Kilter Finance
Kilter Finance is a London-based specialty finance company that provides bespoke, credit-like capital solutions — including holdco loans, surplus notes, preferred equity and structured equity — to small and mid-sized insurers globally, backed by a KKR equity commitment of up to $500m.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Kilter Finance does
Kilter Finance Services Limited (doing business as Kilter Finance) is a London-headquartered specialty finance company founded in 2019 by Dan Knipe, formerly Deputy CIO at Leadenhall Capital Partners. The firm provides bespoke, credit-like capital solutions to small and mid-sized insurance groups globally, deploying instruments including senior secured loans, mezzanine debt, hybrid debt securities, holdco preferred equity, surplus notes, tier 2 debt, and structured or minority equity. Its core proposition is an actuarially-led underwriting and structuring capability that solves simultaneously for insurance-specific accounting, regulatory and ratings constraints (including AM Best rating uplift), delivered through a single, joined-up deal team spanning origination, underwriting, structuring and execution. The platform is built on deep specialist insurance talent rather than proprietary technology; no software product, API or AI/ML capability is disclosed.
Kilter originates and underwrites transactions on a bilateral basis as a single counterparty, using its own balance sheet alongside a network of co-investors and finance partners to scale deal sizes beyond a typical $50-100m ticket. The company is funded by a binding equity commitment of up to $500m from KKR (announced April 2020), with KKR holding board representation. Revenue is generated from investment returns — interest, dividends, structured returns and capital gains — on long-dated (3-7 year) instruments, rather than from fee-based asset management. The portfolio comprises 17 disclosed transactions representing $1.76bn of capital commitments across US, UK, Bermuda and Hong Kong-domiciled insurers and reinsurers spanning life, annuity, health, casualty, P&C reinsurance, workers' comp, E&S, specialty fronting and structured settlement sub-sectors, with named counterparties ranging from startups to enterprise insurers with $40bn balance sheets.
Kilter Finance firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Kilter Finance
- Legal name
- Kilter Finance Services Limited
- Website
- https://kilterfinance.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Kilter Finance is a London-based specialty finance company that provides bespoke, credit-like capital solutions — including holdco loans, surplus notes, preferred equity and structured equity — to small and mid-sized insurers globally, backed by a KKR equity commitment of up to $500m.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Kilter Finance industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Specialty Insurance Finance
- NAICS
- Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Other Financial Vehicles (52599)
- SIC
- Asset-Backed Securities (6189), Short-Term Business Credit Institutions (6153)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Structured Credit Distressed (CLO/ABS/RMBS/CMBS) Funds (FSANAKAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Bankruptcy Claims Trading / Claims Investing Funds (FSANAKAI)
Keywords
Where Kilter Finance is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices5 records
Markets served
Kilter Finance business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Investment returns from credit-like insurance financing: Kilter Finance invests its own balance sheet (and co-investor capital) into credit-like instruments issued to small and mid-sized insurers, including senior secured loans, mezzanine debt, hybrid debt securities, preferred equity and structured/minority equity. Returns are generated from interest, dividends, structured returns and capital gains over a typical 3-7 year holding period.
- Co-investor capital deployment / fund-style investment management: Kilter sources, underwrites and structures investments funded primarily by KKR equity commitments of up to $500m alongside balance sheet and co-investor capital. Revenue is generated by deploying this capital into insurance-linked investments predominantly in life, annuity and health insurance sectors.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | — | Bespoke, quote-based bilateral investment pricing |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Kilter Finance product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Kilter Finance provides bespoke, non-dilutive capital solutions to small and mid-sized insurers and reinsurers through credit-like instruments including senior secured loans, mezzanine debt, hybrid debt securities, holding company loans, surplus notes, tier 2 debt, preferred equity and minority/structured equity. The firm originates, underwrites, structures and executes these investments bilaterally from its own balance sheet, supplemented by co-investor and finance partner capital, with typical ticket sizes of $50-100m and 3-7 year holding periods. The offering is tailored to each counterparty's accounting, ratings (e.g., AM Best A-) and regulatory constraints, targeting insurers undergoing transitional, transformational or time-sensitive corporate actions.
Product overview
Kilter Finance offers a single, unified specialty finance platform (the Kilter Finance capital solutions offering) rather than a platform-plus-modules product architecture. The core platform provides bespoke, credit-like capital solutions to small and mid-sized insurers and is delivered through a range of capital instrument modules including Senior Secured Loans, Mezzanine Debt, Hybrid Debt Securities, Preferred Equity, and Minority/Structured Equity. Specific deal structures within this offering are packaged as Holding Company Loans, Surplus Notes and Tier 2 Debt, executed both from Kilter's own balance sheet and alongside its co-investor and finance partner network. Kilter was founded in 2019 by Dan Knipe and is backed by KKR with a binding commitment of up to $500m of equity funding, supporting a portfolio of 17 transactions representing $1.76bn of capital commitments.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Kilter Finance Specialty Capital Solutions
- Senior Secured Loans
- Mezzanine Debt
- Hybrid Debt Securities
- Preferred Equity (Holdco Preferred)
- Minority / Structured Equity
- Holding Company Loans (Holdco Loans)
- Surplus Notes
- Tier 2 Debt
- Co-Investor and Finance Partner Network
Quantifiable outcome
- $1.76bn of capital commitments across 17 transactions to date
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Kilter Finance
Customer profileNamed customers18 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Kilter Finance technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature3 records
Kilter Finance partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- BMS Capital Advisory (BMS Group)minorBMS Capital Advisory (the investment banking focused unit of independent insurance and reinsurance broking group BMS Re) acted as the exclusive advisor to Best Practices Medical Partners (BPMP) on its $40m financing from Kilter Finance, collaborating with BMS Re's Legacy Practice and Ratings Advisory Unit. The deal was announced 7 February 2022 and represents a typical intermediary-led origination relationship.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Kilter Finance competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Resolution Life: Global annuity and life insurance acquirer that is both a potential counterparty for Kilter's capital and a broader incumbent in the closed-book life/annuity space. Comparable in targeting the same insurance counterparties but at the operating-company level rather than the financing level.
- Enstar Group: Bermuda-domiciled non-life run-off legacy acquirer that is a disclosed Kilter counterparty ($50m tier 2 debt) and a broader incumbent in insurance run-off. Comparable because it shares Kilter's interest in legacy/transition insurance balance sheets.
- Catalina Holdings: Global legacy/run-off acquirer across life, annuities and P&C. Comparable in targeting insurance counterparties in transition and as a potential capital partner or competitor for the same transaction universe Kilter serves.
- CarVal Investors: Global alternative credit manager with a substantial insurance-linked and structured credit practice. Comparable in deploying balance sheet capital into bespoke, non-control insurance-related credit investments across geographies.
- Brookfield Reinsurance: Large-scale insurance and reinsurance platform providing capital solutions to life, annuity and P&C counterparties. Comparable as a much larger alternative source of bespoke insurance-linked capital that competes for the same transactions.
Emerging players
- Penta Capital: UK-based specialist funder to insurance and financial services businesses. Closely comparable in providing bespoke, balance-sheet lending into insurance counterparties, particularly in the UK and European mid-market.
- Pillar Capital Management: Insurance-linked asset manager focused on collateralised reinsurance and insurance-linked securities. Comparable as a more focused specialist investor in insurance balance sheets, though more weighted toward ILS than credit-like capital.
Direct peers
- Newlight Partners: Specialty finance and alternative asset manager that provides bespoke capital solutions to financial services and insurance counterparties. Closely comparable operating model to Kilter with a similar focus on non-control, structured capital.
- Leadenhall Capital Partners: Specialist insurance-linked asset manager where Kilter founder Dan Knipe was previously Deputy CIO. Operates in the same insurance-linked investment space as Kilter and represents both the pedigree of the team and the most directly comparable specialist competitor.
- Beach Point Capital Management: Multi-strategy credit manager that allocates capital to specialty lending and asset-based finance, including insurance-related opportunities. Directly comparable in deploying balance sheet capital into bespoke credit structures.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Kilter Finance social profiles
Digital presenceKilter Finance compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Kilter Finance financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Kilter Finance leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
Kilter Finance funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Kilter Finance M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Kilter Finance
What does Kilter Finance do?
Kilter Finance provides bespoke, non-dilutive capital solutions to small and mid-sized insurers and reinsurers through credit-like instruments including senior secured loans, mezzanine debt, hybrid debt securities, holding company loans, surplus notes, tier 2 debt, preferred equity and minority/structured equity. The firm originates, underwrites, structures and executes these investments bilaterally from its own balance sheet, supplemented by co-investor and finance partner capital, with typical ticket sizes of $50-100m and 3-7 year holding periods. The offering is tailored to each counterparty's accounting, ratings (e.g., AM Best A-) and regulatory constraints, targeting insurers undergoing transitional, transformational or time-sensitive corporate actions.
Is Kilter Finance a public or private company?
Kilter Finance is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Kilter Finance founded?
Kilter Finance was founded in 2019. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Kilter Finance based?
Kilter Finance is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Kilter Finance make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Investment returns from credit-like insurance financing is the primary driver. The others are co-investor capital deployment / fund-style investment management.
Who are Kilter Finance's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Resolution Life, Enstar Group, Catalina Holdings, CarVal Investors and Brookfield Reinsurance. Emerging players are Penta Capital and Pillar Capital Management. Direct peers are Newlight Partners, Leadenhall Capital Partners and Beach Point Capital Management.
Does Kilter Finance have an API?
No public API is recorded for Kilter Finance.
What industry is Kilter Finance in?
Kilter Finance's product category is Specialty Insurance Finance. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAKAJ, Structured Credit Distressed (CLO/ABS/RMBS/CMBS) Funds, with a secondary code of FSANAKAI, Bankruptcy Claims Trading / Claims Investing Funds. Its NAICS code is 523940 and its SIC code is 6189.