Lyle Minton, Managing Partner, CIO
Lyle Minton is a founding partner of Point Clear Capital Management, LLC. Prior to founding the company, Mr. Minton was a Senior Vice President with Alcentra, Inc. (a US$16 billion leveraged loan fund headquartered in London) where he was Head of Structured Products, responsible for all structured credit investments. Before joining Alcentra, Mr. Minton was a Managing Director in the HSBC Bank USA Structured Credit Products Group in New York from 2000 to 2004, during which time he was the Head of the Financial Institution coverage team and, most recently, Head of Product Development. Lyle Minton has over 16 years of experience in derivatives, structured credit products and securitization - experience which includes: working on the Bank for International Settlements market risk and credit risk capital framework for the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA); derivatives risk management consulting with Arthur Andersen, LLP; and credit derivatives and cash securitization transactions as a trader, marketer and structurer with CIBC World Markets. During his career, Mr. Minton has modeled and executed a range of structured transactions, including synthetic corporate CDOs, cash CLOs and customized securitizations involving several asset classes. He has structured both cash and synthetic transactions related to credit default swaps (CDS), asset backed securities (ABS), Collateralized Debt Obligations (CDO’s), leveraged loans, Treasury repos and alternative investments. Mr. Minton graduated in 1988 from Auburn University with a B.S. in Economics and from Pace University in 1992 with a M.B.A. in finance. In 1995, he completed a fellowship in derivatives pricing theory at Virginia Tech University's Center for Futures and Options. Mr. Minton has published articles in Risk and Canadian Derivative Strategy.
Eric Salzman, Partner, Head of Trading
Eric Salzman is a partner of Point Clear Capital Management, LLC. Mr. Salzman has spent approximately 23 years working in financial markets with experience ranging from risk management, trading strategy and sales of fixed income derivatives and mortgage backed securities. Prior to joining PCCM, Mr. Salzman was a Director in Credit Suisse’s Structured Products Group in New York, specializing in sales and trading of liquid mortgage backed securities and fixed income derivatives with some of the world’s largest hedge funds and asset managers. Prior to joining Credit Suisse in 2006, Mr. Salzman performed a similar role with BNP Paribas in New York. He also has extensive experience as a fixed income strategist and Managing Director at Bear Stearns and Freddie Mac. At Bear Stearns, he served on the firm’s client Investment Strategy Committee. While at Freddie Mac from 1999 to 2004, Mr. Salzman built a risk management group for the firm’s $40 billion mortgage backed securities dealer. He also served as a fixed income derivatives risk manager with Bankers Trust from 1992 – 1995 and CIBC from 1995 – 1998. Mr. Salzman began his career with the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Thrift Supervision as a bank regulator and capital markets specialist from 1986 – 1992. Mr. Salzman has spoken at numerous industry conferences, most recently conducting a 6 hour seminar on structured finance in Seoul, Korea for the Korean Banking Institute. Mr. Salzman received a B.A. in Economics from American University in 1986.
Hobson Lane, Head of Risk Analytics
Hobson Lane joined PCCM in 2010 as Head of Risk Analytics, where he develops and builds proprietary risk models used to measure financial risk and optimize trading strategies. Hobson has over 20 years of experience in applying analytical math and engineering expertise in a variety of industries, beginning at Georgia Tech, where he operated the first undergraduate nonlinear optics laboratory and built one of the first robots operated and monitored by the internet. After receiving a Masters degree from Georgia Tech, Hobson spent 12 years at Northrop Grumman Space Technology in Los Angeles, CA. While at Northrop, he became a Section Head and Program Manager, applying risk modeling to space navigation and robot engineering. Hobson managed the firm’s first satellite formation flying laboratory, applying Kalman Filters and multivariate nonlinear optimization techniques to break new ground in modeling that allowed satellites to operate autonomously in close proximity to accomplish tasks previously considered unsafe. He also built a terrestrial robotic system that performed specified operations with precision sufficient to hit a bullet with a bullet – precision previously considered impossible within the bounds of conventional engineering. Hobson is now applying modeling and risk techniques from space engineering and other industries to quantifying and understanding financial risk. Hobson Lane received a B.S. in Physics and English from Vanderbilt University in 1993 and a M.S. in Dynamics and Controls from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1996. He has 4 U.S. patents to his credit and is a published author in various aerospace and science industry publications and conferences.
Nela Forney – Operations Manager
Nela Forney joined PCCM in 2010 as an Operations Manager, responsible for internal fund administration and client communication. She also provides analytical support for the firm’s risk services. Nela has over 12 years of investment management experience at Quintus Asset Management and Sterne, Agee and Leach, where she was the Operations Manager at both firms. Nela’s experiences ranges from managing the fees and reporting related to client separate accounts, including SEC filings, to providing trade support for internal trading in both equity and fixed income markets.
Andrew Budinoff – Trading Analyst
Andrew Budinoff joined PCCM in 2010 as a Trading Analyst. He supports the firm’s trading operations, performing various functions, including managing valuation models and models that capture trading risk. Prior to joining PCCM, Andrew completed internships with UBS’s private bank in New York and JP Morgan’s mortgage group. Andrew Budinoff received a B.S. in Business Management, graduating Cum Laude, from Boston College’s Carroll School of Management.