NEW YORK & LONDON & BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Audax Group (“Audax”), a leading alternative investment manager, today announced the firm’s inaugural strategy under its new Audax Strategic Capital (“ASC”) business platform. Industry veterans Kumber Husain and Daniel Green, who joined Audax during the late summer from DWS Private Equity, will oversee the ASC platform’s strategy focused on ‘mid-hold’ private equity opportunities. ASC will partner with sponsors to enable continued investment in middle market companies, particularly initiatives to drive organic growth and pursue M&A opportunities.
Leveraging Audax Group’s capabilities and experience in the middle and lower middle markets, Audax Strategic Capital’s mid-hold strategy will invest in a diversified portfolio of private equity assets backed by leading sponsors in both the U.S. and Europe. The firm’s long history of working with private equity sponsors and two-decade-plus track record effecting buy-and-build strategies will help position Audax Strategic Capital as a value-added partner to GPs seeking flexible capital solutions.
“Audax Strategic Capital complements our Private Equity and Private Debt businesses and enhances our ability to serve middle market companies with customized solutions across the capital structure,” said Geoffrey Rehnert, Co-Chief Executive and Co-Founder of Audax Group. “ASC’s mid-hold strategy broadens our role as a capital partner of choice for middle and lower middle market companies and represents a natural extension of our firm’s history of collaboration with private equity sponsors.”
“The platform’s mid-hold strategy is designed to be ‘acyclical’ and a fit for any market environment, especially within the current backdrop in which access to capital and credit-based financing solutions is becoming constrained,” noted Kumber Husain, Managing Director of Audax Strategic Capital.
“In our experience, the value of long-term patient capital is evident in the growing adoption of continuation vehicles,” added Daniel Green, Audax Strategic Capital’s Managing Director based in London. “ASC’s strategy, however, is more intentional in that we’re specifically targeting opportunities that can leverage M&A to create new and advantageous inflection points. The versatility of ASC’s solution set should resonate with GPs pursuing additional upside across their portfolios.”
Prior to joining Audax, Kumber Husain and Daniel Green served as partners and the Head of Americas and Head of Europe, respectively, at DWS Private Equity, where each also served on the investment committee. Before that, Kumber served as an executive director at Morgan Stanley Alternative Investment Partners, while Daniel served as Senior Director at investment consulting firm Meketa Investment Group, where he led private markets activities in EMEA and Asia. In connection with this new initiative, Audax has opened an additional office in New York and established an office in London to enhance its presence in the European private equity community.
“Kumber and Daniel bring tremendous experience and leadership to our team. Together, prior to joining Audax, they established a diverse portfolio focused on mid-hold solutions, attracting institutional demand in an oversubscribed fund, and deploying capital in a thoughtful and effective way to optimize investment outcomes for their GP partners,” noted Geoffrey Rehnert. “We are working with Kumber and Daniel to support the build out of the ASC platform and the mid-hold strategy.”
“Audax is a differentiated middle market platform ideally situated to provide customized solutions to private equity sponsors in need of additional capital to support transformational growth and future M&A activity,” added Kumber Husain.
“In any market environment, but particularly today, private equity sponsors are seeking flexible solutions that leverage structuring and transaction skills to help facilitate the needs of underlying companies,” added Daniel Green. “The middle market, buy-and-build focus of Audax and the firm’s track record of partnering with private equity sponsors is an ideal platform to provide these customized solutions.”
About Audax Group
Audax Group is a leading alternative investment manager with offices in Boston, New York, San Francisco and London. Since its founding in 1999, the firm has raised over $32 billion in capital across its Private Equity and Private Debt businesses. With more than 360 employees and over 150 investment professionals, the firm is a leading capital partner for North American middle market companies. For more information, visit the Audax Group website: www.audaxgroup.com.