News

CHICAGO – January 25, 2023 – Victory Park Capital (“VPC”, “the Firm”), a leading global alternative investment firm specializing in private credit, announced today several new hires and promotions across its Investment and Operations teams.

“We gained incredible momentum as a firm in 2022, and the recent growth of our team is a testament to that,” said Richard Levy, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Investment Officer, and Founder at VPC. “We are proud to have a deep bench of talented individuals on our team, and our newest members have already made a significant impact since joining the Firm. We are also pleased to recognize well-deserved promotions for several team members who have consistently made outstanding contributions over the past year.”

VPC recently welcomed the following individuals to its Investment team.

• Abhi Chandrasekhara, Senior Vice President. Chandrasekhara is responsible for sourcing, analyzing, and executing investments. Previously, he was an investment professional at Advantage Capital, where he led several venture investments, including one that went public on the NYSE. Before that, he was an investment professional at TA Associates, focused on investments into growth stage technology companies.
• Matt Luckoff, Vice President. Luckoff is responsible for due diligence and financial analysis related to new investment opportunities and assists with portfolio monitoring and managing current investments. Most recently, he was director of operations and strategy at ProApprove, a consumer lending platform he co-founded.
• James Naumovski, Associate. Naumovski is responsible for due diligence and financial analysis related to new investment opportunities and assists with portfolio monitoring and managing current investments. Previously, he was an investment banking analyst in the Restructuring and Capital Solutions Group at Lazard Frères & Co., focused on in- and out-of-court corporate restructurings and other distressed debt transactions.

Additionally, VPC recently welcomed the following individuals to its Operations team.

• Katherine Carusona, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations & Marketing. Carusona is primarily responsible for investor relations, marketing, and communications for the firm. She is also involved in sourcing and fundraising for VPC funds. Previously, Carusona was vice president of investor relations at Harrison Street. Prior to that, she was a manager of Client Service Support at Guggenheim Investments.
• Dan Brendich, Vice President of Fund Accounting, Operations. Brendich oversees the accounting, finance, reporting, and treasury-related activities for various VPC funds, including working with the third-party fund administrator to prepare fund financial and investor statements, compiling internal and external reporting, and assisting with audits of the funds. Previously, Brendich was an assurance manager within the financial services practice at Ernst & Young LLP, specializing in the wealth and asset management industry.
• Tim Ruder, Director, Fund Accounting. Ruder assists with accounting, finance, reporting, and treasury-related activities for various VPC funds, including working with the third-party fund administrator to prepare fund financial and investor statements, compiling internal and external reporting, and assisting with audits of the funds. Previously, Mr. Ruder was an assurance manager within the financial services practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, serving hedge fund, mutual fund, and private equity clients.
• Michelle Sterne, Senior Associate, Risk Management. Sterne is responsible for monitoring and overseeing VPC’s portfolio companies from initial due diligence through the entire course of the relationship. Previously, she was a manager in the risk and compliance practice at Protiviti, focused on credit risk and lender due diligence for asset securitizations and other structured finance transactions.
• Chase Costin, Senior Associate, Operations. Costin assists with treasury, finance, and reporting processes for VPC funds and their investments. Previously, he was an associate at Magnetar Capital, focused on portfolio financing and treasury services within the fixed income group.
• Cara Shumaker, Fund Accountant. Shumaker assists with accounting, finance, tax, audit, reporting, and treasury-related activities for various VPC funds. Previously, she was an audit and assurance senior for Deloitte & Touche, LLP. Shumaker has experience in the investment management industry, including mutual funds, ETFs, and family offices.
• Julie Hairabedian, Executive Assistant. With over a decade of corporate experience across all areas of executive assisting, Hairabedian supports VPC’s executive team. Previously, she supported the vice chairman of investment banking at Morgan Stanley. Before that, she was the assistant to the executive managing director at First Republic Bank in San Francisco.

VPC is also proud to acknowledge the following promotions.

• Promoted to Managing Director: Joel Hart and Andrew Murray. As Managing Director and Credit Risk Manager, Hart is responsible for risk management across VPC’s portfolio companies from initial due diligence through the entire course of the relationship. As Managing Director of Operations, Murray leads the treasury, valuation, investment allocation, performance analytics, and internal reporting processes for VPC funds and their investments. Murray is also a member of the firm’s Valuation Committee.
• Promoted to Principal: Carly Altieri and Tom Gazdziak. Altieri and Gazdziak oversee the fund accounting team in the execution of accounting, finance, tax, audit, reporting, and treasury-related activities for VPC funds.
• Promoted to Senior Vice President: Mark Smith. Smith is responsible for creating and maintaining performance and risk management analytic systems to support due diligence, monitoring, reporting, and structuring across VPC funds and their investments.
• Promoted to Vice President: Stephanie Rupinski and Laura Woolf. Rupinski assists with the treasury, valuation, investment allocation, performance analytics, and internal reporting processes for VPC funds and their investments. Woolf manages the corporate accounting, tax, and finance matters for VPC, including the management company and general partner entities.
• Promoted to Director: Brad Williams. Williams assists with valuation, deal execution, risk management, and reporting processes for VPC funds and their investments.
• Promoted to Senior Associate: Jordan Barry. Barry is primarily responsible for investor relations as well as marketing and communications for the firm. She is also actively involved in sourcing and fundraising for VPC funds.

About Victory Park Capital

Victory Park Capital Advisors, LLC is an SEC-registered, established credit manager. The Firm was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, with additional resources in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, and London. VPC provides custom financing solutions across the private capital spectrum, focusing on asset-rich companies with significant corporate governance and a strong growth trajectory. VPC invests in both emerging and established businesses across various industries in the U.S. and abroad that often cannot access traditional sources of capital. For more information, please visit www.victoryparkcapital.com.

Media Contact

Jordan Niezelski, Edelman Smithfield

jordan.niezelski@edelmansmithfield.com