Kristian Whalen has joined lower middle-market private equity firm Platte River Equity as a Managing Director. Mr. Whalen comes to Platte River following the raising of its third fund, which closed in December 2012 at its hard cap of $405 million.
Mr. Whalen brings 15 years of experience as a private equity investor in numerous industrial and service-based operating companies. He will focus on investments in Platte River’s target industrial sectors.
Prior to joining Platte River, Mr. Whalen was a Managing Director and Co-Head of Diversified Industries in the New York office of Vestar Capital Partners. At Vestar, Mr. Whalen pursued management buyout transactions across a spectrum of industrial and service sectors. His responsibilities included sourcing new investment opportunities, developing new business relationships, structuring transactions, leading diligence and capital markets financings, as well as significant involvement in the operations of Vestar portfolio companies.
Previously, Mr. Whalen was an analyst with the Mergers & Acquisitions group at Paine Webber. Originally from Toronto, Canada, Mr. Whalen holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA from Brown University.
Platte River Equity makes equity investments of $10 million to $50 million in lower middle market companies with enterprise values generally between $20 million and $250 million. The firm focuses on investing in the aerospace and transportation; energy and industrial services; and chemicals, metals and industrial minerals sectors. Platte River Equity manages funds with committed capital of approximately $700 million and is based in Denver (www.platteriverequity.com).
© 2013 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-12-13
