[Skip to main content](/content/podcasts/john-atwater#main/index.html) Your web browser is out of date. Update your browser for more security, speed and the best experience on this site. [Update your browser](http://outdatedbrowser.com/) Click for sound Posted Mar 17, 2026 # Private Credit Through the Cycle: Why Relationships Matter More Than Capital [Contact us](/content/learn-more/index.html) - [Find us on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/juniper-square) - [Find us on Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/junipersquare/) - [Find us on Twitter](https://twitter.com/juniper_square) - [Find us on Youtube](https://www.youtube.com/@JuniperSquare) Brandon Sedloff sits down with John Atwater to explore the evolution of Prime Finance and the broader dynamics shaping real estate private credit. John shares the story of launching Prime during the Savings and Loan crisis and how periods of market stress often create the best opportunities for disciplined lenders. The conversation traces the growth of Prime into a major platform across CMBS, origination, and special situations while examining how lending businesses are ultimately built around relationships and service. Along the way, they discuss how today’s private credit market compares to past cycles and where the most compelling opportunities may emerge over the next several years. They discuss: • John Atwater’s career path and the founding of Prime during the Savings and Loan crisis • Why market dislocations often create the best investment opportunities for lenders • How Prime built scale across CMBS, origination, and special situations strategies • Key differences between real estate private credit and corporate private credit markets • Current private credit market dynamics and the outlook for the next five years Megaphone Embeddable Player The Distribution by Juniper Square Private Credit Through the Cycle: Why Relationships Matter More Than Capital - John Atwater - Co-Founder and Managing Partner - Prime Finance 00:00:00 Forward 15 seconds Back 15 seconds 00:00:00 [Save to Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/5ysEwoATUSEiol96NZgR8L?intent=1 "Save to Spotify") Subscribe Description ## Share The Distribution by Juniper Square Share this episode with your friends [Share via Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?quote=%27Private+Credit+Through+the+Cycle%3A+Why+Relationships+Matter+More+Than+Capital+-+John+Atwater+-+Co-Founder+and+Managing+Partner+-+Prime+Finance%27+by+The+Distribution+by+Juniper+Square&u=https%3A%2F%2Fmegaphone.link%2FDTSOS5062529897 "Share via Facebook")[Share via Twitter](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=%27Private+Credit+Through+the+Cycle%3A+Why+Relationships+Matter+More+Than+Capital+-+John+Atwater+-+Co-Founder+and+Managing+Partner+-+Prime+Finance%27+by+The+Distribution+by+Juniper+Square&url=https%3A%2F%2Fmegaphone.link%2FDTSOS5062529897 "Share via Twitter") [Download episode](https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/DTSOS5062529897.mp3?source=player&updated=1773697162) ## Subscribe to The Distribution by Juniper Square Keep up to date by subscribing to this podcast [](https://feeds.megaphone.fm/the-distribution "Subscribe via RSS") [Subscribe via Apple Podcasts](https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1677652734 "Subscribe via Apple Podcasts") [Subscribe via Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/5ysEwoATUSEiol96NZgR8L "Subscribe via Spotify") [Subscribe via iHeart](https://www.iheart.com/podcast/268261652 "Subscribe via iHeart") ## Description They discuss: • John Atwater’s career path and the founding of Prime during the Savings and Loan crisis • Why market dislocations often create the best investment opportunities for lenders • How Prime built scale across CMBS, origination, and special situations strategies • Key differences between real estate private credit and corporate private credit markets • Current private credit market dynamics and the outlook for the next five years Links: John on LinkedIn - [https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-atwater-89ba1b126/](https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-atwater-89ba1b126/) Prime - [https://primefinance.com/](https://primefinance.com/) Brandon on LinkedIn - [⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/bsedloff/⁠](https://www.linkedin.com/in/bsedloff/) Juniper Square - [⁠https://www.junipersquare.com/⁠](/content/site-root.html) Topics: (00:00:00) - Intro (00:02:34) - John Atwater’s career and background (00:12:39) - Starting prime during the S&L crisis (00:17:28) - Why crisis creates opportunity (00:22:42) - Building the Prime finance platform (00:28:04) - Special situations vs origination (00:33:12) - Real estate credit vs corporate private credit (00:40:08) - Current private credit market dynamics (00:43:31) - Outlook for next 5 years (00:50:20) - How to reach prime finance (00:50:42) - Closing remarks Posted Mar 17, 2026 # Private Credit Through the Cycle: Why Relationships Matter More Than Capital [Contact us](/content/learn-more/index.html) They discuss: • John Atwater’s career path and the founding of Prime during the Savings and Loan crisis • Why market dislocations often create the best investment opportunities for lenders • How Prime built scale across CMBS, origination, and special situations strategies • Key differences between real estate private credit and corporate private credit markets • Current private credit market dynamics and the outlook for the next five years Megaphone Embeddable Player The Distribution by Juniper Square Private Credit Through the Cycle: Why Relationships Matter More Than Capital - John Atwater - Co-Founder and Managing Partner - Prime Finance 00:00:00 Forward 15 seconds Back 15 seconds 00:00:00 [Save to Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/5ysEwoATUSEiol96NZgR8L?intent=1 "Save to Spotify") Subscribe Description ## Share The Distribution by Juniper Square Share this episode with your friends [Download episode](https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/DTSOS5062529897.mp3?source=player&updated=1773697162) ## Subscribe to The Distribution by Juniper Square Keep up to date by subscribing to this podcast ## Description Links: John on LinkedIn - [https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-atwater-89ba1b126/](https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-atwater-89ba1b126/) Prime - [https://primefinance.com/](https://primefinance.com/) Brandon on LinkedIn - [⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/bsedloff/⁠](https://www.linkedin.com/in/bsedloff/) Juniper Square - [⁠https://www.junipersquare.com/⁠](/content/site-root.html) Topics: