Bear Stearns has priced and issued the notes backing WhiteHorse Capital Partners first collateralized loan obligation. The $179 million in liabilities was priced last week for WhiteHorse I, said a portfolio manager. The cash-flow vehicle will be approximately $200 million and will invest almost entirely in senior secured loans, with a small high-yield bond bucket. Ira Wagner, a senior managing director at Bear Stearns, and WhiteHorse Portfolio Manager Ethan Underwood, both declined comment.
WhiteHorse is a Dallas-based investment firm that focuses on managing leveraged loans and structured finance vehicles (LMW, 7/7). The firm was formed last year by a group that includes ex-Highland Capital Management staffers, including portfolio managers Jay Carvell and Underwood. Jarred Worley, who is the structured product manager and chief operations officer, is also a founding member. Other staffers at the firm include Antal Desai and and Nate Stinchcomb, who are portfolio analysts. Desai previously worked at Goldman Sachs, and Stinchcomb was at Crédit Lyonnais.