Atalaya Capital Management LP, an alternative investment management firm with approximately $10 billion in assets under management, announced Jeff Fields has joined as President of Atalaya Leasing, Atalaya’s equipment backed investment strategy. In this newly created role, Fields will be working in partnership with Rana Mitra, Managing Director and Head of Leasing at Atalaya Capital Management, to expand its market reach as both a direct lender to commercial-end users and a financing partner for established originators.

Prior to joining Atalaya, Fields was CEO of Chesswood Capital Management, a subsidiary of a publicly traded specialty finance company focused on equipment leasing. Prior to Chesswood, Fields spent 22 years at RBC Capital Markets where he led multiple business units across asset classes. In his new role, he will leverage his extensive capital markets expertise and longstanding industry relationships to support Atalaya Leasing’s growth initiatives.

"Bringing Jeff onto the team, with his deep industry expertise and demonstrated leadership, is an exciting development for Atalaya Leasing," said Mitra. "Since its inception in 2009, Atalaya Leasing has provided financing solutions to a wide spectrum of borrowers within the trillion-dollar equipment finance market. Having Jeff’s wealth of experience and forward-thinking mindset will enhance our ability in seeking to continue making our platform a leading equipment leasing capital provider and trusted partner in the space."

"We believe there is an opportunity to capitalize on the increasing demand for equipment financing from sponsor and non-sponsor companies in conjunction with growing investor appetite for asset-backed private credit opportunities," said Fields. "In our view, Atalaya is well-positioned to accelerate the growth of its leasing platform through the expansion of our direct origination client footprint, as well as working with bank and non-bank origination partners to structure efficient capital solutions."

Since 2009, Atalaya has been originating and purchasing leases of mission-critical equipment to middle market and large corporate lessees across industries. The equipment leasing strategy is part of Atalaya’s larger ecosystem which aims to provide steady, non-correlated, and risk-adjusted returns based on asset-backed collateral.