Runway Growth Finance Corp. Closes Acquisition of SWK Holdings Corporation and Provides First Quarter 2026 Business and Portfolio Update
Rhea-AI Summary
Runway Growth Finance (Nasdaq: RWAY) closed its acquisition of SWK Holdings on April 6, 2026, for a $249.0 million purchase price ($75.5M in Runway Growth shares at closing NAV $11.93 and $173.5M cash). The deal expands pro forma total assets to $1.2 billion and raises healthcare and life sciences exposure to ~32% from 14%.
The company funded $17.6 million of new investments in Q1 2026, recorded $19.0 million of portfolio liquidity events, and announced CEO David Spreng will also serve as Chief Investment Officer.
Positive
- Acquisition closed for $249.0M purchase price
- Pro forma total assets increased to $1.2B
- Healthcare and life sciences allocation rose to ~32% from 14%
- Funded $17.6M of new investments in Q1 2026
- Recorded $19.0M of portfolio liquidity events in Q1 2026
Negative
- Transaction required $173.5M cash consideration
- Issued $75.5M of shares at NAV as part of purchase price
- Portfolio concentration in healthcare rose to ~32%
News Market Reaction – RWAY
In the Apr 7 session, RWAY declined 2.75%, reflecting a moderate negative market reaction.
Data tracked by StockTitan Argus on the day of publication.
Key Figures
Previous Acquisition Reports
| Date | Event | Sentiment | 24h Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 09 | SWK deal announced | Positive | -2.2% | Definitive agreement to acquire SWK, boosting assets and healthcare exposure. |
| May 08 | Autobooks financing | Positive | +1.3% | $40M term loan to Autobooks supporting its acquisition of Allied Payment Network. |
| Jan 30 | Adviser acquired | Positive | +0.8% | Runway Growth Capital acquired by BC Partners Credit and Mount Logan, expanding platform. |
| Jan 09 | VertexOne financing | Positive | +0.0% | $131M commitment to VertexOne to refinance debt and fund an acquisition. |
24h Move is the share-price change in the day after each event; other market factors may also have contributed.
Acquisition‑related headlines for RWAY and its adviser have generally seen mild reactions, with one notable negative divergence on the initial SWK announcement.
Over the past year, acquisition‑tagged news for Runway has centered on platform expansion and sponsor activity. On Oct 9, 2025, RWAY announced the planned SWK acquisition, projecting higher assets and healthcare exposure but the stock fell 2.24%. Other items, such as the Autobooks financing on May 8, 2025 and VertexOne financing on Jan 9, 2025, highlighted growth lending to support third‑party acquisitions with flat‑to‑modest positive moves. The BC Partners/Mount Logan acquisition of Runway Growth Capital on Jan 30, 2025 also saw a small gain, underscoring generally muted but mostly constructive reactions.
Key Terms
net investment income financial
senior secured term loan financial
preferred equity financing financial
debt commitment financial
portfolio company financial
term loan financial
dividend coverage financial
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
Closed Acquisition of SWK Holdings Corporation, Expanding Healthcare and Life Sciences Exposure and Scaling Platform
Completed Four Investments in New and Existing Portfolio Companies Representing
MENLO PARK, Calif., April 07, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Runway Growth Finance Corp. (Nasdaq: RWAY), (“Runway Growth” or the “Company”), a leading provider of flexible capital solutions to late- and growth-stage companies seeking an alternative to raising equity, today announced that it has completed its previously announced acquisition of SWK Holdings Corporation (“SWK” or “SWK Holdings”). Additionally, the Company today provided an operational and portfolio update for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, as well as an update on investment team changes.
Runway Growth’s Founder and CEO David Spreng said, “We are pleased to announce the successful closing of our acquisition of SWK, which represents a meaningful step forward in advancing our ongoing portfolio optimization and diversification strategy. This transaction enhances our scale, deepens our investment capabilities in healthcare and life sciences, and further diversifies our portfolio. Notably, our investment adviser committed an additional
Acquisition of SWK Holdings Corporation
Runway Growth’s acquisition of SWK, a life science focused specialty finance company that provides minimally dilutive financing to small- and mid-sized commercial-stage healthcare companies, closed on April 6, 2026. The final purchase price for the transaction was
As previously disclosed, the total merger consideration was determined based on SWK’s final NAV, which was struck 48 hours prior to closing (excluding Sundays and holidays) and was reflective of its accumulated retained earnings between June 30, 2025, and close. Additionally, Runway Growth Capital LLC (“Runway Growth Capital”), in its capacity as Runway Growth’s external investment adviser, contributed
This transaction expands Runway Growth’s balance sheet to
Advisors
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP served as legal counsel to Runway Growth in connection with the transaction.
Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, A Stifel Company, served as lead financial advisor to SWK in connection with the transaction. Goodwin Procter LLP served as SWK’s legal counsel.
Portfolio Update
Originations
During the first quarter of 2026, Runway Growth funded four investments totaling
- Completion of a new
$7.5 million investment to HR Pharmaceuticals Inc. (dba “HR Healthcare”), funding$5.5 million of debt at close, along with$2.0 million of preferred equity financing. HR Healthcare is a founder-owned medical products platform specializing in the development, manufacturing, and supply of branded, consumable products serving acute and home care markets; and - Completion of follow-on investments with an aggregate amount of
$10.1 million to three existing portfolio companies. - The Company also completed an additional debt commitment of
$46.3 million to 13 Scents Inc. (dba “Dossier”). Dossier is a digitally-native fragrance brand founded in 2018, selling both “Impressions” (inspired-by) and its growing “Originals” (in-house) fragrances. The commitment will be partially funded in the second quarter of 2026.
Liquidity Events
During the first quarter of 2026, Runway Growth experienced the following liquidity events, totaling
- Full principal repayment of the Company’s senior secured term loan to Moximed, Inc. of
$15.0 million ; - Partial principal repayment of the Company’s senior secured term loan to Shepard Intermediate, LLC (dba Federal Hearings and Appeals Services, “FHAS”) of
$0.3 million ; - Other scheduled loan principal amortization payments of
$1.7 million ; and - Proceeds of
$2.0 million from the sales of assets from Pivot3 Inc.
Portfolio Construction and Management
Runway Growth is a credit-first organization, carefully structured to focus on what it believes to be the highest quality, late-stage companies in the venture debt market. The Company seeks to uphold industry-leading investment standards as well as disciplined underwriting and monitoring of its portfolio. Runway Growth is positioned as a preferred lender in the venture debt space, supporting and working closely with companies to help them reach their full growth potential. Since inception, the Company has focused on the fastest growing sectors of the economy, including healthcare, technology and select consumer services and products industries.
As of March 31, 2026, the Runway Growth portfolio included 44 debt investments to 32 portfolio companies and 71 equity investments in 47 portfolio companies, including 23 portfolio companies where Runway Growth holds both a debt and equity investment. Investments were comprised of late and growth-stage businesses in the technology, healthcare and select consumer services and products industries. Runway Growth’s normal business operations include frequent communication with portfolio companies.
Investment Team Update
We are also announcing that David Spreng, CEO and Founder, has returned to the position of Chief Investment Officer, effective immediately. The members of the Investment Committee are David Spreng, Tom Raterman, CFO and COO, and Patrick Schafer, Partner, BC Partners Credit.
About Runway Growth Finance Corp.
Runway Growth is a specialty finance company focused on providing flexible capital solutions to late- and growth-stage companies seeking an alternative to raising equity. Runway Growth is a closed-end investment fund that has elected to be regulated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. Runway Growth is externally managed by Runway Growth Capital LLC, an affiliate of BC Partners Advisors L.P. and led by industry veteran David Spreng. For more information, please visit www.runwaygrowth.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements included herein may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Statements other than statements of historical facts included in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements and are not guarantees of future performance, condition or results and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including those described from time to time in Runway Growth’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Runway Growth undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statement made herein. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release.
No Offer or Solicitation
This press release is not, and under no circumstances is it to be construed as, a prospectus or an advertisement and the communication of this press release is not, and under no circumstances is it to be construed as, an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase any securities in Runway Growth, SWK or in any fund or other investment vehicle managed by Runway Growth Capital LLC, BC Partners Advisors L.P. or any of their affiliates.
Important Disclosures
Strategies described in this press release involve special risks that should be evaluated carefully before a decision is made to invest. Not all of the risks and other significant aspects of these strategies are discussed herein. Please see a more detailed discussion of these risk factors and other related risks in the Company’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K in the section entitled “Risk Factors”, which may be obtained on the Company’s website, www.runwaygrowth.com, or the SEC’s website, www.sec.gov.
IR Contacts:
Taylor Donahue, Prosek Partners, rway@prosek.com
Thomas B. Raterman, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer, tr@runwaygrowth.com
