Lafayette Square, an impact-driven, minority-owned investment platform, hired Stephen Usher as head of distribution.
In this newly created role, he will lead business development and capital formation activities across Lafayette Square, bringing with him 25 years of experience within asset management.
Previously, Usher was a partner at Standard General, where he headed the firm’s business development efforts and was a member of the firm’s investment committee, in addition to helping manage the trading business. Prior to Standard General, he was a founding partner at Serengeti Asset Management, where he oversaw business development and the build out of the firm’s credit trading platform.
His experience also includes distressed debt in that for nearly a decade he oversaw the distressed bank loan and bond sales and trading group at Goldman Sachs. He began his career within Citibank’s leveraged loan sales group.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Stephen, and look forward to working with him to develop and launch strategic fundraising initiatives that align us with a strong base of like-minded investors,” said Damien Dwin, founder and CEO of Lafayette Square. “His knowledge of the space and key industry relationships will help us meet the needs of prospective investors, who are overwhelmingly starting to look for solutions that not only drive returns within the current low-rate environment but also sustainably drive impact.”
For his part, Usher said he is looking forward to being at the “forefront of confronting critical societal challenges” through capital and services.
“We have noticed accelerating demand from investors for impact-driven investment strategies within their portfolios, and I look forward to leading Lafayette Square’s business development efforts and in turn, helping investors achieve their goals,” remarked Usher.
