Star Mountain Capital’s Lower Middle-Market Strategic Credit Income Fund 3, which closed in June 2020 above its target equity raise (over USD610 million of LP capital including separate accounts), closed a USD225 million asset-based leverage facility, led by ING Capital. to provide what the firm believes to be a modest amount of leverage for its sophisticated institutional and high-net worth investors in the fund.
Star Mountain received strong demand and support from financial institutions with this single closing oversubscribed by approximately 40 per cent.
The lending group consists of ING, CIT, TIAA Bank, Axos Bank, East West Bank, Georgia Banking Company and Customers Bank. This leverage facility for Star Mountain’s Strategic Credit Income Fund 3 provides additional capital to make value-added debt and equity investments in established US small and medium-size businesses that generally have between USD15 million and USD250 million in annual revenues.
“We are delighted to have attracted such a high caliber group of new and existing bank relationships as partners into our third flagship value-added direct lending fund,” says Brett Hickey, Star Mountain Capital Founder & CEO.
“We were pleased with the strong demand to support our strategic private lending business,” says Stephen Paras, Star Mountain Chief Credit Officer and former Head of Merrill Lynch leveraged loan capital markets who has underwritten over USD50 billion in event driven financings across multiple cycles.
“We, together with our lending partners, are excited about the launch of this partnership with Star Mountain,” said Patrick Frisch, Head of Fund Finance Americas at ING. “We look forward to supporting the continued growth of their business and to furthering our relationship with the Star Mountain Capital team.”
Star Mountain was advised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW), a Stifel Company. Legal representation for Star Mountain was performed by Lowenstein Sandler LLP, a 300+ lawyer national firm. Dechert LLP, a global law firm with 900+ lawyers across 24 offices, represented ING.
Star Mountain was again named Best Places to Work by Pensions & Investments and one of the 2020 Best Places to Work by Crain’s New York Business highlighting the firms focus on culture and community.
