17Capital IR head departs – exclusive

Beate Pelz has left the preferred equity specialist after two and half years as the firm adds an analyst to its team.

17Capital, the London-headquartered preferred equity specialist, has lost its director of investor relations, Secondaries Investor has learned.

Beate Pelz, who joined in May 2015, left  in September, a spokeswoman for the firm confirmed. Pelz had joined from German direct investment manager Quartum Kapital where she was a senior advisor, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Her next move is unclear.

During Pelz’s tenure, the firm launched  17Capital Fund 4, which reached final close in May on €1.2 billion, above its initial target of €800 million. The fund was raised in six months, according to PEI data.

Her departure follows that of marketing head Rishad Jonuschat in May. He has not yet been replaced, according to the firm’s website.

On Monday 17Capital announced it has appointed an analyst to its investment team. Justinas Tuminauskas joined from the financial sponsors group at Barclays where he advised on M&A and leveraged finance transactions involving firms such as Apax Partners, Blackstone and Apollo Global Management.

17Capital helps investors who want to improve the capital structure of their investment vehicle and return cash to their shareholders, according to its website. Sellers take on preferred equity, which ranks between debt and equity in the capital structure, rather than selling their portfolio stakes. By doing this they retain exposure to any upside, which would be lost in a secondaries sale.

The firm was formed in London in 2008 and opened a New York office last year. Its 23 investment professionals focus on investment opportunities ranging from €10 million to €500 million in value.