Darrell Crate

Crate began his career with Chase Manhattan and Chase Manhattan Securities in New York. His last assignment as the managing director of the Financial Institutions Group based in London, focusing exclusively on investment management firms in England, Spain, France, Italy, Germany and the Benelux region.[5]

From 1998 to 2011, he served as the chief financial officer of Affiliated Managers Group a publicly traded asset management holding company. During his tenure at AMG, assets under management grew from $50 billion to over $340 billion through mutual fund, pension, and high-net-worth accounts globally, with over half of its clients domiciled outside the United States. During his tenure as CFO, the firm acquired interests in over 30 firms including Third Avenue Management, ValueAct Capital, AQR Capital Management, BlueMountain Capital Management and Tweedy, Browne Company. Over this same period, the company’s valuation increased materially, from $450 million to $6 billion [6]

In 2009, Crate founded Easterly Capital, LLC, a firm based in Beverly, Massachusetts, that builds operating businesses to gain exposure to the growth in both asset management and non-bank finance sectors. He joined the firm full-time in 2011.

In February 2015, Crate became the chairman of Easterly Government Properties, Inc., a publicly traded REIT on the New York Stock Exchange that is focused primarily on the acquisition, development and management of Class A commercial properties that are leased to U.S. Government agencies that serve essential functions. According to Business Wire, Crate became the chairman of Easterly Acquisition Corp., a publicly traded blank check company in July 2015.[7]

In March 2019, Easterly purchased the institutional investment business of Levin Capital Strategies, establishing Levin Easterly Partners, a long-only asset manager. Levin Easterly had approximately $6.1 billion in assets under management upon closure of the transaction.[8] Levin Easterly is a fundamental, contrarian value investment management firm focusing on US Large and All Cap Value strategies based in New York and New Canaan, CT.[9] One area of focus for the firm has been special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs). They are one of the most experienced investors in these vehicles, with a track record of investing in SPACs that spans over a decade.[10]

In May 2020, Easterly acquired an equity interest in James Alpha Advisors, LLC, a boutique asset management firm specializing in Global REITs, Structured Credit and Hedged Equity. In addition, the firm provides a platform of liquid alternative portfolio solutions for institutional and individual investors. James Alpha Advisors had over $1.1 billion in assets under management at the time of the transaction.[11]

Easterly Alternatives is the alternatives-focused arm of Easterly and has raised more than $500 million in private and platform vehicles in sectors including real estate, healthcare and transportation. Easterly Alternatives is focused on identifying unique market dislocations and creating investment solutions for its partners to take advantage of these opportunities, in what are often niche and difficult-to-access markets. Easterly Alternatives recently has launched a SPAC Fund, in which it will invest in the best new-issue SPAC IPOs that come to market.[12][13]