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Alternative Capital Investments
Alternative Capital Investments was founded by John Guarino and James Berkeley to operate as a specialized structured-credit platform.
Alternative Capital Investments
Alternative Capital Investments was founded by John Guarino and James Berkeley to operate as a specialized structured-credit platform. The firm targets private-equity-like outcomes with controlled-duration risk by emphasizing senior protections, enforceable documentation, and contractual cash flows. Its team of 18 professionals works from Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. ACI deploys capital across structured credit, litigation finance, and private-markets opportunities with a focus on capital preservation. The firm's deal flow is sourced through Guarino's and Berkeley's long-standing counterparty relationships, which the firm describes as providing repeat, relationship-driven access to off-market opportunities. ACI structures investments with senior protections and contractual cash flows, and where appropriate, it can scale select opportunities by combining Standard Class capital with Special Class participation to pursue larger trades. The platform's investment selection process filters a high-volume pipeline through rigorous underwriting, with only a small subset of deals advancing to funding. The firm lists a research and underwriting team led by Robert Baggio, supported by a risk-and-trading function under David Greenberger and a finance team overseen by CFO Paul Rubacky. ACI's compliance is managed by H. Karl Dimlich III, with IQ-EQ acting as compliance consultants. The firm also maintains specialist consultant relationships, including mass-tort claims acquisition experts with 10 and 40 years of experience, to support its litigation-finance sourcing. No recent fund closing or identifiable capital deployment event is traceable within the last 24 months. ACI distinguishes itself through an originating-investor structure that combines network-driven sourcing with a securities-like underwriting discipline. By concentrating on structured credit and litigation finance — asset classes that are inherently contractually governed and less correlated to public markets — the firm positions itself to offer institutional and qualified investors an alternative to traditional private equity with controlled-duration risk and senior-secured positioning.
General information
Firm type
Generalist
Year founded
—
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Englewood Cliffs
Corporate office
180 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632, United States
Principals
John Guarino
Founder & CIO
James Berkeley
Founder & Managing Partner
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Alternative Capital Investments?
Founder and CIO John Guarino is responsible for portfolio construction, structuring, and capital allocation. He leverages long-standing counterparty relationships across structured credit, litigation finance, and private markets to generate deal flow. Co-founder James Berkeley focuses on capital formation, strategic partnerships, and governance infrastructure.
How does ACI source its deal flow?
ACI sources deals primarily through founder-led relationship networks rather than broad intermediary auctions. The firm describes its origination model as network-driven, with Guarino and Berkeley using cross-industry connections to surface off-market opportunities before wide intermediation. This is supplemented by specialist consultants in areas such as mass-tort claims acquisition.
What is the firm's investment structure — fund, SPV, or direct?
ACI operates a structured credit investment platform that can execute investments through both Standard Class capital and a Special Class vehicle. The Special Class is used to scale select opportunities and pursue larger trades by combining with Standard Class participation. Specific fund structures or offering documents are available to qualified investors upon request.
What asset classes does ACI target?
The firm focuses on structured credit and litigation finance, aiming for private-equity-like outcomes with controlled-duration risk. Investments emphasize senior protections, enforceable documentation, and contractual cash flows designed to preserve capital while retaining upside. ACI also has exposure to private markets secondaries and special situations.
Does ACI co-invest alongside other institutional investors?
ACI's platform is designed to provide institutional and qualified investors with access to its deal flow. The Special Class structure suggests a mechanism for scaling co-investments, but the firm does not publicly disclose a list of co-investors or club-deal participants. Further details are shared with qualified investors during the diligence process.
What is ACI's risk-management posture?
The firm emphasizes capital protection through senior-secured structures and rigorous underwriting. A high-volume pipeline is filtered so that only a small subset of opportunities advance to funding. A dedicated risk-and-trading function is led by Head Trader David Greenberger, and compliance oversight is managed by CCO H. Karl Dimlich III with support from IQ-EQ.
How large is the litigation finance practice within ACI?
ACI does not publicly disclose the allocation between litigation finance and other structured credit strategies. However, the firm employs specialist consultants with 10 and 40 years of mass-tort claims acquisition experience, indicating a meaningful commitment to the asset class. Deal flow in litigation finance is sourced through Guarino's and Berkeley's counterparty relationships and consultant networks.
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