Assembled Brands, a leading asset-based lender for businesses across the consumer goods ecosystem, is pleased to announce the appointment of Zach Martin as its new Managing Director, Head of Originations & Capital Markets.

Despite economic headwinds and higher costs of borrowing, secured lenders are expecting a profitable year ahead

Hilco Global, a privately held diversified financial services firm, is pleased to announce that two of the organization's most outstanding management leaders with 20+ years at the firm, Eric Kaup and Ben Nortman, are appointed to the newly created position of Co-Chief Commercial Officer. 

At a session of the California State Legislature, Senate Bill 869, which would have introduced new, additional disclosure requirements related to APR and subjected asset based lenders and factors to penalties for non-compliance, did not move out of the Senate Appropriations Committee. 

First Citizens Bank today announced that its Middle Market Banking group has named April Chow and Marc Einerman as managing directors and relationship managers dedicated to supporting business growth.

The consumer product industry is facing rapid, unprecedented change, and today’s economic challenges are creating ripple effects that will shape American shoppers for years to come. With data mining, there’s a path forward.

Mitsubishi HC Capital America, the largest non-bank, non-captive finance provider in North America with $7.5 billion in owned and managed assets, announces that Anand Rao has joined the company as Managing Director, Private Credit for the Structured Finance division.

In 2023 the SVB crises brought Super Regional Banks into the national spotlight. Countless stories were run speculating on the viability of many, but few addressed the how and why many of these banks came to be. The rise, creation and further consolidation of Super Regionals is a story worth telling and one that will likely continue to play out in 2024 in a meaningful way.

HYPERAMS formed the new entity Hyper Valuation Services (HVS).  All appraisal services will be conducted by this entity moving forward. The entity is owned by HYPERAMS and by current HYPERAMS Senior Managing Director of Appraisal Services Jonathan Deptula. Chief Operating Officer Bob Pabst has purchased a controlling equity interest in, and become President of, HYPERAMS. 

Haversine Funding, a leader in the commercial lender finance sector, is proud to announce the appointment of Vince Mancuso as its new managing director. Vince brings over 25 years of rich experience in commercial finance, enhancing Haversine’s expertise and strategic capabilities.

“Geopolitical concerns, maintaining strong credit quality, and the constant impacts of inflation and interest rates are all top issues to watch in 2024,” said ABCC Conference Chair, Barry Bobrow, who serves as managing director and head of Credit Markets for Regions Business Capital. “ABCC’s panels and networking events are designed to provide education and key insights on these topics and more. The Conference is a great opportunity to help attendees set their business strategy for the coming year. We look forward to welcoming everyone in February.”

“Liability Management Transactions” continue to grab headlines. Companies in distress are turning to the out-of-court restructuring of their debt in ways that leave lenders who made loans on the basis of a senior secured position either with certain assets no longer available as collateral pursuant to a “drop down financing” or subordinate to new tranches of debt pursuant to an “uptiering transaction.” This article takes a look at the arguments being made in some of the litigation that has often followed on such uptiering transactions and in particular the June 2023 decision of the Bankruptcy Court in the Serta case.

SFNet is providing the following explanation of the new California regulations taking effect on January 1, 2024. Should you have specific questions please consult your legal counsel (or Michele Ocejo mocejo@sfnet.com or Rich Gumbrecht rgumbrecht@sfnet.com.

Steven Samson, president, has been with MidCap for more than 10 years and is responsible for the oversight of all functions of the business. Steve has more than 30 years experience in commercial banking and asset-based lending including senior roles at People’s United Bank, GE Capital, and RBS Citizens Business Capital.

Seth A. Cooper is senior vice president, sales manager, business development officer – Northeast, is responsible for new business development throughout the Northeast. He has spent the last 20 years building asset-based businesses for both large regional banks and independent commercial finance companies. 

Commodity producers face volatile market swings due to factors such as macroeconomics and supply chain stability, creating risks for secured lenders. Understanding each commodity’s nuances, risk-management strategies, and regulatory considerations is crucial. To navigate these challenges, secured lenders must maintain strong industry knowledge, adapt lending structures, collaborate with third parties, and balance risk and return for their clients.

This past Fall, MUFG announced leadership changes within its Asset-Based Finance team designed to align the team to better support its overall ABF growth strategy in the Americas. Leadership team members are based in three key markets – New York, Boston, and Los Angeles. John Eissele, who has been with the bank for 11 years, was appointed as MUFG’s new head of ABF. Here, Eissele discusses his goals, strategic priorities, challenges and opportunities.

The recruiting and retention landscape in commercial finance is increasingly becoming a “War for Talent,” according to speakers who explored that topic and much more at SFNet’s 79^th Annual Convention in Orlando, FL. Finding and keeping a quality workforce is of utmost importance these days as companies navigate the post-pandemic economy.

Also on the agenda was “AI and the Future of Secured Finance,” which featured a panel of experts who discussed industry trends in artificial intelligence including its anticipated impact on employment.

Huntington National Bank has expanded its Huntington Business Credit team with the addition of a Washington, D.C.-based group focused on asset-based lending in the healthcare industry. The new team, which will serve asset-based lending needs for middle market healthcare clients across the U.S., consists of five healthcare-finance industry veterans who recently joined Huntington from Sector Financial.

Barry Bobrow is a managing director and head of credit markets for Regions Business Capital. He is a widely respected leader in middle-market leveraged finance and asset-based lending. He has spent the past 38 years working in banking, most of it as a debt capital markets professional, primarily in leveraged lending and supply chain finance. Bobrow is the creator and chairman of the Asset Based Capital Conference (ABCC), an SFNet sponsored conference focusing on the middle-market leveraged and asset-based markets, now in its 16th year. Here, Bobrow discusses his career trajectory, his outlook for the industry and his goals for SFNet in 2024. 

Accord Financial Corp., one of the U.S. and Canada’s leading independent commercial finance companies ("Accord") (TSX: ACD) announced the hiring of Ryan Ray, an experienced asset-based lending (ABL) and equipment professional to the Accord Financial team.