Industry participants have long had differing perspectives on how the mid-market should be defined. When you are talking about it today, you are essentially referring to three markets: the lower, the core and the upper. The fact that these distinct categories have grown within a broader mid-market strategy speaks volumes to how crowded the asset class has become, as investor demand has driven up increased competition. Managers are now keen to differentiate from each other and, as a result, there are managers and investors going off the beaten track and stretching the definition of the traditional mid-market.