Runway Growth Capital, a provider of growth loans to both venture and non-venture backed companies seeking an alternative to raising equity, hired Jeff Goldrich as managing director, technology.

Operating out of the Chicago office and reporting directly to founder, CEO and chief investment officer, David Spreng, Goldrich will employ his sector expertise to originate top tier growth and late-stage investment opportunities. Goldrich’s goal is to support entrepreneurs and investors while expanding Runway’s footprint.

“Despite a turbulent market, deal flow at Runway is at an all-time high, and we need additional bench strength to ensure Runway is aligning with the best growth companies seeking financial support with minimal dilution,” Spreng said. “Jeff provides a high volume of potential investments with an intuitive, honest and transparent approach that is very entrepreneur-friendly, yet detailed and critical. His understanding of lending in the technology sector and passion for entrepreneurs will supplement our origination with quality tech companies.”

“Runway has one of the strongest reputations in the venture debt lending space, which is expanding rapidly due to the flexibility of these investments and founder-friendly nature of the financial instrument,” Goldrich said. “Runway is a strong brand and a large and committed player in the market but maintains a relationship-driven approach, and I feel this camaraderie with clients and the closeness of a tight team structure are foundations for continued success.”

Previously, Goldrich was with CIBC Innovation Banking, a technology lender with a global footprint. At CIBC, he partnered with technology executives, investors and third-party diligence providers to source, structure, execute and monitor credit for growth-stage software and services firms across the country. Goldrich began his career in commercial banking at The PrivateBank and was a founding member of the technology banking team there, which grew to issue hundreds of millions of dollars in debt to dozens of technology companies before being acquired by CIBC in 2017.