Golub Capital

1994–2000: Foundation and early success

Golub Capital was founded in New York City in 1994 by Lawrence Golub. Golub had previously worked at Allen & Company, Wasserstein Perella & Co., and Bankers Trust. He had also been a White House Fellow. The firm initially operated with $20 million of equity capital under management. Anchor investors in Golub Capital's first fund included Dan Lufkin , Stanley S. Shuman , and Mellon Bank among others. Golub and an assistant were the only employees at Golub Capital's outset, but, by 2000, the firm had between 8 and 10 employees and a fund worth a couple hundred million dollars.

2000–2004: Shift in focus

In 2000, the firm began specializing in mezzanine loans. These loans were geared toward private equity-backed companies. Golub Capital no longer made investments in controlled private equity investments in order not to compete with their private equity clients. In the aftermath of the dot-com bust in 2000, the firm achieved success with its mezzanine loans as most cash flow loans became unavailable.In 2003, Lawrence's brother David Golub joined the firm as its President . Golub had previously been Managing Director of both Centre Partners Management LLC and Corporate Partners. Andrew Steuerman joined Golub Capital in 2004. Steuerman became the head of originations and eventually gained the titles of Senior Managing Director and Head of Middle Market and Late Stage Lending.

2004–2008: Further business expansion

In 2004, Golub Capital began offering senior and one-stop loans. By 2007, the firm was a lead lender and arranger in senior loans. In 2005, on the final closing of its fourth GCP fund , the firm raised $800 million of equity capital. Its fifth GCP fund raised $700 million of equity capital. Golub Capital's total capital under management increased to $2.5 billion as a result.

2008–present: Financial crisis and beyond

During the 2008 financial crisis, Golub Capital was one of the few lending firms that continued to grow. By the end of 2008, the firm was third by deal volume for lead arrangers of sub-$100 million leveraged buyout loans and had raised $1.5 billion for new loans. In 2009, it became the number one bookrunner for leveraged buyout loans in the middle market. By 2010, the firm had $4 billion capital under management.Golub Capital BDC, Inc. was founded in 2009 and went public in March 2010. It trades on the NASDAQ under stock ticker symbol, GBDC. David Golub serves as the CEO and President of Golub Capital BDC.In 2011, the firm had 120 employees with offices in New York, Chicago, and Atlanta. Their loan portfolio also increased to $5 billion. In 2012, the firm led a targeted campaign to serve lower middle market companies that have an annual EBITDA of between $6 and $8 million.In 2014, the firm's capital under management increased to $10 billion with the final closings of the Golub Capital Partners VIII fund and the Golub Capital Partners International VIII. That year, the firm closed a mix of deals, including boot retailer Boot Barn with a $100 million facility and fiber optic infrastructure company Wilcon Holdings with a $59 million facility. The firm opened a lending office in San Francisco in 2014 to handle its late stage lending business line. As of 2018, the firm has over $25 billion in capital under management. In March 2018, Golub Capital supported the acquisition of Togetherwork Holdings by GI partners.In August 2018, Golub Capital sold a passive, non-voting minority stake in its management companies to Dyal Capital Partners, a subsidiary of asset manager Neuberger Berman Holdings. In 2021, Bloomberg listed Golub Capital as one of a handful of private equity firms that could leverage large buyouts without the assistance of Wall Street banks.