Private Credit

Overview

Aquarian Private Credit (“APC”) is a private corporate credit manager formed by Aquarian in 2023. APC was formed to drive transparency, alignment, and outperformance in an asset class core to the long-term investment strategies of Aquarian Insurance portfolio companies and select third parties. The APC team acts as principals rather than agents with investment objectives anchored on capital preservation and optimizing risk-adjusted return.

APC provides financing to both sponsored and non-sponsored borrowers in the private middle market, investing as a sole, lead, or club lender across both senior and junior capital opportunities.

two people sitting at a table listening

Asset Classes

Direct Lending

Private Credit Team

Taylor Barrise
Co-Head, Aquarian Private Credit

Taylor
Barrise
Co-Head, Aquarian Private Credit

Matt
Bristol
Head of Research, Aquarian Private Credit

Brian
Safstrom
Taylor Barrise

Co-Head, Aquarian Private Credit

Taylor
Barrise

Taylor Barrise is a Co-Head and Partner of Aquarian Private Credit. Prior to joining APC, Mr. Barrise was a Director on the Private Investments Team at Guggenheim Partners. In his role on the Private Investments Team at Guggenheim, he was responsible for sourcing, underwriting and monitoring directly originated debt and structured equity investments in sponsored and non-sponsored Middle Market companies.

Mr. Barrise originally joined Guggenheim in 2012.  Prior to joining the Private Investments Team at Guggenheim Partners, he led the Industrials and Transportation vertical for the integrated credit asset management platform.  The 5-person team was responsible for underwriting and monitoring all sector specific investments made across the integrated credit platforms strategies which included liquid high yield and leveraged loan mutual funds and separately managed accounts, a credit opportunities fund and direct lending with covered below investment grade AUM of ~$5bn.

Mr. Barrise graduated with a B.A. from Amherst College.

Co-Head, Aquarian Private Credit

Matt
Bristol

Matt Bristol is a Co-Head and Partner of Aquarian Private Credit. Prior to joining APC, Mr. Bristol was a Managing Director on the Private Investments Team at Guggenheim Partners. In his role on the Private Investments Team at Guggenheim, he was responsible for sourcing, underwriting and monitoring directly originated debt and structured equity investments in sponsored and non-sponsored Middle Market companies.

Mr. Bristol originally joined Guggenheim Partners in 2011. Prior to joining the Private Investments Team at Guggenheim Partners, he led the Healthcare and Education vertical for the integrated credit asset management platform.  The 4-person team was responsible for underwriting and monitoring all sector specific investments made across the integrated credit platforms strategies which included liquid high yield and leveraged loan mutual funds and separately managed accounts, a credit opportunities fund and direct lending with covered below investment grade AUM of ~$5bn.


Mr. Bristol graduated with a B.S. / B.A from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.


 

Head of Research, Aquarian Private Credit

Brian
Safstrom

Brian Safstrom is Head of Research of Aquarian Private Credit. Prior to joining APC, Mr. Safstrom was a Vice President in Guggenheim Partners’ integrated credit asset management platform.  In his role at Guggenheim, he was responsible for underwriting and monitoring both directly originated and broadly syndicated debt and equity investments in both sponsored and non-sponsored companies. 

Throughout his career, he separately led both the Industrials and Transportation vertical and the Technology and Telecom vertical for the credit platform.  The 5-person team was responsible for underwriting and monitoring all sector specific investments made across the integrated credit platforms’ strategies which included liquid high yield and leveraged loan mutual funds and separately managed accounts, a credit opportunities fund, and direct lending with covered below investment grade AUM of ~$5bn. 

Mr. Safstrom graduated with a B.A. from Amherst College.

Case Studies

Aquarian Private Credit

Filtration Equipment Manufacturer
Aquarian Private Credit

Multi-Trade Technical Services Platform
Commercial Services Platform
Aquarian Private Credit

Commercial Services Platform
Payments Processor
Aquarian Private Credit

Payments Processor
Insurance Administrator
Aquarian Private Credit

Insurance Administrator

Aquarian Private Credit

Filtration Equipment Manufacturer

Aquarian Private Credit served as joint lead arranger and agent on a $257mm unitranche credit facility for a designer and manufacturer of filtration equipment and related aftermarket parts. APC’s investment enabled the borrower to refinance and upsize an existing credit facility to support M&A at close and in the future.

Aquarian Private Credit

Multi-Trade Technical Services Platform

Aquarian Private Credit served as joint lead arranger and agent on a $450mm unitranche credit facility for a multi-trade commercial services platform to support its acquisition by a leading global sponsor.

Commercial Services Platform

Aquarian Private Credit

Commercial Services Platform

The Aquarian Private Credit team led a $250mm unitranche credit facility for a commercial technical services platform backed by an independent sponsor and management. APC provided certainty of financing on a tight timeline to allow the Company to consummate an acquisition, while also bringing in additional lenders to create a scalable group to support the next stage of growth. The Company has achieved strong organic and inorganic growth with the majority of revenue coming from recurring maintenance and retrofit projects.

Payments Processor

Aquarian Private Credit

Payments Processor

Aquarian Private Credit led a $78mm junior capital financing for a software embedded payments processor. APC’s investment, along with incremental senior debt, allowed the borrower to consummate transformative M&A. The Company is well diversified by merchant, software partner, and end market with high single digit organic growth and net retention >115%.

Insurance Administrator

Aquarian Private Credit

Insurance Administrator

APC was Joint Lead Arranger on a $430mm financing for a third-party agent, administrator, and marketer of personal insurance products. APC’s investment helped the borrower refinance an existing credit facility. The Company is a market leader in a niche segment with significant barriers to entry and high levels of recurring revenue.

The contents of the webpages on www.aquarianlp.com are intended for the use of U.S. investors only. By clicking on this link, you acknowledge that you are entering a third-party website and may be entering another jurisdiction that has differing applicable securities laws that must be followed. Aquarian makes no representation that the contents of the site are appropriate for use in all locations, or that the transactions, securities, products, instruments or services discussed at this site are available or appropriate for sale or use in all jurisdictions or countries, or by all investors or counterparties. All persons and entities accessing this site do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with applicable local laws and regulations. Nothing on this site shall be considered the provision of investment advice, or a solicitation to buy or an offer to sell a security to any person in any jurisdiction where such offer, solicitation, purchase or sale would be unlawful under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.

Continue

The contents of the webpages on www.aquarianlp.com are intended for the use of U.S. investors only. By clicking on this link, you acknowledge that you are entering a third-party website and may be entering another jurisdiction that has differing applicable securities laws that must be followed. Aquarian makes no representation that the contents of the site are appropriate for use in all locations, or that the transactions, securities, products, instruments or services discussed at this site are available or appropriate for sale or use in all jurisdictions or countries, or by all investors or counterparties. All persons and entities accessing this site do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with applicable local laws and regulations. Nothing on this site shall be considered the provision of investment advice, or a solicitation to buy or an offer to sell a security to any person in any jurisdiction where such offer, solicitation, purchase or sale would be unlawful under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.

Continue