SLC Management, an institutional fixed income and alternatives asset manager, completed changes to its private fixed income (PFI) team.
Sam Tillinghast, head of private fixed income, SLC Management, announced his intention to retire, effective Dec. 31, 2023. Tillinghast joined SLC Management in 2018. He led one of the largest and most esteemed private fixed income teams in the market, with the team doubling its production of new investments during his tenure. Prior to joining SLC Management, Tillinghast was co-chief executive officer of THL Credit Advisors. Additionally, Tillinghast was head of the private placement group for AIG.
Upon Tillinghast’s retirement, the leadership of SLC Management’s PFI business will transfer to co-heads Andrew Kleeman, senior managing director, head of corporate private placements and Elaad Keren, senior managing director, head of private fixed income portfolio management as of Jan. 1, 2024. Kleeman and Keren will lead PFI together, with Kleeman overseeing corporate credit and infrastructure debt and Mr. Keren overseeing structured credit and PFI portfolio management.
“We have made impressive progress growing and evolving the PFI portfolio at SLC Management,” said Steve Peacher, president at SLC Management, said. “After a distinguished 30-year career in private credit, I want to thank Sam for his outstanding contributions and leadership of the PFI team. Sam cultivated a deep bench of talent, leading the team to manage one of the largest private fixed income portfolios in North America. Andy and Elaad are well-positioned to co-lead this critical area of our business as we continue to adapt for our clients and remain dedicated to offering them solutions and capabilities that meet their evolving needs.”
With Kleeman and Keren stepping into their new roles as co-heads, SLC Management is also pleased to announce the following changes to the firm’s PFI Senior Leadership team that will also take effect on Jan. 1, 2024. Liz Thorne, managing director, private fixed income and ESG, SLC Management will lead the corporate private placements team and Petra Wendroth, managing director, portfolio manager, private fixed income, SLC Management, will lead PFI portfolio management for clients in the U.S. and Canada.
“I’m delighted to see Liz and Petra step into their new roles,” Peacher said. “At SLC Management, we know our success directly correlates to the strength of our teams, and these appointments reflect the exceptional growth we’ve seen across the PFI business.”
Kleeman joined SLC Management in 2018, leading the credit research team for corporate private placements. Prior to joining SLC Management, Kleeman was a private debt analyst at Barings. Before that, he was a submarine officer in the United States Navy, where he completed a western Pacific deployment on the USS Salt Lake City.
Keren joined SLC Management in 2019, overseeing the Canadian private fixed income funds for the firm while managing a team of investment professionals who manage a global portfolio of mid-market loans. Prior to joining SLC Management, Keren was vice president of credit at CWB Maxium Financial. Before that, Keren spent several years on Sun Life’s mid-market private debt team, where he sourced, negotiated and closed Canadian/U.S. unrated middle market senior corporate loans and co-managed a portfolio of private equity funds.
Thorne joined SLC Management in 2016 and has over 19 years of experience in private, public and bank debt. In her current mandate, Thorne invests in private debt including corporate and structured/asset-backed notes. She is responsible for all aspects of deal sourcing, credit analysis and portfolio monitoring. Her responsibilities include a focus on clean energy, ESG integration and sustainable investments. Prior to joining SLC Management, Thorne was director of debt management and special finance programs at the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. She also served as the governor’s designee on the MassDevelopment and Mass Ventures board of directors. Before that, she was vice president and Director at TD Securities.
Wendroth joined SLC Management in 2012, specializing in structuring and underwriting private fixed income investments, including senior middle-market corporate loans and infrastructure transactions as well as managing various private fixed income portfolios. In her current role, she is responsible for sourcing, structuring and investing in a variety of private debt financings and managing a private fixed income portfolio that includes both investment-grade and below-investment-grade credits. Prior to joining SLC Management, Wendroth was an analyst at BlackRock.
