In the fall of 2015, in the rear hall of the vintage Putnam Restaurant in Greenwich, Conn., Craig Packer, a companion at Goldman Sachs, sat across from Doug Ostrover and listened to an daring angle. Mr. Ostrover, 52, had just left Blackstone, a major investment bank, and was considering launching a massive mid-career business from scratch that would partner with some of the biggest names in world funding. Quit your job, the businessman businessman told the 48-year-old Mr. Packer, and visit me. Mr. Ostrover wanted to start a business that could provide money to very indebted, difficult companies that would demand high interest rates for quick cash, as Mr. Packer later recalled. If it succeeded, the novel enterprise, and its founding partners, may occupy a fresh financial performing field with the potential for big profits. Mr. Ostrover’s pitch ( one he would also make to Marc Lipschultz, a two-decade veteran of KKR who would eventually become another founder of the nascent firm ) was to leap into the business of “private credit”, a simple-sounding term that belies its complexity — and its risk. Without the regulations and state oversight that had previously made traditional banks cautious about this market, the new venture may work virtually like a bank. Instead of a bank, the company would be getting cash from organizations like pension funds and insurance companies, whose savings are strongly guarded by the federal government and can be withdrawn at may. Hence, the new company may be legally able to finance tacky, highly speculative businesses without making any public disclosures about the details of their actions. During the next several decades, over scrambled egg at the meal and discussions abroad, Mr. Ostrover, Mr. Packer and Mr. Lipschultz agreed that the opportunity offered them a great opportunity — but only if they started at a gigantic level,$ 10 billion or so. Bet on the size: it would change the way personal credit is structured, as tiny, shady lending companies closed deals for even shadier fledgling businesses for backroom funding. The post content is retrievable with difficulty. Please make Script available in your browser’s options. Thank you for your patience as we verify entry. If you are in Audience mode please leave and log into your Times accounts, or listen for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience as we verify exposure. Presently a customer? Register in. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.