CLO Investor Summit

Tom Davidson Assistant editor Creditflux

Tom Davidson is assistant editor for Creditflux, the leading global leading information source for credit funds and CLOs. He focuses on event content and special features. After joining Creditflux in 2005 he moved to New York in 2012 to setup the Creditflux US office. He graduated from Cambridge University with an MSci in Natural Sciences.

Eli Sokolov Managing Director Cliffwater

Eli is a Managing Director of Cliffwater LLC and a member of our hedge fund research team. Prior to joining Cliffwater in 2007, Eli was a Senior Associate at MSCI Barra, where he conducted research in the areas of trading cost, securities analyst skill, real estate risk, firm valuation, and alpha forecasts.

He earned a BA in Astrophysics and Economics with distinction from the University of California, Berkeley and an MBA with highest honors from The Anderson School at the University of California, Los Angeles. Eli holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation and is a member of the CFA Society Los Angeles.

Michelle D'Souza Reporter Creditflux

Michelle D'Souza is a reporter at Creditflux, where she covers private credit, with a focus on direct lending and credit funds.

Matthew Andrews Managing Director, Head of Capital Markets CIFC

Mr. Andrews has 16 years of experience in investment banking, structured finance and business development. Prior to joining CIFC, Mr. Andrews was Head of CLO Origination and Structuring for RBS Securities Inc.’s U.S. CLO business. Prior to running the CLO business, Mr. Andrews was a Director in the Asset Backed Finance Group where he was responsible for originating, financing, structuring and distributing new issue securitizations backed primarily by leveraged loans, credit cards and consumer loan receivables. Prior to joining RBS Securities Inc., via Greenwich Capital Markets, Inc., Mr. Andrews was an Associate at Banc One Capital Markets, Inc. where he focused on originating, structuring and distributing securitizations backed by credit cards, consumer loans, auto loans, student loans, rental cars and equipment loans. In addition, Mr. Andrews originated and distributed senior unsecured debt issuances for investment grade companies while at Banc One Capital Markets, Inc. Mr. Andrews holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance with a minor in Economics from Southern Methodist University. Mr. Andrews is a CFA charterholder.

Tom Davidson Assistant editor Creditflux

Tom Davidson is assistant editor for Creditflux, the leading global leading information source for credit funds and CLOs. He focuses on event content and special features. After joining Creditflux in 2005 he moved to New York in 2012 to setup the Creditflux US office. He graduated from Cambridge University with an MSci in Natural Sciences.

Connor Buttner Managing Director, Head of Client Success Kanerai

Connor Buttner, a Managing Director and Head of the Client Success at KANERAI, has more than a decade of experience working with clients to deliver financial technology solutions. At KANERAI, working with industry-leading buy-side and sell-side market participants in the structured credit market, Connor has helped enable clients with innovative custom solutions as well as implement KANERAI’s turn-key analytics platforms, including KANERAI’s suite of web-based and Excel-based interactive analytics, APIs, and portfolio optimization solutions.

Prior to joining KANERAI, Connor was a credit product specialist at Moody’s, where he focused on corporate credit and quantitative default tools for financial institutions throughout North America.

KANERAI is a leading provider of highly scalable structured finance investment analytics and enterprise data solutions for the financial services industry, best known for our award-winning CLO analytics platform, Insight® for CLOs. https://www.kanerai.com/

Gretchen Lam Portfolio Manager Octagon

Ms. Lam is a member of Octagon’s Investment Committee and serves as the Portfolio Manager of 7 CLOs, 8 Separately Managed Accounts, and 3 Private Commingled Funds. Ms. Lam serves as the PM for the Firm’s Structured Credit (CLO Debt & Equity) Investment Strategies. Prior to becoming a Portfolio Manager, Ms. Lam oversaw Octagon's investments in the software, business services, finance & insurance, paper & packaging, gaming & lodging, homebuilding and real estate industries. She was also responsible for the structured credit exposure held in Octagon’s CLO vehicles.

Prior to joining Octagon in 1999, Ms. Lam attended Babson College where she graduated Summa Cum Laude with a B.S. in Investments. She received her CFA Charter in 2006.

Derek Miller Managing Director Fitch Ratings

Derek Miller is a managing director at Fitch Ratings. He currently heads the U.S. Structured Credit group responsible for collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) and other structured credit ratings. The Structured Credit group assigns new issue CLO ratings, maintains the accuracy of existing ratings, performs CLO asset manager assessments, and publishes research on transaction characteristics and performance.

Prior to this position Derek had oversight of new issue ratings for U.S. CLOs and assessments of U.S. CLO asset managers. Previously, he also held various positions within the Structured Credit group of Fitch Ratings, with a focus on new issue and surveillance ratings for CLOs, credit-linked notes, and other cash funded CDOs. Derek joined Fitch Ratings in 2001. He received a B.S. in finance from Indiana University.

Tom Davidson Assistant editor Creditflux

Tom Davidson is assistant editor for Creditflux, the leading global leading information source for credit funds and CLOs. He focuses on event content and special features. After joining Creditflux in 2005 he moved to New York in 2012 to setup the Creditflux US office. He graduated from Cambridge University with an MSci in Natural Sciences.

Christopher Duerden Partner Dechert

Christopher P. Duerden, a partner in Dechert's global finance practice, focuses his practice on securitization and capital markets transactions. Mr. Duerden has extensive experience with collateralized loan obligations, leveraged loan warehouse facilities and a variety of asset backed securities transactions. In particular, he has focused on transactions involving the middle market sector but also has significant experience with securitizations of trade receivables. He represents various underwriters, collateral managers and borrower and lenders in respect of term and revolving warehouse facilities.

Mr. Duerden is ranked as a leading securitization lawyer by Chambers USA. Mr. Duerden is cited as "very good at combining legal expertise with a commercial understanding of the market." Mr. Duerden is also recognized as a Rising Star for structured finance by Law360.

Prior to joining Dechert, Mr. Duerden worked at a large international law firm where he was an associate in the banking and finance practice group.

Omer Ijaz Senior Managing Director EJF Capital

Mr. Ijaz joined EJF in 2011 as a specialty finance insurance and bank analyst, and currently leads the credit analysis and trust preferred CDOs structuring for the Insurance and Bank trust preferred securities (“TruPS”) team.

Mr. Ijaz has designed the framework for four EJF sponsored securitizations, totaling approximately $1.3 billion. Mr. Ijaz also manages the investments of legacy TruPS CDOs. Mr. Ijaz came to EJF from Merrill Lynch, where he was employed as a summer research analyst in the Global Private Client Division. Prior to his time at Merrill Lynch, he worked for Citibank N.A. and Muslim Commercial Bank. Mr. Ijaz earned a BA in Business Economics from the College of Wooster.

Jim Kane is a co-founder and a Managing Partner of GreensLedge.  Prior to forming GreensLedge, he was associated with J.P. Morgan for more than three years as a Managing Director and head of Capital Markets for the Global Structured Credit business.  Jim began his career in the investment management business at Bankers Trust Company in 1990.  In 1993, he shifted his focus to fixed income sales and trading specializing in structured credit from 1996 through today.  Jim joined Deutsche Bank in 1999 through the acquisition of Bankers Trust.  He was a Managing Director and member of the Global CDO Group at Deutsche Bank prior to joining J.P. Morgan in 2004.  Jim’s area of expertise is developing and managing all aspects of origination and distribution with an emphasis on CLOs, CDOs, Credit Opportunity Funds and a wide range of credit derivative products.  Jim holds a B.S. degree from the University of Richmond and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). Series 7, 24, 63, 79, and 99 licensed.

Buo Zhang Structured Products Trader & Structurer Symphony Asset Management

Buo Zhang is a senior member of the investment team within Symphony's structured product strategies. She is responsible for structuring the firm’s CLOs and trading CLO tranches. Prior to joining Symphony in 2019, Ms. Zhang held multiple positions within the Credit Investments Group at Credit Suisse Asset Management, where she began her career as a credit analyst in 2006. Most recently at her prior firm, she was a Director and was responsible for structuring and negotiating their CDO transactions and trading CLO tranches. Ms. Zhang holds a BS in Finance and Accounting from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University.

Richard Reilly Partner DLA Piper

Rich Reilly has a broad securities practice with an emphasis on CLOs and other structured finance transactions, securitizations and investment fund formations in the United States and Europe. Rich has over twenty years of experience acting as counsel to arrangers, collateral managers and investors on US and European CLOs and other securitizations. His experience includes structuring CLOs and securitizations to comply with a variety of regulatory requirements including those imposed by the Dodd-Frank Act and the EU Securitisation Regulation.

In addition, he regularly represents investment advisors on the formation of private investment funds for the purpose of raising capital for investment in structured credit products including, among others, captive and non-captive CLO equity funds. Rich has substantial CLO manager M&A experience having represented buyers and sellers in several transactions in the US and Europe. In addition to his experience in the US CLO and securitization markets, Rich spent several years in London where he led the most active legal practice in the European CLO market from 2003 - 2011. In the asset securitization area, Rich has represented issuers, arrangers, credit enhancement providers and servicers in a broad range of asset classes including solar, market-based lending, CMBS, RMBS, credit cards, trade receivables and asset-backed commercial paper.

RECOGNITIONS

- Chambers USA recognized Rich as a leading lawyer for his CLO expertise, and noted that sources call him a "really great CLO lawyer," who can "cut through the legal jargon to explain matters in a digestible manner."

- Rich has been recognized by The Legal 500 United States, and clients state that he "[W]ould move mountains for clients if need be."

- The Lawyer Magazine “Hot 100,” 2004

CREDENTIALS

Education

- Georgetown University Law Center J.D.

- Georgetown University B.S.

Admissions

- New York

Sean Solis Partner Milbank

A distinguished finance and securitization attorney, author and speaker, Sean M. Solis is a partner in the New York office of Milbank and a member of the firm’s Alternative Investments Practice.

Mr. Solis has counseled US and international asset managers and hedge funds in connection with tens of billions of dollars of transactions across a wide variety of collateralized loan obligation transactions (“CLOs”) as well as other complex structured credit financing arrangements. Moreover, Mr. Solis is an expert in the various regulatory regimes applicable in the securitization space including the US and EU Risk Retention Rules and the Volcker Rule. In addition, Mr. Solis has significant experience with secured and unsecured lending transactions and he has advised asset managers and institutional buyers in connection with strategic investments in private investment firms and on structuring complex transactions in preparation for liquidity events.
Mr. Solis is widely recognized as one of the country’s leading attorneys in the representation of CLO collateral managers and CLO equity investors. Clients describe him as “very intelligent, commercial and always willing to go above and beyond to satisfy client needs and demands.” Mr. Solis is recognized by Chambers USA (2018), where peers note that he is “a young but very seasoned partner in the CLO space,” and clients praise his work ethic and creativity noting that he “works tirelessly for his clients and is consistently at the forefront of new market developments.” Mr. Solis is a frequent speaker at securitization industry conferences and is regularly quoted on industry matters by Creditflux, Reuters, Bloomberg and other leading financial media outlets.

Peter Sallerson Senior Director, Content Solutions Moody's Analytics

Peter focuses on the CLO market at Moody’s Analytics via the further development of the Structured Finance Portal’s CLO section and related research. Mr. Sallerson began his finance career in 1986 in the Corporate Finance Department at Nomura Securities, where he executed numerous debt, equity and derivative transactions as well as a variety of domestic and international structured financings. At Bear Stearns from 1993-2007 (Senior Managing Director), Mr. Sallerson structured ABS for a variety of collateral. As a co-founder of the CBO/CLO group, his focus shifted to those asset classes along with CSOs and other non-generic structures. From 2007- 2010, Mr. Sallerson consulted on several projects in the structured finance markets. He ran Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (USA)’s CLO effort and advising its parent (BTMU) on its CLO investment activities from late 2010 until 2013. Mr. Sallerson graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude with a B.A. in Economics from Middlebury College and his M.B.A. is with honors from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.

Brandon Chao Senior Vice President, Portfolio Manager Alcentra

Brandon joined Alcentra in March 2017 and is a Portfolio Manager for the firm’s structured credit funds. He is responsible for analyzing investments in structured products across Alcentra’s funds.

Before joining Alcentra, Brandon was a senior analyst at Omega for 5 years where he covered and traded structured products, focusing on CLO equity and mezzanine investing, as well as opportunistic corporate credit on the long and short side. Previously, Brandon worked at King Street Capital from 2006 to 2012, where he focused on investing in corporate structured products, high yield, and distressed credit. Prior to King Street, he worked in leveraged finance research at Credit Suisse. Brandon graduated from MIT in 2005 with a BS in Finance and minor in Economics, and is a CFA charterholder.

Angie Long CIO Palmer Square

Angie Knighton Long, Chief Investment Officer, has key responsibilities for all investment-related activities at Palmer Square.

Prior to joining Palmer Square, Angie worked for JPMorgan Chase & Co. in New York for 13 years. Angie held many senior roles including Deputy Head of North American Credit Trading, Head of High Yield Trading, and Head of Credit Derivatives Trading. Angie has been a trader of many products including high yield bonds, high yield credit derivatives, distressed debt, capital structure arbitrage, and structured credit. In addition, she worked with the Global Head of Credit Trading to help oversee risk management for the High Yield and High Grade credit trading books.

Named a Managing Director at age 29, Angie is considered a pioneer in the Credit Derivatives industry and is credited with creating the HYDI (High Yield Debt Index), the first liquid credit trading index and predecessor to all of today’s indices (the Markit CDX).

Angie received an AB degree in Economics from Princeton University and is a CFA ® charterholder. During her years at Princeton, Angie was a member of two National Championship Rugby Teams and was selected as an All-American in 1997.

Laila Kollmorgen Managing Director - CLO Tranche Portfolio Manager Pinebridge Investments

Ms. Kollmorgen is a Managing Director and Portfolio Manager responsible for managing the investments in Collateralized Loan Obligation (“CLO”) tranches issued by third-party managers. She has more than 20 years of fixed income experience that includes originating, structuring, sourcing, investing and trading US and European products for Bank of America Merrill Lynch in New York, HSH Nordbank in Hamburg, and BNP Paribas in London. Ms. Kollmorgen holds an MBA from The Wharton School, an MA from the Lauder Institute, University of Pennsylvania, and a BA, cum laude, from Wellesley College. She is a CFA charterholder and holds series 7 and 63 licenses.