Leadership

TRAVIS BALDWIN, CFA

CO-FOUNDER & PRINCIPAL

Mr. Baldwin co-founded Congruent Investment Partners, LLC in early 2009 to focus on investing in lower middle market companies. At Congruent, he focuses on all areas of the firm, including deal origination, underwriting, asset management, firm operations, and investor relations. Under Mr. Baldwin’s leadership, Congruent has grown from a niche, senior lender to a growth capital provider focused on identifying strong operating teams and investing up and down the balance sheet. He currently serves on the board of directors of Tail Light LLC, Raisbeck Engineering Inc, KAP Project Services, and Independent Rough Terrain Center LLC and is an observer to several other portfolio companies. Prior to founding Congruent, Mr. Baldwin was with Fortress Investment Group in the firm’s Drawbridge funds, where he worked as a generalist with a focus on corporate credit. Prior to Fortress, Mr. Baldwin was with Highland Capital Management, where he focused on evaluating credit opportunities. Mr. Baldwin began his career with PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he worked in the firm’s consulting group. He holds a Masters in Accounting from the University of Texas at Austin and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from the Honors Program at the University of Georgia. He earned a CPA license and is a CFA charterholder.

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MATTHEW KILLEBREW, CPA, CFA

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER & CHIEF COMPLIANCE OFFICER

Mr. Killebrew is responsible for the development and management of the firm’s middle and back-office operations including treasury, valuation, accounting and reporting. He also manages the firm’s compliance program and related reporting. Additionally, he occasionally works on accounting due diligence for investment opportunities. Prior to joining Congruent, Mr. Killebrew worked at Highland Capital Management, culminating as Co-Head of Hedge Fund Accounting. At Highland, Mr. Killebrew’s responsibilities included accounting, operations, valuation, and reporting for the firm’s multi-billion dollar hedge fund platform, in addition to serving in the firm’s business development and investor relations group. Prior to Highland, Mr. Killebrew was an associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he focused on providing assurance services to private investment advisers and private investment funds. Mr. Killebrew received a BBA in Accounting and Finance from Baylor University, is a Certified Public Accountant, and holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

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BRYAN KING

VICE PRESIDENT

Mr. King focuses on research, underwriting, and asset management at Congruent. He is currently involved with numerous portfolio companies providing financial and operational support to the management teams. He also provides corporate governance support to several board of directors of existing portfolio companies. Prior to joining Congruent, Mr. King worked as a summer analyst with Pharos Capital Group, where he concentrated on deal sourcing, financial analysis, and asset management. Mr. King graduated with a BBA in Finance with a specialization in Alternative Asset Management and a BS in Economics with Financial Applications cum laude from Southern Methodist University.

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PRESTON MASSEY

CO-FOUNDER & PRINCIPAL

 

Mr. Massey co-founded Congruent Investment Partners, LLC in early 2009 to invest in lower middle market companies. At Congruent, he focuses on all areas of the firm and serves as a board member or observer to numerous portfolio companies. Under Mr. Massey’s leadership, Congruent has invested across the capital structure and in diverse industries. Prior to founding Congruent, Mr. Massey was a Managing Director at Fortress Investment Group in the firm’s special situations hedge fund and PE credit funds, where he managed a corporate investment investment team for the southwest and southeast regions. Prior to Fortress, Mr. Massey was Senior Vice President for Wells Fargo Foothill (formerly Foothill Capital), where he managed a leverage finance team covering Texas and surrounding states. Prior to joining Foothill, Mr. Massey was a Portfolio Manager in Wells Fargo’s Capital Markets Group. Mr. Massey holds a MBA from the University of Texas at Austin and a JD and BA cum laude from Southern Methodist University. He is a licensed attorney in the state of Texas. Mr. Massey has been a member of YPO and currently serves on the Executive Board for the SMU Cox School of Business and the Advisory Council for the College of Education at UT Austin.

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AEROSPACE ENGINEERING

TYPE: Acquisition Financing

STRUCTURE: Minority Equity and Mezzanine Capital

DATE: 2016

LOCATION: Seattle, WA

$10,000,000

 

SITUATION

An Oklahoma-based independent sponsor was seeking capital to effectuate the acquisition of an aerospace engineering firm focused on the development, certification and supply of certified performance improvement systems for commercial and general aviation aircraft worldwide.  The independent sponsor brought significant value through their extensive aerospace experience, a solid operational track record and meaningful skin in the game in the form of cash equity invested.

 

Congruent structured a $10,000,000 investment comprising a second lien term loan and an equity co-investment, providing significant flexibility in order to reduce the debt service burden on the business and instead allow for future excess cash flow to be reinvested for growth.  Congruent’s prior expertise across multiple aerospace transactions was value-add throughout the underwriting process.