Hermes hires Spitzkopf to private debt team

Hermes Investment Management has hired Carina Spitzkopf as a director of private debt within its fixed income team.

Spitzkopf joins Hermes from UBS where she was a director in its leveraged finance credit unit responsible for leveraged finance transactions in the EMEA region, predominantly supporting private equity-backed deals.

Before joining UBS in 2016, she held positions at Barclays, Commerzbank and Dresdner, with roles covering debt capital markets, distressed debt and debt risk management.

Spitzkopf will be based in London and work across Hermes private debt platform. Her role will focus on developing Hermes private debt business globally, providing in-depth company analysis, industry due diligence and financial modelling. Her appointment brings the fixed income team at Hermes to 27 staff, covering liquid credit, private debt and real estate debt.

Patrick Marshall, head of private debt and CLOs at Hermes, said: “We are excited to welcome Carina to the team. She brings deep experience of the German SME loan market, which will be instrumental in our growth story this year, as we see ever-increasing deal flow coming out of Germany.

“Similarly, her understanding of structuring deals will be a valuable asset as we continue to grow our private debt platform and look to successfully tap the expanding opportunities in UK and European direct lending.”

Last year, Hermes launched its European Direct Lending Fund to focus on investing in senior-secured loans, sourced via bank partners, across the UK, Scandinavia, Germany, Benelux and Ireland. The vehicle was a follow up to its 2016 UK Direct Lending Fund.