A company backed by George Soros and Michael Dell is close to hitting $1 billion in funding

Owl Rock Capital Partners, a credit fund started by private equity veterans Marc Lipschultz and Doug Ostrover, has raised almost $1 billion.

The firm aims to lend to small and medium-sized businesses through Owl Rock Capital Corp., and has attracted investors including George Soros, Michael Dell, and Alibaba Group's co-founder Joseph Tsai, Bloomberg first reported.

Big banks are retreating from the lending space amid tougher regulations in the wake of the financial crisis, and alternative lenders like Owl Rock, Apollo Global Management, and Oaktree Capital Group are eager to fill the void. In an April filing, Owl Rock said there are nearly 200,000 middle-market companies in need of "access to refinance existing debt, support growth and finance acquisitions."

Owl Rock said its credit investments will be ranging from $20 million to $250 million with maturities between three and 10 years, the filing shows.

The firm has snagged strong talents from Wall Street banks and alternative investment giants to form its dealmaking team. Lipschultz is a former head of energy and infrastructure investing at KKR, while Ostrover is an ex-Blackstone Group credit executive. Craig Packer, a former senior leveraged-finance banker at Goldman Sachs, joined as a co-founder in February and became chief executive officer of Owl Rock Capital Corp.

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