Azimut Alternative Capital Partners
We partner with alternative asset management businesses and
help them achieve their greatest potential
About Us
Who we are
Part of Azimut Group, Azimut Alternative Capital Partners (“AACP”) partners with middle-market alternative asset management businesses and helps them achieve their greatest potential.
Established to build a next generation, diversified, multi-affiliate investment firm by acquiring minority stakes in alternative asset managers and providing strategic value-added services.
New York based with a global mandate.
Focused team lead by industry veteran Jeff Brown with over two decades of investing, due diligence and operating management experience in the alternatives asset management industry.
What do we look for in a Partner?
Focus on investing in private market (non-CUSIP strategies) investment managers across credit, equity, venture, real estate, infrastructure, insurance and “other”
- Minimum 20% bottom-line stakes with strong alignment of incentives between AACP and Partner firms
- Visible and actionable growth plan and use of capital to enhance AUM and EBITDA
Enduring investment culture
Responsible client-centric values
Proven success in raising and deploying capital
What makes us Different?
- Global wealth and asset management presence
- Access to Azimut’s diversifying international distribution and relationships
- Truly permanent capital
- Our corporate parent empowers us to drive performance over long horizons
- Creative capital solutions
- Growth capital; partner/founder transitions; capital structure clean-ups; seeder take-outs; GP co-investment capital
- Flexible on structure; no “one size fits all” approach
- Trusted long-term growth partner
- Operating management heritage – more than just a financial acquirer
- Distribution power and product intelligence
- Best in class mid/back office solutions with advantage of scale pricing
Azimut Group: history & key corporate milestones
Azimut Group: a truly Global company
TEAM
Massimo Guiati
CEO, Azimut Group & Chairman, AACP
Massimo is currently the Chief Executive Officer and Global Head of Distribution at Azimut Group and the Chairman of AACP. Mr. Guiati has been with Azimut since 2008 and has more than 20 years of senior leadership experience in Investment Banking and Asset and Wealth Management.
Prior to joining Azimut, Massimo held different managerial positions at Euromobiliare Asset Management in Italy, and Bear Stearns and Société Générale in London.
Mr. Guiati holds a degree in Economics from the University of Pavia
Jeffry Brown
CEO, AACP
Jeff serves as the Chief Executive Officer of AACP and has over two decades of investing, due diligence and operating management experience in the alternative asset management industry.
Prior to joining AACP, Jeff was a Managing Director at Dyal Capital Partners, joining in its early days of formation. Mr. Brown founded and for five years led Dyal’s Business Services Platform.
Prior to Dyal, Jeff was a Senior Managing Director at Bear Stearns Asset Management (“BSAM”). During his tenure at BSAM, he was the Chief Development Officer and led the strategic expansion of the Firm from $23 billion in AUM to $55 billion in AUM over a four-year time period. Jeff also served as Chief Marketing Officer and Global Head of Institutional Sales at BSAM. Prior to joining BSAM, Mr. Brown held senior roles at Morgan Stanley Asset Management.
Mr. Brown holds a JD from the University of Wisconsin Law School, an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management and a BA from the University of Wisconsin.
Vittorio Pracca
Deputy CEO, AACP
Vittorio is responsible for Special Projects and Investor Relations at Azimut Group and is a and is Deputy CEO and Director of AACP. Mr. Pracca has been with Azimut since 2012 and serves on the boards of Azimut Enterprises and Azimut Libera Impresa SGR, two Italy-based vehicles dedicated to investments in the Private Markets space.
Prior to joining Azimut, Vittorio was a Senior Associate at Société Générale in the Equity Capital Markets and Corporate Finance groups and spent five years at Citigroup (in London and Milan) in the Investment Banking and M&A groups.
Mr. Pracca holds a Financial & Business Economics degree from Royal Holloway, University of London, and an MBA from SDA Bocconi / NYU Stern School of Business.
Weston Wilkinson
Senior Vice President and Head of Affiliate Investments, AACP
Wes is the Head of Affiliate Investments and a Senior Vice President at AACP. In this role, Mr. Wilkinson leads all aspects of the Firm’s principal investment activities, including sourcing, negotiation, due diligence and structuring, as well as underlying monitoring and strategic growth initiatives for affiliate investments. Wes is a member of the board of Kennedy Lewis Investment Management LLC.
Prior to joining AACP, Wes was a Director at Perella Weinberg Partners, where he was a senior member of the Firm’s asset management business. Previously, Mr. Wilkinson was an Associate at Berkshire Global Advisors, where he advised financial services clients on mergers and acquisitions.
Mr. Wilkinson holds a BA from the University of London, studying at the London School of Economics and the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS).
Robert Adler, CFA
COO/CFO, AACP
Robert is the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of AACP. In addition to overseeing finance, administration and operations, he is responsible for establishing and managing processes to ensure that each affiliate receives the “benefit of the bargain” from AACP and Azimut globally.
Mr. Adler has over two decades of leadership positions at financial services firms including Bridgewater Associates, Strategic Value Partners, Bear Stearns Asset Management and Goldman Sachs. Robert has also held senior management positions at cryptocurrency startups including Tradehill, Sator Square Partners and Kraken. Mr. Adler spent the first eight years of his Wall Street career as a Securities Analyst covering pollution control and small cap stocks at Goldman Sachs.
Mr. Adler holds an AB from Princeton University and an MBA from the University of Michigan.
Linh Nguyen
Associate, AACP
Linh serves as an Associate at AACP. In this role, Ms. Nguyen supports all aspects of the Firm’s investment process, include transaction structuring, analysis, and monitoring.
Prior to joining AACP, Linh was an Analyst at Pluris Valuation Advisors, a valuation firm focused on the valuation and analysis of general partnership and limited partnership interests in private equity and private credit funds.
Ms. Nguyen holds a BS in Finance and Statistics from NYU Stern School of Business.
Judith A. Furgiuele, CFA
Global Head of Consultant Relationships, AACP
Judith is the Global Head of Consultant Relationships at AACP. In this role, she leads distribution with the most relevant and influential institutional investment consultants that advise investors on private market allocations.
Ms. Furgiuele has over two decades of experience in real estate investment sales, portfolio management, fixed income trading and risk management. Prior to joining AACP, Judith held senior positions at Bear Stearns Asset Management and ABN AMRO Bank, and has experience with institutional investors, family offices, and high net worth individuals.
Ms. Furgiuele holds a BS in Statistics from The Pennsylvania State University and an MBA in Finance from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. Judith is a CFA Charterholder, a member of the CFA Society of New York and the Real Estate Board of New York.
Joe Hill
Global Head of Institutional Relationships, AACP
Joe is the Global Head of Institutional Relationships at AACP. In this role, he advises Affiliates on the most important and impactful institutional investor relationships around the world.
Prior to this role, Joe was a Managing Principal, Vice-Chairman, member of the Executive Committee and Head of Marketing and Investor Relations at Halcyon/Bardin Hill Capital Partners. Prior to that, Joe was a Managing Director of Credit Suisse First Boston in the Private Funds Group. Joe and his team raised capital for firms such as Bridgewater Associates, Moore Capital, Graham Capital and Chilton Capital. Previously, Joe was a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley where he held several senior leadership positions.
Mr. Hill graduated from the University of Texas with a BA in Accounting and from the University of Chicago with an MBA concentrating in Marketing and Finance.
AFFILIATES
Kennedy Lewis
Founded in 2017 by David Chene and Darren Richman, Kennedy Lewis Investment Management LLC (“Kennedy Lewis”) is an opportunistic credit investment management firm with $2.1 billion in combined committed capital and AUM as of July 2020.
Kennedy Lewis pursues event-driven credit situations in which an idiosyncratic catalyst may unlock investment value. The firm is able to deploy capital opportunistically across a range of sectors and debt securities, primarily focusing on middle market companies in both North America and Europe.
About Azimut Group
Azimut, established in 1989, is one of Europe’s largest independent asset managers with ca. $ 65 billion in Total AUM. The parent company Azimut Holding was listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 2004 (ticker AZM-IM) and is part of the FTSE MIB Index.
The Group is present in 17 countries with over 3,000 professionals around the world, including ca. 100 Portfolio Managers & Analysts as well as a proprietary network of over 2,000 Financial Advisors serving mostly the retail and HNW client base. It operates in three key segments including public markets, private markets as well as emerging markets, and currently has its main offices in Milan, Miami, New York, Sao Paolo, Mexico City, Santiago, Monte Carlo, Lugano, Luxembourg, Dublin, Istanbul, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Cairo, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Taipei, Singapore and Sydney.
The Group has an impeccable track record of doubling it’s AUM every 5 years since the IPO, growing its Assets with a CAGR of +14%. The shareholder structure includes almost 2,000 managers, employees and financial advisors working for the Group, bound together by a strong and long term shareholders agreement that controls over 24% of the Company, aiming to create long term shareholder value. The remaining is free float. Current market cap stands at ca. $ 3.5 billion.
NEWS
Global Independent Asset Manager Azimut Makes Strategic Investment in Sanctuary Wealth
November 2, 2020
Azimut Group has signed an agreement to make a significant equity investment in Sanctuary Wealth. With the strategic backing from Azimut, Sanctuary Wealth will continue investing in the growth of its partner firms, and in strategic acquisition of other RIAs and wirehouse practices nationwide.
Azimut sees GP stakes bolt-ons as potent growth tool for mid-market firms
October 28, 2020
CEO Jeffry Brown, a former Dyal Capital Partners principal, expects to see bolt-on strategies in use over the next five years, especially as mid-market firms increasingly transact with GP stakes funds.
Azimut, One of the Largest Independent Asset Managers in Europe, Completes Phase One of the Team Buildout of Azimut Alternative Capital Partners in New York
September 1, 2020
Azimut today announced that it had completed its first round of new hires for Azimut Alternative Capital Partners, LLC, "AACP", its New York-based multi-affiliate business focused on investing in alternative managers specializing in the private markets space, including private equity, private credit, infrastructure and real estate.
Azimut strengthens its presence in the US RIA space by partnering with Genesis Investment Advisors
August 31, 2020
The partnership increases Azimut’s presence in the Latam-focused RIA space with a strong and dedicated financial advisory and distribution partner, and further confirms the Group’s commitment in this segment after the greenfield initiative with AZ Apice in Miami in 2016.
Azimut Alternative Capital Partners strikes its first deal in the US private markets by acquiring an equity interest in Kennedy Lewis
July 29, 2020
Azimut Group via its US subsidiary Azimut Alternative Capital Partners, LLC ("AACP"), entered into agreements to acquire a minority equity interest in Kennedy Lewis Investment Management LLC and certain affiliated entities ("Kennedy Lewis"), a leading opportunistic private credit investment management firm headquartered in New York City.