KKR appointed Jim Lees and Vaibhav Piplapure managing directors for its global private credit team to augment asset-based finance investing opportunities in the specialty lending and private asset-based finance markets. Lees and Piplapure will be based in New York and London, respectively.
“We are energized by the growth and evolution of non-corporate private lending,” Dan Pietrzak, a partner and co-head of private credit at KKR based in New York, said. “The addition of Jim and [Vaibhav] to our growing ABF team further bolsters our leadership in this space and we will continue to add senior resources to the team as we pursue the large opportunity set that we believe exists across a range of sectors and geographies.”
Lees and Piplapure collectively have more than 45 years of experience in ABF investments, specialty lending and structured finance and will join KKR’s 75-person private credit team, which includes 20 investment professionals focused on ABF investing.
Lees joined KKR from Wells Fargo Securities, where he was managing director in the ABF business responsible for overseeing new client originations across a range of small and large specialty finance companies, financial institutions and alternative asset managers.
Piplapure most recently served as co-head of specialty finance at M&G Investments, where he helped to establish a business line focused on originating, structuring and investing in consumer and mortgage credit portfolio opportunities in Europe.
“Jim and [Vaibhav]’s deep expertise and relationships in the private ABF markets will help us identify and access an even greater number of under-served and mispriced lending opportunities that offer our investors attractive and uncorrelated income,” Matthieu Boulanger, partner and co-head of private credit at KKR based in London, said.
Since 2016, KKR has deployed more than $4 billion in 39 ABF investments globally.
