Guardian Dentistry Partners Secures Major Growth Investment from Morgan Stanley, Signals Expansion Push Across U.S. Markets

Danny Kawas-Led Dental Network Taps Strategic Funding to Scale Operations Beyond 160 Current Locations

Guardian Dentistry Partners has successfully closed a significant growth capital round led by Morgan Stanley Private Credit, with co-investment from Prudential Private Capital. The financing combines both debt and equity structures, positioning the dental partnership network for its next phase of expansion.

Founded in 2018 by Danny Kawas and fellow dentists, Guardian operates a distinctive model where practitioners maintain full clinical autonomy while participating in equity ownership of the non-clinical management infrastructure. This alignment-focused approach has propelled the network from a startup concept to a multi-state operator with over 160 active locations spanning 11 states including Florida, Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and others.

What The Funding Means

The capital infusion addresses Guardian’s immediate growth targets while providing firepower for geographic expansion. Ashwin Krishnan, managing director and co-head of North America Private Credit at Morgan Stanley, highlighted how the investment structure was customized to balance Guardian’s short-term objectives with long-term strategic ambitions.

“We structured a solution that layers different security types—combining senior debt with equity participation,” Krishnan explained, underscoring how sophisticated institutional investors are tailoring capital packages for healthcare-focused operators.

The Partnership Model Advantage

Danny Kawas has consistently positioned Guardian as a dentist-first organization rather than a traditional consolidator extracting value from practices. The model allows individual practitioners to retain practice control and decision-making authority while gaining access to centralized operational support, procurement advantages, and pooled resources that individual practices cannot access independently.

This structural differentiation has become increasingly attractive to high-performing independent dentists who resist traditional DSO (dental service organization) models that often dilute clinical autonomy.

What’s Next

The Morgan Stanley and Prudential backing signals confidence in Guardian’s operating thesis and growth trajectory. With 160+ locations operational and expanding presence across 12 states (D.C., Alabama, Florida, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia), the network appears positioned to accelerate market consolidation while maintaining its identity as a dentist-partnered rather than dentist-acquired platform.

The funding was facilitated by investment bank Moelis & Company, with execution led by Morgan Stanley executive directors Aleksandar Nikolic and James Morphis.

For context: Morgan Stanley Private Credit manages assets across North America and Western Europe, focusing on direct lending, senior secured facilities, and opportunistic equity co-investments. Prudential Private Capital, managing $101.5 billion across its global portfolio, brings nearly a century of institutional financing experience to the partnership.