Nearwater Capital

What Nearwater Capital does

Nearwater Capital is a privately held specialty finance company founded in 2017 by James M. Peterson (former Senior Managing Director and Head of Origination at Guggenheim Treasury Services) and headquartered at One Vanderbilt Avenue in New York. The firm is organized into three core business lines: Risk Retention Solutions, which provides financing for risk retention interests retained under Dodd-Frank and EU Securitisation Regulation across multiple asset classes; Liquid Markets, which sponsors and manages short-term funding programs and delivers solutions-based financing to borrowers; and Capital Markets, which provides Delta One hedging and counterparty services to financial institutions globally through two wholly-owned regulated entities — Nearwater Capital Markets, Limited (NCML), an SEC-registered Security-Based Swap Dealer operating in the US since 2022, and Nearwater Capital Markets Europe, Limited (NCME), a MiFID Investment Firm authorized by the Central Bank of Ireland operating across the EEA.

The company serves institutional counterparties — banks, dealers, securitization sponsors and originators, and corporate borrowers — through offices in New York, Dublin, London, and Toronto. Its technology stack is proprietary trading and risk management infrastructure supporting structured finance operations across the three business lines, with internal application development, enterprise technology, and CTO leadership. Revenue mechanics are not publicly disclosed, but the operating model combines balance sheet-intensive intermediation (TRS warehousing, ABCP/CP programs, Delta One hedging) with financing spreads on risk retention interests and solutions-based fees in liquid markets; customer segments are vertical (financial institutions, sponsors/originators, and borrowers), accessed through direct institutional sales rather than third-party distribution.

The firm is founder-led, with Peterson serving as Managing Partner. Senior leadership is sourced almost entirely from tier-one financial institutions (Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Barclays, Credit Suisse, Lehman Brothers, Guggenheim, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Bank of America, RBC, BoAML, TD Securities, Société Générale, and others), providing deep structured finance, treasury, risk, compliance, and trading expertise. No public listing, no disclosed parent company, and no external funding rounds are identified.

Name

Nearwater Capital

Legal name

Nearwater Capital, LP

Website

https://nearwatercapital.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Nearwater Capital is a privately held specialty finance company founded in 2017 that provides asset-based financing, risk retention financing, short-term funding programs, and Delta One counterparty services to financial institutions, securitization sponsors, and borrowers through SEC- and MiFID-regulated entities in New York, Dublin, London, and Toronto.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Finance

NAICS

Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities (523), Other Financial Vehicles (52599), Other Financial Investment Activities (5239)

SIC

Asset-Backed Securities (6189), Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211), Short-Term Business Credit Institutions (6153)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYFSANADAJ

Large-Cap / Sponsor Finance Direct Lending

Financial & Insurance/Private Equity & Venture Capital/Private Credit / Direct Lending Funds

SECONDARYFSANADAI

Middle-Market Lending

Financial & Insurance/Private Equity & Venture Capital/Private Credit / Direct Lending Funds

SECONDARYFSABAJAK

Liquidity & Intraday Credit Services (Clearing Credit Lines)

Financial & Insurance/Banking (Commerical, Retail & Consumer)/Correspondent & Clearing Banking

Keywords

• Specialty finance solutions
• Risk retention financing
• Asset-based financing
• Structured capital markets
• Delta One hedging

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Nearwater Capital is a specialty finance company that provides asset-based financing solutions to financial institutions, securitisation sponsors/originators, and corporate borrowers. Its offering spans three core business lines: Risk Retention Solutions (financing of risk retention interests under Dodd-Frank and EU Securitisation Regulation), Liquid Markets (sponsorship and management of short-term funding programs and solutions-based borrower financing), and Capital Markets (Delta One hedging and counterparty services delivered through two regulated entities - SEC-registered NCML and MiFID-authorized NCME).

Product overview

Nearwater Capital is a specialty finance company offering a platform of three core business lines focused on asset-based financing solutions. The Risk Retention Solutions business provides financing for regulatory risk retention interests under Dodd-Frank and EU Securitisation requirements. The Liquid Markets business handles short-term funding programs and borrower financing solutions. The Capital Markets division operates through two regulated entities—Nearwater Capital Markets, Limited (NCML), an SEC-registered security-based swap dealer, and Nearwater Capital Markets Europe, Limited (NCME), a MiFID Investment Firm regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland—together providing Delta One hedging, counterparty services, and capital solutions to financial institutions globally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Risk Retention Solutions Provides financing for risk retention interests retained by sponsors and originators under Dodd-Frank and EU Securitisation Regulation requirements, working across multiple asset classes. Designed for securitisation sponsors and originators needing a reliable, long-term counterparty to fund their regulatory risk retention.
• Liquid Markets Sponsorship and management of short-term funding programs and solutions-based financing delivered to borrowers through professionals with unique skills in fixed income and credit markets. Targeted at borrowers seeking short-term funding programs, commercial paper / ABCP-style funding, and bespoke solutions-based financing.
• Capital Markets Provides counterparty services to financial institutions across global markets, offering Delta One hedging solutions and acting as a superior hedging counterparty for dealers. Delivered through two regulated entities: NCML (SEC-registered SBSD since 2022) and NCME (MiFID Investment Firm regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland).

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• KGS-Alpha Capital Markets: Independent structured finance and securitization-focused firm active in mortgage-backed securities trading and capital markets. Directly comparable to Nearwater's Risk Retention Solutions and structured credit trading capabilities.
• Pretium Partners: Specialty finance platform with deep securitization, structured credit, and asset-based financing operations. Comparable to Nearwater in providing financing solutions tied to securitized assets and risk retention economics.
• Waterfall Asset Management: Structured credit and securitization-focused asset manager with ABCP and structured finance capabilities. Directly comparable to Nearwater's Liquid Markets and Risk Retention franchises.
• Marathon Asset Management: Credit-focused alternative asset manager with structured products, securitization, and CLO trading desks. Comparable in business mix across securitized credit, CLOs, and structured financing.
• Sculptor Capital Management: Alternative asset manager with structured credit and multi-strategy credit capabilities. Comparable to Nearwater in structured finance origination and securitization exposure.
• CIFC Asset Management: Specialized CLO and structured credit manager. Directly comparable to Nearwater's CLO and securitization-related financing and risk retention activities.
• Marex: Listed global financial services platform with diversified capital markets, hedging, and structured finance franchises. Comparable to Nearwater's Capital Markets Delta One hedging and counterparty services.

Broad incumbents

• HPS Investment Partners: Large, established private credit and structured finance platform with deep CLO, securitization, and asset-based financing capabilities. Overlaps with Nearwater across multiple business lines but at materially larger scale.
• Oaktree Capital Management: Large alternative investment manager with significant structured credit and securitization operations. Comparable in CLO and structured finance underwriting but operates at much larger scale.
• Citadel Securities: Large institutional market maker and prime brokerage with deep Delta One, equity finance, and securitized product capabilities. Overlaps with Nearwater's Capital Markets hedging and counterparty franchise but at significantly greater scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nearwatercapital

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Nearwater Capital