Keller Joins Great Elm as President to Lead Specialty Finance Business

Great Elm Specialty Finance, a newly formed, wholly-owned subsidiary of Great Elm Capital, a business development company, appointed Michael P. Keller president to head its specialty finance efforts, which include a particular focus on asset-based lending and cash flow and subordinated debt investing._x000D_
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“Over his career, Mike has managed over $20 billion in assets and has had great success developing lending strategies, including deal origination, underwriting and portfolio management for multi-billion-dollar financial institutions,” Peter Reed, CEO of Great Elm Capital, said. “We welcome Mike to our team and believe he will be a natural extension of our lending expertise and will allow us to further expand GECC’s reach and capabilities in the asset-based lending and specialty finance markets via organic growth and through acquisitions, where we continue to see attractive growth opportunities while driving long-term value to our shareholders.”_x000D_
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“I am excited to take on this pursuit with GECC and am confident that we will continue to provide financing solutions to middle market companies and certainly grow our best-in-class platform,” Keller said. “I have known the team at GECC for many years and look forward to expanding GECC’s specialty finance footprint through a combination of direct origination, acquisitions and strategic partnerships.”_x000D_
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Keller joined Great Elm from Credit Value Partners, where he served as a partner and developed and oversaw the firm’s direct lending and investment platform._x000D_
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Prior to Credit Value Partners, Keller was a member of CapitalSource Finance’s senior management team, leading several areas, including as head of the restructuring group for which he was responsible for the management of the company’s stressed loan portfolio, including cash flow, ABL and real estate loans. He also oversaw CapitalSource’s special situation lending initiatives and spearheaded a $300 million opportunistic credit fund._x000D_
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Prior to CapitalSource, Keller headed up restructuring efforts for the $1.8 billion healthcare finance division of FINOVA on behalf of Berkadia, a joint venture between Berkshire Hathaway and Leucadia. Keller has also held various senior and financial/investment positions at PNC Bank and Household International.