Muzinich & Co has opened its second UK office. The firm’s head of private debt UK north, Marc Shirman, will be based in Manchester along with two other members of the private debt team and some administrative staff.
The firm is also recruiting and plans to build the office over time, PDI understands.
Manchester is an important regional hub for the UK and at the heart of the country’s industrial base, George Muzinich, chief executive and chairman, told PDI.
Muzinich has taken a country-by-country approach to its European strategy with local staff in place in each jurisdiction.
“We want to have local presence and be close to the companies that borrow money,” said Muzinich, adding that credit is a relationship business and 50 percent of the UK’s GDP is generated in the South-East corridor.
The firm should close its UK Private Debt Fund before the end of the year, he added.
The US-headquartered mid-market lender held a first close of €90 million on its French fund in July. It is also fundraising for its Iberian and Italian debt funds.
Glasgow-based Strathclyde Pension Fund made a £20 million commitment to Muzinich’s UK fund, as previously reported.
Muzinich has no plans to roll out secondary offices in other European countries where it has a presence or country-specific funds, said Muzinich.
Muzinich & Co manages around $24 billion across several corporate credit strategies. In addition to Manchester, it has offices in New York, London, Paris, Cologne, Madrid, Milan and Zurich.
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