Meet the Team
Stefan Shaffer
Managing Partner
Stefan was a founding partner and President of SPP Hambro, SPP Capital’s predecessor. He manages the global origination of SPP Capital and sits on the Investment Committee of SPP Credit Partners, SPP Capital’s direct lending affiliate. His over 30 years of experience in the private market includes hundreds of transactions in North America, Asia and Europe. Prior to his tenure at SPP, Stefan was a Vice President in the Private Placement Group at Bankers Trust Company where he was responsible for origination, structuring and pricing of private placements for the Capital Markets Group, both nationally and internationally. Prior to his move to investment banking, Stefan had been an attorney with the law firm of White & Case where he drafted and negotiated private placements, public securities, leveraged lease transactions and provided general corporate counsel. Stefan is a cum laude graduate of Cornell Law School where he earned a J.D. degree and served on the Board of Editors on the Cornell International Law Journal; he is a magna cum laude undergraduate from Colgate University where he was elected Phi Beta Kappa. Mr. Shaffer sits on the boards of the Construction Partners, Inc (NASDAQ: ROAD), LIM University, and Cape Air.
Contact : sshaffer@sppcapital.com | 212.455.4502
Robin Busch
Managing Partner
Robin leads capital raising efforts at SPP Capital and has responsibility for deal teams and key client relationships. Robin's primary area of expertise is structuring and arranging financings for corporate and private equity clients. She maintains relationships with a broad range of financing sources including banks, mezzanine funds, BDCs, credit opportunities funds, insurance companies, specialty finance companies, and private equity firms. Prior to joining SPP Capital at its inception, Robin was with Bankers Trust Company in the Capital Markets Group. Robin is a cum laude graduate of New York University.
Contact : rbusch@sppcapital.com | 212.455.4504
Todd Kumble
Managing Partner &
Chief Investment Officer, SPP Credit Partners
Todd oversees SPP Capital's direct lending fund, SPP Credit Partners, and has extensive experience investing in private debt and equity. Having joined SPP Hambro, SPP Capital’s predecessor, in 1993, Todd’s experience spans a broad array of industries including manufacturing, distribution, financial services, consumer products, and media. Before joining SPP Capital, Todd was a Director of Financial Planning for Home Box Office, Inc. where he was involved in acquisition analysis for the company. Prior to this, he was a Manager of Treasury for The Allen Group, Inc. and a Credit Analyst for the Leveraged Buyout Group of Manufacturers Hanover Trust. Todd has a B.A. degree in Economics from Yale University and an M.B.A. degree in Finance from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
John Cable
Partner
John has over 20 years of experience advising companies in corporate finance and investment banking matters. While at SPP, John has successfully closed over 40 transactions for private-equity owned and privately-held companies across a wide range of industries including manufacturing, distribution, energy, software and technology, healthcare, business services, consumer products, retailing and restaurants. His engagement experience spans senior debt, subordinated debt and preferred equity placements, corporate restructurings and debt amendments, cross-border financings and project financings. John frequently advises owners evaluating a sale or dividend recapitalization of their business or preparing a business for sale. Additionally, he consults with owners, executive boards and management teams in connection with acquisitions, valuation analysis, investment and loan negotiations, working capital management and financing growth initiatives. In addition to his investment banking experience, John has held management positions in finance and operations at publicly traded companies, Nike and Coach. He began his career at Deutsche Bank Alex. Brown in the Retail and Consumer Products Investment Banking Group. John earned a Masters in Business Administration from the Tuck Graduate School of Business at Dartmouth and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics from Stanford University.
Contact : jcable@sppcapital.com | 212.455.4522
Amy Lazarus
Partner
Chief Financial & Operating Officer
Amy was a founding partner of SPP Hambro, SPP Capital’s predecessor, and originally served as the firm’s head of distribution. Prior to joining the firm as a principal, Amy was a Vice President in the Private Placement Group at Bankers Trust Company. Her responsibilities included the structuring and execution of transactions for both U.S. and international clients in all types of issues including senior and subordinated notes, equities, LBOs, project financing and ESOPs. Amy has extensive experience in structuring private placements and derivative products. A certified public accountant, she began her career at Arthur Andersen. Amy holds an M.B.A. degree in finance from The Columbia Graduate School of Business and a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Vermont. She graduated both Beta Gamma Sigma and magna cum laude, respectively.
Contact : alazarus@sppcapital.com | 212.455.4515
Alex Leukart
Director
Alex joined SPP Capital in 2010 as an Analyst and currently serves as a Director. He is extensively involved at each stage of the deal lifecycle and has transaction experience spanning a diverse set of industries and financing structures. Prior to joining the firm, Alex held positions at Moody's Investors Service and Bloomberg. He graduated with honors from the University of Richmond where he received a B.S.B.A in Business Administration with concentrations in Finance and Economics.
Contact : aleukart@sppcapital.com | 212.455.4516
Joe Branosky
Director
Joe joined SPP Capital as an Associate in 2015. Previously, he spent two years as a Financial Analyst at Houlihan Lokey, Inc. focused on consumer products M&A transactions and financial sponsors coverage. Prior to Houlihan Lokey, Joe was a Data Analyst for Bloomberg, LP. He is a magna cum laude graduate of Lafayette College with a B.A. in Economics & Business and holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
Contact : jbranosky@sppcapital.com | 212.455.4586
Chris Maxwell
Analyst
Chris joined SPP Capital as an Analyst in 2019. He had previously spent summers working in the corporate finance department at Consolidated Precision Products, a Warburg Pincus portfolio company, and in M&A Advisory at Fifth Third Bank. Currently, his role supports each stage of the deal process. Chris holds a B.A. in Economics from Yale University, where he was a member of the football team.
Contact : cmaxwell@sppcapital.com | 212.455.4585
John McDonald
Analyst
John joined SPP Capital as an Analyst in 2021. Prior to joining the firm, John held positions at Ernst & Young as a Business Advisory Consultant and spent summers working at Bank of America and Raymond James Financial. Currently, John supports each stage of the deal process. He graduated with magna cum laude honors from Colgate University where he holds a B.A. in History.
Contact : jmcdonald@sppcapital.com | 212.455.4588