Investment Fund Awards 2018

Wealth & Finance International - 2018 Investment Fund Awards 33 Drawing on a vast wealth of experience in the investment market, Star Mountain’s CEO, Brett Hickey, spent three years incubating the business model, including through attending Harvard Business School’s OPM program and joining YPO in 2008 to take a “problems and solutions” type approach to building an investment platform focused on smaller companies. Star Mountain then spent three years investing in technology and R&D. Recognizing the importance and need for technology early-on, the Firm hired a full-time Chief Technology Officer (CTO) whom has been extremely important. Star Mountain’s CTO is able to stay on top of both trends in the industry and make real-time updates that are needed for the success of the business. Today, thanks to Star Mountain’s technology- enabled deal origination platform, the firm can look at a higher volume of deals to then underwrite investments that fit into the firm’s rigorous parameters. In addition, it is Star Mountain’s custom-built technology that allows it to monitor its portfolio diligently to be made aware of any risks or challenges, so the firm can be proactive, and not reactive. Owing to the success of this technology-enabled platform, Star Mountain is able to add meaningful value to society in helping grow smaller companies and create jobs for thousands of individuals at the firm’s portfolio companies. The firm provides value-added capital to finance acquisitions, management buyouts and other attractive growth initiatives to established U.S. lower middle-market (“LMM”) businesses – private businesses that generally have between $10 million and $150 million in annual revenues. Star Mountain focuses on these established, but smaller businesses and specializes on “taking them to the next level” as an aligned investment partner. Star Mountain Capital is a specialized investment firm bringing large market skills, capital and resources to established smaller companies. As part of our overview of a selection of this year’s Investment Fund Award winners we profile the firm to gain an insight into the secrets behind its success. Best Lower Middle-Market Investments Manager - North East USA Star Mountain Capital The firm provides capital solutions for businesses in the U.S. lower middle-market. It is a large market of approximately 200,000 businesses with limited competition from traditional commercial banks who are focused on simple, “check the box” type of lending when it comes to smaller companies. The U.S. LMM is also not focused on by larger asset managers due to the labor intensity of putting relatively small amounts of capital to work compared to the amount of capital they need to deploy each year. Central to its success are Star Mountain’s core values, which include focusing on culture, transparency and governance which are highly aligned with maximizing financial returns and job creation. Star Mountain also focuses on the things that make the firm a comfortable and engaging place to work, like healthy food, standing desks, lots of windows and sunlight. We believe this nexus between business and purpose is where most successful organizations thrive. In fact, a truly great corporate culture is the greatest single asset of a truly great business. Organizations that focus on creating the most cultural capital possible are usually the ones that end up with the most sustainable, scalable and rewarding businesses over time. Ultimately, Star Mountain as a firm itself, as well as with its investments, is focused on long-term aligned value creation. This will remain the firm’s core focus as it looks towards a bright future. Company: Star Mountain Capital Contact: Brett Hickey Address: Tower 57 at 135 East 57th Street, 25th Floor, New York, New York, 10022, USA Phone: 001212 8109044 Website: https://starmountaincapital.com/ FD180015