports filed with the SEC. In addition, the Advisor assists us in calculating our net asset value, overseeing the preparation and filing of tax returns and the printing and dissemination of reports to our stockholders, and generally overseeing the payment of our expenses and the performance of administrative and professional services rendered to us by others.

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Pursuant to the administration agreement, we reimburse the Advisor for expenses necessary to perform services related to our administration and operations, including the Advisor’s allocable portion of the compensation and related expenses of certain personnel of FS Investments and KKR Credit providing administrative services to us on behalf of the Advisor. We reimburse the Advisor no less than quarterly for all costs and expenses incurred by the Advisor in performing its obligations and providing personnel and facilities under the administration agreement. The Advisor allocates the cost of such services to us based on factors such as total assets, revenues, time allocations and/or other reasonable metrics. Our board of directors reviews the methodology employed in determining how the expenses are allocated to us and the proposed allocation of administrative expenses among us and certain affiliates of the Advisor. Our board of directors then assesses the reasonableness of such reimbursements for expenses allocated to us based on the breadth, depth and quality of such services as compared to the estimated cost to us of obtaining similar services from third-party service providers known to be available. In addition, our board of directors considers whether any single third-party service provider would be capable of providing all such services at comparable cost and quality. Finally, our board of directors compares the total amount paid to the Advisor for such services as a percentage of our net assets to the same ratio as reported by other comparable BDCs.

We bear all other expenses of our operations and transactions, including (without limitation) fees and expenses relating to:

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In addition, we have contracted with State Street Bank and Trust Company to provide various accounting and administrative services, including, but not limited to, preparing preliminary financial information for review by the Advisor, preparing and monitoring expense budgets, maintaining accounting and corporate books and records, processing trade information provided by us and performing testing with respect to RIC compliance.

COVID-19 Developments

The rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, and associated impacts on the U.S. and global economies, has negatively impacted, and is likely to continue to negatively impact, the business operations of some of our portfolio companies. We cannot at this time fully predict the continued impact of COVID-19 and its variants on our business or the business of our portfolio companies, its duration or magnitude or the extent to which it will negatively impact our portfolio companies’ operating results or our own results of operations or financial condition. We expect that certain of our portfolio companies may continue to experience economic distress for the foreseeable future and may significantly limit business operations if subjected to prolonged economic distress. These developments could result in a decrease in the value of our investments.

COVID-19 has already had adverse effects on our investment income and we expect that such adverse effects may continue for some time. These adverse effects may require us to restructure certain of our investments, which could result in further reductions to our investment income or in impairments on our investments. In addition, disruptions in the capital markets have resulted in illiquidity in certain market areas. These market disruptions and illiquidity are likely to have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Unfavorable economic conditions caused by COVID-19 and its variants can also be expected to increase our funding costs and limit our access to the capital markets. These events have limited our investment originations and have also had a material negative impact on our operating results.

We will continue to carefully monitor the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business and the business of our portfolio companies. Because the full effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are not capable of being known at this time, we cannot estimate the impacts of COVID-19 and its variants on our future financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. We do, however, expect that it may continue to have a negative impact on our business and the financial condition of certain of our portfolio companies.

Portfolio Investment Activity for the Years Ended December 31, 2021 and 2020

Total Portfolio Activity

The following tables present certain selected information regarding our portfolio investment activity for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020:

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The following table summarizes the composition of our investment portfolio at cost and fair value as of December 31, 2021 and 2020:

The following table presents certain selected information regarding the composition of our investment portfolio as of December 31, 2021 and 2020:

For the year ended December 31, 2021, our total return based on net asset value was 18.47% and our total return based on market value was 41.45%. For the year ended December 31, 2020, our total return based on net asset value was (9.69)% and our total return based on market value was (19.73)%. See footnotes 8 and 9 to the table included in Note 12 to our audited consolidated financial statements included herein for information regarding the calculation of our total return based on net asset value and total return based on market value, respectively.

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Direct Originations

We define Direct Originations as any investment where the Advisor or its affiliates negotiates the terms of the transaction beyond just the price, which, for example, may include negotiating financial covenants, maturity dates or interest rate terms. These Direct Originations include participation in other originated transactions where there may be third parties involved, or a bank acting as an intermediary, for a closely held club, or similar transactions. The following table presents certain selected information regarding our Direct Originations as of December 31, 2021 and 2020:

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Portfolio Composition by Industry Classification

The table below describes investments by industry classification and enumerates the percentage, by fair value, of the total portfolio assets in such industries as of December 31, 2021 and 2020:

Portfolio Asset Quality

In addition to various risk management and monitoring tools, the Advisor uses an investment rating system to characterize and monitor the expected level of returns on each investment in our portfolio. The Advisor uses an investment rating scale of 1 to 4. The following is a description of the conditions associated with each investment rating:

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The following table shows the distribution of our investments on the 1 to 4 investment rating scale at fair value as of December 31, 2021 and 2020:

The amount of the portfolio in each grading category may vary substantially from period to period resulting primarily from changes in the composition of the portfolio as a result of new investment, repayment and exit activities. In addition, changes in the grade of investments may be made to reflect our expectation of performance and changes in investment values.

Results of Operations

Comparison of the Years Ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019

Revenues

Our investment income for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 was as follows:

The level of interest income we receive is generally related to the balance of income-producing investments, multiplied by the weighted average yield of our investments. Fee income is transaction based, and typically consists of prepayment fees and structuring fees. As such, fee income is generally dependent on new Direct Origination investments and the occurrence of events at existing portfolio companies resulting in such fees.

The increase in interest income during the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020 can primarily be attributed to the increase in assets resulting from the 2021 Merger.

The increase in fee income during the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020 can primarily be attributed to structuring fees and prepayment fees received in connection with increase investment and repayment activity during the current period.

The increase in dividend income during the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020 can be primarily attributed to the increase in dividends paid in respect to our investment in Credit Opportunities Partners JV, LLC, and a one-time dividend of $20 from one of our equity investments during the year ended December 31, 2021.

The decrease in investment income during the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to the year ended December 31, 2019 can be primarily attributed to the repayment of higher yielding assets replaced by lower yielding assets, the impact of the decline in LIBOR on our floating rate investments and the increase in our investment in Credit Opportunities Partners JV, LLC during the year ended December 31, 2020. A portion of each of these factors was impacted by the current COVID-19 pandemic.

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The increase in dividend income during the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to the year ended December 31, 2019 can be primarily attributed to the increase in dividends paid in respect to our investment in Credit Opportunities Partners JV, LLC during the year ended December 31, 2020, compared to the year ended December 31, 2019.

Expenses

Our operating expenses, together with excise taxes, for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

The increase in expenses during the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020 can primarily be attributed to the increased management fee as a result of the higher asset base from the 2021 Merger, the increased subordinated income incentive fee pursuant to the terms of the investment advisory agreement following the 2021 Merger and increased interest expense resulting from the higher debt outstanding due to the 2021 Merger.

Incentive fees and interest expense, among other things, may increase or decrease our expense ratios relative to comparative periods depending on portfolio performance and changes in amounts outstanding under our financing arrangements and benchmark interest rates such as LIBOR, among other factors.

Net Investment Income

Our net investment income totaled $584 ($2.76 per share), $331 ($2.66 per share) and $410 ($3.16 per share) for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively.

The increase in net investment income during the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020 can primarily be attributed to higher investment income during the year ended December 31, 2021 as discussed above. The decrease in net investment income for the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to the year ended December 31, 2019 can be attributed to lower investment income as discussed above.

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Net Realized Gains or Losses

Our net realized gains (losses) on investments, financial instruments and foreign currency for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

Realized Losses from Extinguishment of Debt

During the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, we recorded a net realized loss from the extinguishment of debt of $(3), $0 and $0, respectively. Refer to Note 9 to our consolidated financial statements contained in this annual report on Form 10-K for additional information.

Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)

Our net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments, financial instruments and unrealized gain (loss) on foreign currency for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

During the year ended December 31, 2021, the net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on our investments was driven primarily by $628 of appreciation resulting from the merger accounting associated with the 2021 Merger. During the year ended December 31, 2020, the net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on our investments was driven primarily by mark to market declines across the portfolio resulting from uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the year ended December 31, 2019, the net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on our investments was primarily driven by mark to market declines in certain debt investments.

Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations

For the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, the net increase (decrease) in net assets resulting from operations was $1,515 ($7.16 per share), $(405) ($(3.26) per share) and $246 ($1.90 per share), respectively.

This “Results of Operations” section should be read in conjunction with “COVID-19 Developments” above.

Financial Condition, Liquidity and Capital Resources

Overview

As of December 31, 2021, we had $377 in cash and foreign currency, which we or our wholly-owned financing subsidiaries held in custodial accounts, and $1,609 in borrowings available under our financing arrangements, subject to borrowing base and other limitations. As of December 31, 2021, we also had broadly syndicated investments and opportunistic investments that could be sold to create additional liquidity. As of December 31, 2021, we had unfunded debt investments with aggregate unfunded commitments of $1,724.1, unfunded equity/other commitments of $576.9 and unfunded commitments of $350.2 of COPJV. We maintain sufficient cash on hand, available borrowings and liquid securities to fund such unfunded commitments should the need arise.

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We currently generate cash primarily from cash flows from fees, interest and dividends earned from our investments, as well as principal repayments and proceeds from sales of our investments. To seek to enhance our returns, we also employ leverage as market conditions permit and at the discretion of the Advisor, but in no event will leverage employed exceed the maximum amount permitted by the 1940 Act. Prior to June 14, 2019, in accordance with the 1940 Act, we were allowed to borrow amounts such that our asset coverage, calculated pursuant to the 1940 Act, was at least 200% after such borrowing. Effective June 15, 2019, our asset coverage requirement applicable to senior securities was reduced from 200% to 150%. As of December 31, 2021, the aggregate amount outstanding of the senior securities issued by us was $9.2 billion. As of December 31, 2021, our asset coverage was 184%. See “—Financing Arrangements.”

Prior to investing in securities of portfolio companies, we invest the cash received from fees, interest and dividends earned from our investments and principal repayments and proceeds from sales of our investments primarily in cash, cash equivalents, including money market funds, U.S. government securities, repurchase agreements and high-quality debt instruments maturing in one year or less from the time of investment, consistent with our BDC election and our election to be taxed as a RIC.

This “Financial Condition, Liquidity and Capital Resources” section should be read in conjunction with “COVID-19 Developments” above.

Financing Arrangements

The following table presents summary information with respect to our outstanding financing arrangements as of December 31, 2021:

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See Note 9 to our consolidated financial statements included herein for additional information regarding our financing arrangements.

RIC Status and Distributions

We have elected to be subject to tax as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code. In order to qualify for RIC tax treatment, we must, among other things, make distributions of an amount at least equal to 90% of our investment company taxable income, determined without regard to any deduction for distributions paid, each tax year. As long as the distributions are declared by the later of the fifteenth day of the ninth month following the close of a tax year or the due date of the tax return for such tax year, including extensions, distributions paid up to twelve months after the current tax year can be carried back to the prior tax year for determining the distributions paid in such tax year. We intend to make sufficient distributions to our stockholders to qualify for and maintain our RIC tax status each tax year. We are also subject to a 4% nondeductible federal excise tax on certain undistributed income unless we make distributions in a timely manner to our stockholders generally of an amount at least equal to the sum of (1) 98% of our net ordinary income (taking into account certain deferrals and elections) for the calendar year, (2) 98.2% of our capital gain net income, which is the excess of capital gains in excess of capital losses, or “capital gain net income” (adjusted for certain ordinary losses), for the one-year period ending October 31 of that calendar year and (3) any net ordinary income and capital gain net income for the preceding years that were not distributed during such years and on which we paid no U.S. federal income tax. Any distribution declared by us during October, November or December of any calendar year, payable to stockholders of record on a specified date in such a month and actually paid during January of the following calendar year, will be treated as if it had been paid by us, as well as received by our stockholders, on December 31 of the calendar year in which the distribution was declared. We can offer no assurance that we will achieve results that will permit us to pay any cash distributions. If we issue senior securities, we will be prohibited from making distributions if doing so causes us to fail to maintain the asset coverage ratios stipulated by the 1940 Act or if distributions are limited by the terms of any of our borrowings.

Subject to applicable legal restrictions and the sole discretion of our board of directors, we intend to authorize, declare and pay regular cash distributions on a quarterly basis. We will calculate each stockholder’s specific distribution amount for the period using record and declaration dates and each stockholder’s distributions will begin to accrue on the date that shares of our common stock are issued to such stockholder. From time to time, we may also pay special interim distributions in the form of cash or shares of our common stock at the discretion of our board of directors.

During certain periods, our distributions may exceed our earnings. As a result, it is possible that a portion of the distributions we make may represent a return of capital. A return of capital generally is a return of a stockholder’s investment rather than a return of earnings or gains derived from our investment activities. Each year a statement on Form 1099-DIV identifying the sources of the distributions will be mailed to our stockholders. No portion of the distributions paid during the tax years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 or 2019 represented a return of capital.

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We intend to continue to make our regular distributions in the form of cash, out of assets legally available for distribution, except for those stockholders who receive their distributions in the form of shares of our common stock under our distribution reinvestment plan. Any distributions reinvested under the plan will nevertheless remain taxable to a U.S. stockholder.

The following table reflects the cash distributions per share that we have declared on our common stock during the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019:

See Note 5 to our consolidated financial statements contained in this annual report on Form 10-K for additional information regarding our distributions, including a reconciliation of our GAAP-basis net investment income to our tax-basis net investment income for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019.

Recent Developments

On January 18, 2022, the Company entered into the Eleventh Supplemental Indenture in connection with the 3.250% Notes. For additional discussion of the 3.250 % Notes, see Note 14 to our consolidated financial statements included herein.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Our financial statements are prepared in conformity with GAAP, which requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. Management has utilized available information, including our past history, industry standards and the current economic environment, among other factors, in forming the estimates and judgments, giving due consideration to materiality. Actual results may differ from these estimates. In addition, other companies may utilize different estimates, which may impact the comparability of our results of operations to those of companies in similar businesses. Understanding our accounting policies and the extent to which we use management judgment and estimates in applying these policies is integral to understanding our financial statements. We describe our most significant accounting policies in “Note 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” in our consolidated financial statements. Critical accounting policies are those that require the application of management’s most difficult, subjective or complex judgments, often because of the need to make estimates about the effect of matters that are inherently uncertain and that may change in subsequent periods. We evaluate our critical accounting estimates and judgments required by our policies on an ongoing basis and update them as necessary based on changing conditions. We have identified one of our accounting policies, valuation of portfolio investments, specifically the valuation of Level 3 investments, as critical because it involves significant judgments and assumptions about highly complex and inherently uncertain matters, and the use of reasonably different estimates and assumptions could have a material impact on our reported results of operations or financial condition. As we execute our operating plans, we will describe additional critical accounting policies in the notes to our future financial statements in addition to those discussed below.

Valuation of Portfolio Investments

We determine the net asset value of our investment portfolio each quarter. Securities are valued at fair value as determined in good faith by our board of directors. In connection with that determination, the Advisor provides our board of directors with portfolio company valuations which are based on relevant inputs, including, but not limited to, indicative dealer quotes, values of like securities, recent portfolio company financial statements and forecasts, and valuations prepared by independent third-party valuation services.

ASC Topic 820 issued by the FASB clarifies the definition of fair value and requires companies to expand their disclosure about the use of fair value to measure assets and liabilities in interim and annual periods subsequent to initial recognition. ASC Topic 820 defines fair value as the price that would be received from the sale of an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. ASC Topic 820 also establishes a three-tier fair value hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used in measuring fair value. These tiers include: Level 1, defined as observable inputs such as quoted prices in active markets; Level 2, which includes inputs such as quoted prices for similar securities in active markets and quoted prices for identical securities where there is little or no activity in the market; and Level 3, defined as unobservable inputs for which little or no market data exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions.

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With respect to investments for which market quotations are not readily available, we undertake a multi-step valuation process each quarter, as described below:

Determination of fair value involves subjective judgments and estimates. Accordingly, the notes to our consolidated financial statements refer to the uncertainty with respect to the possible effect of such valuations and any change in such valuations on our consolidated financial statements. In making its determination of fair value, our board of directors may use any approved independent third-party pricing or valuation services. However, our board of directors is not required to determine fair value in accordance with the valuation provided by any single source, and may use any relevant data, including information obtained from the Advisor or any approved independent third-party valuation or pricing service that our board of directors deems to be reliable in determining fair value under the circumstances. Below is a description of factors that the Advisor, any approved independent third-party valuation services and our board of directors may consider when determining the fair value of our investments.

Valuation of fixed income investments, such as loans and debt securities, depends upon a number of factors, including prevailing interest rates for like securities, expected volatility in future interest rates, call features, put features and other relevant terms of the debt. For investments without readily available market prices, we may incorporate these factors into discounted cash flow models to arrive at fair value. Other factors that may be considered include the borrower’s ability to adequately service its debt, the fair market value of the borrower in relation to the face amount of its outstanding debt and the quality of collateral securing our debt investments.

For convertible debt securities, fair value generally approximates the fair value of the debt plus the fair value of an option to purchase the underlying security (i.e., the security into which the debt may convert) at the conversion price. To value such an option, a standard option pricing model may be used.

Our equity interests in portfolio companies for which there is no liquid public market are valued at fair value. Our board of directors, in its determination of fair value, may consider various factors, such as multiples of EBITDA, cash flows, net income, revenues or, in limited instances, book value or liquidation value. All of these factors may be subject to adjustments based upon the particular circumstances of a portfolio company or our actual investment position. For example, adjustments to EBITDA may take into account compensation to previous owners or acquisition, recapitalization, restructuring or other related items.

The Advisor, any approved independent third-party valuation services and our board of directors may also consider private merger and acquisition statistics, public trading multiples discounted for illiquidity and other factors, valuations implied by third-party investments in the portfolio companies or industry practices in determining fair value. The Advisor, any approved independent third-party valuation services and our board of directors may also consider the size and scope of a portfolio company and its specific strengths and weaknesses, and may apply discounts or premiums, where and as appropriate, due to the higher (or lower) financial risk and/or the smaller size of portfolio companies relative to comparable firms, as well as such other factors as

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our board of directors, in consultation with the Advisor and any approved independent third-party valuation services, if applicable, may consider relevant in assessing fair value. Generally, the value of our equity interests in public companies for which market quotations are readily available is based upon the most recent closing public market price. Portfolio securities that carry certain restrictions on sale are typically valued at a discount from the public market value of the security.

When we receive warrants or other equity securities at nominal or no additional cost in connection with an investment in a debt security, the cost basis in the investment will be allocated between the debt securities and any such warrants or other equity securities received at the time of origination. Our board of directors subsequently values these warrants or other equity securities received at their fair value.

The fair values of our investments are determined in good faith by our board of directors. Our board of directors is responsible for the valuation of our portfolio investments at fair value as determined in good faith pursuant to our valuation policy and consistently applied valuation process. Our board of directors has delegated day-to-day responsibility for implementing our valuation policy to the Advisor, and has authorized the Advisor to utilize independent third-party valuation and pricing services that have been approved by our board of directors. The valuation committee is responsible for overseeing the Advisor’s implementation of the valuation process.

See Note 8 to our consolidated financial statements included herein for additional information regarding the fair value of our financial instruments.

Merger Accounting

On June 16, 2021, we completed the 2021 Merger. Pursuant to the 2020 Merger Agreement, Merger Sub merged with and into FSKR, with FSKR continuing as the surviving company and as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, or the First Merger, and, immediately thereafter, FSKR merged with and into the Company, with the Company continuing as the surviving company. The 2021 Merger was considered a tax-free reorganization.

The 2021 Merger was accounted for in accordance with the asset acquisition method of accounting as detailed in Accounting Standards Codification 805-50, Business Combinations—Related Issues. The fair value of the consideration paid by the Company in the 2021 Merger was allocated to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their relative fair values as of the date of acquisition and did not give rise to goodwill.

See Note 13 to our unaudited financial statements included herein for additional information regarding the 2021 Merger.

Contractual Obligations

We have entered into agreements with the Advisor to provide us with investment advisory and administrative services. Payments for investment advisory services under the investment advisory agreement are equal to (a) an annual base management fee based on the average weekly value of our gross assets (excluding cash and cash equivalents) and (b) an incentive fee based on our performance. The Advisor is reimbursed for administrative expenses incurred on our behalf. See Note 4 to our consolidated financial statements included herein for a discussion of these agreements and for the amount of fees and expenses accrued under these agreements during the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019.

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Recently Issued Accounting Standards

In March 2020, the FASB issued ASU No. 2020-04, “Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848),” which provides optional expedients and exceptions for applying GAAP to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions affected by reference rate reform if certain criteria are met. The amendments apply only to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions that reference London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) or another reference rate expected to be discontinued because of reference rate reform. In January 2021, the FASB issued ASU No. 2021-01, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848), which expanded the scope of Topic 848 to include derivative instruments impacted by discounting transition. ASU 2020-04 and ASU 2021-01 are effective for all entities through December 31, 2022. The expedients and exceptions provided by the amendments do not apply to contract modifications and hedging relationships entered into or evaluated after December 31, 2022, except for hedging transactions as of December 31, 2022, that an entity has elected certain optional expedients for and that are retained through the end of the hedging relationship. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of the adoption of ASU 2020-04 and 2021-01 on its consolidated financial statements.

Interest Rate Risk

We are subject to financial market risks, including changes in interest rates. As of December 31, 2021, 69.7% of our portfolio investments (based on fair value) were debt investments paying variable interest rates and 10.2% were debt investments paying fixed interest rates while 13.1% were other income producing investments, 5.1% consisted of non-income producing investments, and the remaining 1.9% consisted of investments on non-accrual status. A rise in the general level of interest rates can be expected to lead to higher interest rates applicable to any variable rate investments we hold and to declines in the value of any fixed rate investments we hold. However, many of our variable rate investments provide for an interest rate floor, which may prevent our interest income from increasing until benchmark interest rates increase beyond a threshold amount. To the extent that a substantial portion of our investments may be in variable rate investments, an increase in interest rates beyond this threshold would make it easier for us to meet or exceed the hurdle rate applicable to the subordinated incentive fee on income, and may result in a substantial increase in our net investment income and to the amount of incentive fees payable to the Advisor with respect to our increased pre-incentive fee net investment income. Previously, the U.S. Federal Reserve and other central banks have reduced certain interest rates in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and market conditions. A prolonged reduction in interest rates may reduce our net investment income.

Pursuant to the terms of the Ambler Credit Facility, CCT Tokyo Funding Credit Facility, Darby Creek Credit Facility, Dunlap Credit Facility, Meadowbrook Run Credit Facility, Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility and the CLO-1 Notes, we borrow at a floating rate based on a benchmark interest rate. Under the indentures governing the 4.750% notes, the 5.000% notes, the 4.625% notes, the 4.125% notes, the 4.250% notes, the 8.625% notes, the 3.400% notes, the 2.625% notes, the 1.650% notes and the 3.125% note we pay interest to the holders of such notes at a fixed rate. To the extent that any present or future credit facilities or other financing arrangements that we or any of our subsidiaries enter into are based on a floating interest rate, we will be subject to risks relating to changes in market interest rates. In periods of rising interest rates when we or our subsidiaries have such debt outstanding, or financing arrangements in effect, our interest expense would increase, which could reduce our net investment income, especially to the extent we hold fixed rate investments.