Z2 Investment Management

Z2 Investment Management

Z2 Investment Management was formed in Stamford, Connecticut by Scott Gold, Jake Sussman, and Andy Cahill, three credit veterans who previously worked together at Arena Investors. The partners collectively hold more than 50 years of private investment experience, spanning roles at Alcentra Capital, ArrowMark Partners, Golub Capital, and UBS Investment Bank. The firm does not manage a generational family fortune; it is a dedicated asset manager deploying flexible capital into businesses that are typically owned by families, individuals, or management teams. The firm targets companies with $2 million to $20 million in EBITDA, issuing investments sized between $10 million and $40 million. Its primary instrument is senior secured first-lien debt, but Z2 frequently layers in preferred equity and direct equity co-investments to create bespoke capital structures. Portfolio companies span business services, telecom, and industrial maintenance. Known positions include FST Technical Services, a QA/QC and testing firm; Blufox Mobile, a Comcast Xfinity authorized retailer; and ProSite Services, a portable sanitation and site-services provider. The geographic footprint is concentrated in the United States, and Z2 explicitly favors non-sponsored deals, though it will work alongside independent sponsors. Z2 fields a lean team of seven professionals led by the three partners and supported by a vice president of origination, Max Jaffe, and Operating Advisor Ryan McCarthy, a serial healthcare-services entrepreneur. In addition to the core credit strategy, Z2 disclosed in 2023 that it has an SBIC reporting function — a signal that part of its capital base may involve U.S. Small Business Administration leverage. A recent operational milestone came in early 2024, when FST Technical Services, a Z2 portfolio company, acquired Blue Sky Consulting Services, a Boise-based testing firm. The firm also deployed a $23 million first-lien term loan into a family-owned infrastructure-maintenance business. Z2’s structural distinction lies in its origin story and sourcing model. The principals are not merely financiers; Jake Sussman and Max Jaffe emphasize founder-level relationships, and the firm’s investor base includes prior owners and operating executives from businesses the partners previously backed. This closed-loop ecosystem functions as a proprietary deal-sourcing network in the fragmented lower middle market, where trust and speed of execution — what Z2 calls a 'blank piece of paper and a pencil' approach — substitute for the auction-driven processes that dominate larger private-credit platforms.