SPACS in 2021: Caveat Emptor?

with Kevin Charlton ('95), Adam Sokoloff ('88) and Brian Lessig ('99)
 

Kevin Charlton ('95)	Adam Sokoloff ('88)	Brian Lessig ('99)
NewHold Enterprises	Asgard Capital	Rockefeller Capital

Recent market volatility, combined with the arrival of seasoned sponsors and management teams, has created a modern-day SPAC revolution. The abundance of funds held in trusts and the increased appetite for private investment in public equity (PIPE) transactions have thrust SPACs beyond the fringe of capital markets and into the mainstream as significant players for potential sponsors, investors, and target operating companies. Join us for a discussion with Kevin Charlton ('95), CoChairman of NewHold Enterprises; Adam Sokoloff ('88), Managing Partner at Asgard Capital; and Brian Lessig ('99), Managing Partner at Rockefeller Capital

Kevin Charlton has spent twenty years in private equity and is currently the Co-Chairman of NewHold Enterprises, which invests in lower middle market industrial companies, and is President and COO of Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corporation (NYSE: HCAC), a special purpose acquisition corporation. Previously he was with JPMorgan, Investcorp, and Macquarie.  He has developed strong relationships with management teams, deal sources, co-investors, and due diligence providers through extensive transaction and asset management experience.

Adam Sokoloff is a Managing Partner at Asgard Capital.  Prior to Asgard Capital, he was with The Carlyle Group as a Managing Director in the firm’s private equity business.  At Carlyle, Adam focused on sourcing and doing due diligence on prospective investment opportunities for two of Carlyle’s PE funds:  Carlyle Equity Opportunity Fund, with $2.4 billion of capital that focuses on U.S. middle market PE investments; and Carlyle Global Partners, with more than $3 billion in committed capital that employs a longer-term PE strategy created to pursue control or non-control investments that are more suited to a longer duration vehicle than traditional PE

Brian Lessig is a Managing Director in the Strategic Advisory Group at Rockefeller Capital Management.  He has more than 19 years of M&A advisory, capital markets, and principal investing experience across a number of industries. 

Prior to Rockefeller Capital Management, Brian was the Founder and Managing Director of Grace Bay Ventures, LLC, an advisory and investment firm focused primarily on the financial services, sports entertainment, blockchain, healthcare and technology industries. M&A activity included advisor to Derek Jeter, and eventually the entire buyer group, on the purchase of the Miami Marlins baseball club.

Previously, Brian served in leadership roles, principally in financial services industry, focused on entrepreneurial ventures as a Co-Founder and President of Sol-Wind, LLC, President of Southport Lane Management, LLC, and CEO and COO for SyncThink, Inc., a portfolio company of Quadrant Management. Prior to these ventures, he was Managing Director in the Financial Institutions Investment Banking Group at Merrill Lynch, where he had responsibility for developing trusted senior executive strategic and financial advisor relationships with public and private financial institution firms in asset management, specialty finance, insurance/wholesale brokerage and infrastructure sectors.

Prior to joining Merrill Lynch, Brian worked for Ernst & Young as an auditor; he also lectured to CPA candidates preparing to take the CPA examination.

Tuesday, May 4th

Time:  5:30 pm EDT

Virtual Meeting 

**All are Welcome**