THL Credit announced the appointment of James Kern to its board of directors.Kern joins THL Credit’s board of directors with decades of experience in the asset management industry with a focus in specialty finance.

He currently serves as managing partner of Majestic Ventures 1 LLC, a consulting and investment partnership focused on early stage growth companies. From 2010 to mid-2014, Kern was a managing director at Nomura Securities, serving as Head of Global Finance FIG and Specialty Finance Investment Banking for the Americas. He previously served as a managing director at J.P. Morgan Securities within the FIG practice focused on asset management and specialty finance clients. From 1994-2008, Kern was a senior managing director at Bear Stearns where he held several positions including Head of Strategic Finance-FIG, head of Corporate Derivatives and was a founding member of the firm’s Structured Equity Products group.

“We are pleased to add Jim to our board of directors,” said Sam W. Tillinghast, THL Credit’s co-chief executive officer. “His specialty finance expertise and years of experience in the financial services industry will bring new perspectives and insights to both our board of directors and THL Credit as we continue to grow in the years ahead.”