Encina Lender Finance

Encina Lender Finance, LLC (ELF) is an independent lender finance platform that provides senior secured credit facilities to specialty finance companies across the United States and Canada. The company was launched in October 2020 as a partnership between Encina Capital Partners, LLC and an affiliate of Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, ELF was initially led by CEO Luke Graham and President & CRO John Thomas, both industry veterans with over 30 years of experience in commercial and structured finance. In July 2022, Edward Chang, formerly of Wells Fargo, was appointed CEO.

The firm's business model is centered on offering revolving lines of credit and term loans, typically ranging from $10 million to $50 million, to both emerging and established specialty finance companies. These facilities are used by clients to originate new finance contracts, refinance existing debt, and for working capital. ELF secures its loans with a first lien on its clients' portfolios of notes, loans, or leases. The company operates as a non-bank lender, which it states allows for greater flexibility compared to traditional banking institutions.

ELF serves a wide array of clients in both commercial and consumer finance sectors. Its target commercial asset classes include asset-based lending, factoring, equipment finance, floorplan financing, and private credit. In the consumer space, it focuses on areas like secured vehicle finance, point-of-sale financing, and unsecured installment loans. The company operates nationally from offices in several key cities, including Atlanta, Dallas, and New York.

Keywords: lender finance, specialty finance, senior secured credit, revolving lines of credit, term loans, asset-based lending, commercial finance, consumer finance, private credit, non-bank lender, equipment finance, factoring, Oaktree Capital Management, structured credit, portfolio financing, debt financing, financial services lending, corporate credit, direct lending, SMB lending