Serengeti Asset Management

What Serengeti Asset Management does

Serengeti Asset Management is a value-driven, opportunistic investment firm founded in September 2007 by Jody LaNasa. The firm provides sophisticated, non-traditional financing solutions to innovative private companies and their shareholders, explicitly targeting opportunities where assets are difficult to source and underwrite, capital solutions require non-traditional terms, and investment sizes fall outside the focus of larger credit players. It is headquartered in New York with an additional office in West Palm Beach, and operates as Serengeti Asset Management LP, a U.S. limited partnership.

Serengeti runs four core investment strategies: Private Stock Finance (liquidity for shareholders and employees of late-stage private companies using stock as collateral), Rochefort & Direct Lending (tailored debt for complex, generally non-sponsored middle-market companies undergoing transformative events), Litigation Finance (contingent capital for plaintiffs and law firms), and Special Situation Investments (opportunistic exposure across financial services, software, defense-tech, and sports/media rights). In 2024, Serengeti partnered with Kyle Bass' Hayman Capital Management to launch Rochefort Asset Management, a Serengeti-affiliated advisor approved by the U.S. Department of Defense and the Small Business Administration under the Critical Technologies Initiative to finance businesses deemed critical to national and economic security. Notable portfolio exposures span consumer and enterprise tech (23andMe, Affirm, Coinbase, DoorDash, Palantir, Reddit, Snowflake, SoFi) and defense-tech (Divergent, Metatek), with recent capital actions including a $290M raise led by Rochefort for Divergent Technologies (Sept 2025) and a senior secured loan to Metatek Group (Jan 2025).

The firm's business model is relationship-driven and quote-based: revenue is generated through management fees and investment/performance returns on customized financing solutions, rather than standardized product pricing. Distribution runs through direct enterprise engagement with sophisticated investors and private companies, with proprietary deal flow sourced via partnerships such as the exclusive right-of-first-refusal with Secfi, Inc. for private stock finance origination—scaling from $550M (Jan 2020) to $700M (May 2021) in deployed financing capital. Senior leadership includes Founder/Managing Partner/CIO Joseph A. LaNasa III, Partner/Chief Legal Officer AJ Martinez, CFO/COO Karen Vejseli, President of Rochefort Alexander L. Lemond, and Senior Managing Director Ray Yousefian.

Name

Serengeti Asset Management

Legal name

Serengeti Asset Management LP

Website

https://serengeti-am.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Serengeti Asset Management is a value-driven opportunistic investment firm founded in 2007, providing non-traditional financing—including private stock finance, direct lending, litigation finance, and special situation investments—to innovative private companies and their shareholders across technology and defense-tech sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Credit & Specialty Finance

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394), All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399), Other Financial Vehicles (525990)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211)

akta.pro primary industry

Multi-Asset Solutions for Institutional (Pensions/Endowments/Sovereigns) (FSAAAJAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Managed Account / SMA Multi-Manager Platforms (FSANAGAL), Institutional Separate Accounts & SMAs (Mandates) (FSAAAGAL)

Keywords

• Private credit investing
• Special situation investments
• Pre-IPO stock finance
• Litigation finance
• Direct lending

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Investment Management: Generates returns through providing capital solutions to private companies across multiple strategies including private stock finance, direct lending, litigation finance, and special situation investments. Revenue derives from management fees and performance/investment returns.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Serengeti Asset Management is a value-driven opportunistic investment firm that provides sophisticated, tailored financing solutions to innovative private companies and their shareholders. It deploys capital across four core strategies—private stock finance, direct lending (via Rochefort), litigation finance, and special situation investments—targeting opportunities where assets are hard to source and underwrite and where investment sizes fall outside the focus of larger credit players.

Product overview

Serengeti Asset Management is a value-driven opportunistic investment firm offering four core investment products: Private Stock Finance (providing liquidity to shareholders/employees of late-stage private companies using stock as collateral), Rochefort & Direct Lending (tailored debt solutions for middle-market companies), Litigation Finance (contingent capital for plaintiffs and law firms), and Special Situation Investments (opportunistic investments in financial services, software, defense-tech, and sports/media). The firm also operates Rochefort Asset Management as a Serengeti-affiliated advisor focused on DoD and SBA financing for critical technologies. These products provide sophisticated financing solutions to innovative private companies through innovative structuring and creative approaches.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Rochefort Asset Management: Serengeti-affiliated advisor approved by the Department of Defense and SBA to finance growth of businesses critical to national and economic security.

Products and services

• Private Stock Finance Provides capital to shareholders and employees of leading late-stage growth companies using their private stock as collateral, allowing them to unlock liquidity while maintaining ownership exposure to pre-IPO companies. Offered through Serengeti's exclusive right-of-first-refusal partnership with Secfi, Inc.
• Direct Lending Provides tailored debt solutions to complex, generally non-sponsored middle-market companies undergoing transformative events, leveraging contracts and recurring revenue streams for credit underwriting. Delivered in partnership with Rochefort Asset Management.
• Litigation Finance Provides capital to lawyers and law firms to source and represent plaintiffs involved in litigation, with recovery contingent on the success of the underlying lawsuit and a share of financial recovery.
• Special Situation Investments Targets unique investment opportunities across sectors where disruption, transformation, or complexity creates value, with deep expertise in financial services, software, defense-tech, and sports and media rights.
• Rochefort Asset Management A Serengeti-affiliated advisor approved by and working with the Department of Defense and Small Business Administration to finance the growth of businesses critical to U.S. national and economic security, including defense-tech and dual-use technology companies.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $1 billion in assets managed by senior team members (per Ankur Keswani bio)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Department of Defense (DoD)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 December 2024Rochefort Asset Management was approved by and works with the Department of Defense and Small Business Administration as a manager in the Critical Technologies Initiative to finance defense-critical businesses.
• Small Business Administration (SBA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 October 2024Rochefort Asset Management was approved by and works with the Small Business Administration as part of the first group of funds for small business investments to shore up tech innovation in the Critical Technologies Initiative.
• Hayman Capital Management (Kyle Bass)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024In 2024, Serengeti and Kyle Bass' firm Hayman Capital Management launched Rochefort Asset Management, a Serengeti-affiliated advisor approved by and working with the Department of Defense and Small Business Administration to finance growth of businesses critical to national and economic security.
• Secfi, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 May 2021Exclusive right-of-first-refusal partnership for private stock finance origination. Serengeti has provided financing capital to Secfi to help pre-IPO company employees with stock options ($700M total financing capital as of May 2021).

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• HPS Investment Partners: Large private credit and special situations manager offering direct lending, specialty finance, and opportunistic credit strategies — directly comparable to Serengeti's multi-strategy credit and special situations focus, with substantially more AUM.
• Sixth Street: Multi-strategy alternative investment firm with direct lending, specialty finance, and private credit offerings; highly comparable to Serengeti's blend of credit, structured solutions, and private company financing.
• Marathon Asset Management: Special situations and private credit firm with strategies across corporate credit, asset-based lending, and opportunistic investments — closely mirrors Serengeti's special situations and direct lending book.
• Atalaya Capital Management: Specialty finance and private credit manager focused on asset-based lending, opportunistic credit, and special situations — similar strategy mix to Serengeti, particularly in middle-market structured lending.
• Fortress Investment Group: Alternative asset manager with deep capabilities in special situations, private credit, litigation finance, and private equity — comparable across multiple of Serengeti's strategies including the litigation finance vertical.
• Burford Capital: Leading publicly-traded litigation finance firm providing capital to law firms and plaintiffs; the most direct comparability to Serengeti's litigation finance product line.
• WhiteHorse Capital: Middle-market direct lending and special situations manager; comparable to Serengeti's middle-market direct lending book focused on complex, non-sponsored borrowers.

Broad incumbents

• Ares Management Credit Group: One of the largest publicly-traded credit and alternative asset managers with broad direct lending and special situations offerings; Serengeti is a much smaller, more opportunistic version operating in overlapping niches.
• Hayman Capital Management: Kyle Bass's macro/special-situations hedge fund and explicit partner of Serengeti via Rochefort Asset Management; comparable through shared focus on special situations and opportunistic investing.

Others

• Secfi: Pre-IPO wealth management financing platform; functions as Serengeti's exclusive origination partner for private stock finance rather than a competitor, but is the most adjacent ecosystem participant in the same customer workflow.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/serengetiam
• Facebookfacebook.com/serengetiasset
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/serengeti-asset-management

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments14 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Serengeti Asset Management