Ex-17Capital’s Doyle resurfaces to launch NAV financing strategy

Thomas Doyle has joined Pemberton to help the private lender tap into demand for late-cycle lending among the private equity fund community.

A former 17Capital fund finance veteran has resurfaced at a UK-based private lender, a year after Secondaries Investor reported the former JPMorgan banker had left the preferred equity pioneer.

Thomas Doyle joins London-headquartered Pemberton to lead a new NAV financing strategy, according to a statement.

Doyle has over 25 years’ experience in banking and private debt where he has set up multiple NAV-based financing offerings for major banks. He hopes to make use of Pemberton’s scale, sourcing channels and credit underwriting to develop a new offering for borrowers and investors.

The strategy will see Pemberton launch a dedicated fund, with details to be unveiled in due course.

Commenting on the launch, Doyle said: “The NAV financing strategy allows private equity investors, such as funds and management companies, to unlock value creation through innovative financing structures and is an area poised for significant growth in the years to come.”

By launching the strategy Pemberton hopes to give the firm’s private equity partners more choices at a later point in their fund cycle. The capital can be used to fund further add-on acquisitions, dividend recaps or to fund co-investments.

Pemberton managing partner Symon Drake-Brockman, added: “We have followed the market for several years and we believe now is the time to enter as the opportunities have the potential to offer attractive returns for LPs and genuine benefits for private equity houses.

“Thomas is a veteran of the market and has a strong track record in identifying and delivering innovative investment opportunities, and will be making use of all of Pemberton’s resources to build a first class platform.”

The offering will focus primarily on lending to private equity buyout funds and their managers in both Europe and North America with most managers expected to be active in the mid-market space.

The strategy is the latest in a series of expansions of its product line by Pemberton, which previously announced it will offer CLOs and risk sharing options to its investors.

Doyle had joined 17Capital in 2018 and was joined by fellow JPMorgan managing director David Wilson, who had been head of structuring for the EMEA and Asian fund financing team, and head of legal Emad Shahin.

– Adam Le contributed to this report.