Alcentra Expands U.S. Direct Lending Team

LONDON and NEW YORK, June 26, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Alcentra Limited and Alcentra NY, LLC (collectively "Alcentra"), an alternative fixed income specialist for BNY Mellon Investment Management (IM), today announced the expansion of its U.S. Direct Lending team with the appointments of Suhail A. Shaikh and Peter M. Glaser as Managing Directors and Co-Heads of U.S. Direct Lending.  Both Suhail and Peter will report to Vijay Rajguru, Global Co-Chief Investment Officer. 

Based in New York, Suhail and Peter will lead Alcentra's Direct Lending business in the U.S., providing a range of private credit solutions to support middle market sponsors and corporations. Leveraging Alcentra's leading U.K. and European direct lending experience, the U.S. Direct Lending team will also advise Alcentra Capital Corporation (NASDAQ Global Select Market: "ABDC") in an effort to create value for its stockholders and enhance Alcentra's U.S. liquid credit loan, high yield and multi-strategy capabilities.   Peter and Suhail were also appointed Co-Presidents of Alcentra Capital Corporation, with Vijay Rajguru appointed CEO.    

These appointments reflect Alcentra's focus on enhancing its position as one of a limited number of credit asset managers that can bring global capabilities to both investors and borrowers.  They follow several recent hires to Alcentra's U.S. investment team including Vijay Rajguru as Global Co-CIO and Leland Hart as Head of U.S. Loans and High Yield.

David Forbes-Nixon, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for Alcentra, said:

"Given our sustained position as one of the leading credit managers in Europe, we are committed to growing our direct lending offer for our clients in the U.S. market. We are delighted to welcome Suhail and Peter to the Alcentra team, as their deep experience in sponsor finance and private credit will further enhance our direct lending capabilities in the U.S. and improve our service to clients."

Peter joins Alcentra from KKR where he headed KKR Sponsor Finance, providing clients with capital structure solutions through KKR's private credit and capital markets platforms.  Peter was previously a Managing Director at Barclays Capital and held roles on the U.S. Leveraged Finance team as its Co-Head of Origination & Execution and Co-Head of the Financial Sponsors Group.  In his over 25-year career in finance, Peter has also held various positions in M&A and corporate finance at Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Dillon Read, and James D. Wolfensohn Inc. He received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania.

Suhail joins from Solar Capital Partners, LLC ("Solar") where he was a senior investment professional.  Solar is a private credit fund advisor, which manages over $4 billion of investable capital in two publicly listed business development companies.  Since joining Solar in 2011, Suhail was responsible for the origination, structuring and investment of middle market principal credits, spanning 1^st lien, 2^nd lien and unitranche transactions.  Prior to Solar, Suhail was in investment banking for over fifteen years as a leveraged finance specialist and financial sponsor banker, most recently as a Managing Director at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. He previously worked at JPMorgan, CIBC and Bankers Trust.  Suhail has an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of Business and an A.B. from Middlebury College.

Notes to editors:

About Alcentra
Alcentra is a global asset management firm with assets under management of approximately $37bn¹. Alcentra has an investment track record that dates back to 1998. Strategies include: senior loans, high yield bonds, direct lending, structured credit, distressed debt, and multi-strategy credit.  Alcentra is a subsidiary of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation and is headquartered in London, with offices in New York, Boston and San Francisco as well as representatives in Singapore and Hong Kong, 

About BNY Mellon Investment Management
BNY Mellon Investment Management is one of the world's leading investment management organizations and one of the top U.S. wealth managers, with $1.9 trillion in assets under management as of March 31, 2018. It encompasses BNY Mellon's affiliated investment management firms, wealth management services and global distribution companies. BNY Mellon Investment Management is part of BNY Mellon, which has $33.5 trillion in assets under custody and/or administration as of March 31, 2018. BNY Mellon can act as a single point of contact for clients looking to create, trade, hold, manage, service, distribute or restructure investments. BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK). Additional information is available on www.bnymellon.com. Follow us on Twitter @BNYMellon or visit our newsroom at www.bnymellon.com/newsroom for the latest company news.

All information sourced by BNY Mellon as of 31 March 2018. This press release is qualified for issuance in the UK and Europe and is for information purposes only. It does not constitute an offer or solicitation of securities or investment services or an endorsement thereof in any jurisdiction or in any circumstance in which such offer or solicitation is unlawful or not authorized. This press release is issued by BNY Mellon Investment Management EMEA Limited to members of the financial press and media and the information contained herein should not be construed as investment advice. The value of investments can fall. Investors may not get back the amount invested. Income from investments may vary and is not guaranteed. Investment Managers are appointed by BNY Mellon Investment Management EMEA Limited (BNYMIM EMEA) or affiliated fund operating companies to undertake portfolio management activities in relation to contracts for products and services entered into by clients with BNYMIM EMEA or the BNY Mellon funds. Registered office of BNY Mellon Investment Management EMEA Limited: BNY Mellon Centre, 160 Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4V 4LA. Registered in England no. 1118580. Authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. A BNY Mellon Company.

¹ As of 30 April 2018. Assets under management reflect assets of all accounts and portions of client accounts managed by Alcentra and its affiliates.  Specifically, certain assets under management reflect assets managed by Alcentra personnel as employees of The Bank of New York Mellon, BNY Mellon Asset Management North America Corporation, and The Dreyfus Corporation under dual employee arrangements.

SOURCE Alcentra