Los Angeles, California (November 13, 2019) – Avante Capital Partners, a leading women-owned private credit and structured equity SBIC fund, announced today it has named John Ritter as a Senior Advisor to the fund. John will advise Avante on SBA, fundraising and other strategic matters.
“We are thrilled to have John Ritter as a Senior Advisor. John brings over 30 years of experience providing debt and private equity capital to small and middle market businesses, having co-founded an SBIC fund in the late 80s,” said Ivelisse Simon, Managing Partner at Avante Capital Partners.
In 1988, Mr. Ritter co-founded First New England Capital where he was a partner in several funds and later co-founded Balance Point Capital Partners in 2008. Mr. Ritter is active in politics, having served as Councilman on the West Hartford, Connecticut Town Council and as State Representative in the Connecticut State Legislature.
“I am pleased to join Avante Capital Partners as I have been very impressed by the team. While Avante’s main objective is to provide strong returns to its investors, the team is helping to make positive and impactful changes in our society. That speaks volumes to me,” said John.
In addition to having served on numerous portfolio company boards during his career, Mr. Ritter has also served on many non-profit boards, including the Hebrew Home and Hospital of Greater Hartford, University of Connecticut School of Law Foundation, University of Connecticut Foundation (where he served on the Investment Committee for a decade), as well as the Northeast Regional Association of Small Business Investment Companies (NERASBIC).
For over 26 years, Mr. Ritter served on the board of the Connecticut Housing Investment Fund (now Capital for Change), including twice as chairman. CHIF was founded as a non-profit organization in the early 1960s by Mr. Ritter’s parents to help African American families purchase homes in the Hartford suburbs where they were being prevented from buying homes.
Mr. Ritter graduated from Macalester College with a Bachelor of Arts degree with Highest Honors. He holds a Master of Arts Degree in Religion from Yale University and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Connecticut School of Law.
Mr. Ritter currently sits on the Board of Trustees of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame located in Springfield, Massachusetts.
About Avante Capital Partners
Avante invests unitranche debt, mezzanine debt and minority equity in high-quality lower middle market businesses generating $3 million + in cash flow.