Capitala Finance Corp. announced additions to the staff of its investment adviser, Capitala Investment Advisors, LLC . Chuck Cox joins as a director of portfolio management; Mario Shaffer and Randall Fontes join as directors of business development.

Capitala Finance is an externally-managed business development company that invests primarily in traditional mezzanine, senior subordinated and unitranche debt, as well as senior and second-lien loans and, to lesser extent, equity securities issued by smaller and lower middle-market companies. The Company is managed by Capitala Investment Advisors, LLC.

"We are excited to add these three talented, senior professionals to Capitala's management team as we prudently expand our operations and direct origination business development platform," noted Joe Alala, the Company's Chief Executive Officer, adding "Capitala agreed to a management fee reduction as part of the IPO process, but we are committed to staffing the firm with high-caliber professionals, despite this fee reduction." The Company completed its $80 million initial public offering in September 2013. Capitala agreed to waive management fees on all un-invested offering proceeds during its first year of operations.

Cox joins the portfolio management team with over twenty years of experience in executive-level operating roles with middle market companies, as well as senior investment banking positions with respected advisory firms. Cox has held leadership roles as CEO, CFO and COO, delivering results in corporate development and as a revenue-driven and cost-conscious business operator. As an investment banking professional, Cox has executed sell-side and buy-side transactions, management buyouts, growth financings and strategic advisory engagements in a variety of industries.

Shaffer joins the business development team with over fifteen years of investment banking and investment origination experience, principally focused on developing relationships with financial sponsors and leveraged loan investors. Most recently, he served as a managing director at Alliance Partners, LLC, where he was actively involved in re-launching the leveraged finance and asset management platform. Prior to that, Shaffer served as the founding Director of Barclays' Washington, DC office, where he was responsible for regional development of Barclay's banking platform and managing direct origination of banking clients through financial sponsors, family offices and corporate entities. Mr. Shaffer also previously served as the head of the financial sponsors group at FBR & Co.

Fontes joins the business development team with over fifteen years of investment banking, business development and investment origination experience, principally focused on originating, structuring and underwriting private investment securities across all levels of the capital structure. Most recently, he served as the co-founder and Managing Director of Capstan Finance, LLC, a finance company formed in partnership with a $55 billion asset manager focused on providing both cash flow-based credit facilities and enterprise value-based investments with unitranche, mezzanine and preferred equity structures. Prior to that, Fontes served as a director in the Corporate Finance Group within Cortview Securities, LLC (a Warburg Pincus Company) and as a principal with Atalaya Capital Management L.P.