H.I.G. Capital has hired Stuart Aronson, the former head of GE Capital’s Sponsor Finance Group, as the new group head of its US Direct Lending team which operates under H.I.G.’s subsidiary, WhiteHorse Capital.
For nearly 13 years – from February 2003 to December 2015 – Mr. Aronson was the President and CEO of GE Sponsor Finance, one of the most active providers of debt financing to private equity owned middle market companies under the GE Antares brand.
Last fall, GE sold its US Sponsor Finance business to Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) in a transaction valued at $12 billion. CPPIB retained the management team and the Antares brand and now operates Antares as a stand-alone, independent business, led by its managing partners David Brackett and John Martin, who have led Antares since its formation in 1996. At the time of the sale to CPPIB, Mr. Aronson agreed to remain with GE Capital.
WhiteHorse Capital provides senior secured loans, unitranche loans, second lien loans and structured equity to small and middle market companies in both the US and Europe. The group’s debt facilities are used for refinancings, growth capital, acquisitions, buyouts, and balance sheet recapitalizations. WhiteHorse is active in many industries but has specific interest in the business services, manufacturing, healthcare, retail, food and agriculture, and specialty finance sectors. The group currently manages approximately $9 billion of credit assets.
Also joining WhiteHorse are several senior originators from GE Capital, including James Kenefick who served as the GE Antares’ Head of West Coast Sponsor Finance, Mark Bernier who served as GE Sponsor Finance’s Head of Telecom and Technology and Gina Provenzale who provided sponsor coverage for GE Antares. They will be joining the WhiteHorse team which currently has 33 investment professionals.
“We are delighted to welcome Stuart and his team to H.I.G.,” said Sami Mnaymneh and Tony Tamer, Co-CEO’s of H.I.G., in a released statement. “They bring an enviable record of success, especially in the sponsor community, where they have built deep relationships based on flexibility, responsiveness, and a long-term orientation. We are confident that they will make a significant contribution to growing H.I.G.’s direct lending activities.”
WhiteHorse Capital has fifteen offices worldwide with eight in the US in Miami, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco (www.higwhitehorse.com).
H.I.G. Capital specializes in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies and invests in management-led buyouts and recapitalizations of manufacturing or service businesses. H.I.G. has more than $19 billion of capital under management. The firm was founded in 1993 and is based in Miami with additional offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York, San Francisco, London, Hamburg, Madrid, Milan, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro (www.higcapital.com).
© 2016 Private Equity Professional • 2-18-16
