Statutory leverage limit under Section 61(a) of the 1940 Act, defined as Total Assets / Senior Securities (debt + preferred), with a regulatory minimum of 150% (i.e., maximum 2.0× debt-to-equity), raised from 200% (1.0× debt-to-equity) by the Small Business Credit Availability Act of 2018. A $500M-equity BDC may borrow up to $1B for total assets of $1.5B. Most BDCs operate at 0.9×–1.3× debt-to-equity, well inside the regulatory cap, to preserve headroom for portfolio markdowns.