NEW YORK, June 12 (Reuters) - A $25 billion BlackRock BLK.N private credit fund received requests to redeem 13.3% of the value of its assets in the first quarter, and will buy back 5%, the world's largest asset manager said on Friday.

Investors this year have been pulling money out of this type of ​fund, which raises funds mainly in the retail ⁠market and lends to mid-sized companies. Fears have grown around credit quality, the transparency of valuation processes, and how borrowers would manage disruption from artificial intelligence.

The HPS Corporate Lending Fund (HLEND) will buy back about $620 million of its outstanding shares, it said in a filing, adding that expectations of higher interest rates could mean better opportunities for it to make money.

A smaller vehicle, the $2.7 billion BlackRock Private Credit Fund (BDEBT), received requests to withdraw 5.3% and will buy back 5%, or about $83 million, it said in a separate filing.

HLEND said the fund structure, which is based on returns from assets that rarely trade, with a chance to get some capital back periodically, allowed it to provide investors a premium return, while BDEBT said it "serves the long-term interest of all BDEBT's shareholders."

According to a preliminary estimate, investors in the $2.2 billion HPS Corporate Capital Solutions Fund asked to withdraw an estimated 4.7% of their shares.

BlackRock says its private debt business is worth $203 billion.