Pearlstone Alternative is a London-based credit hedge fund founded in 2021 by Ivelina Green, formerly head of the Global Special Situations Group at CQS and a veteran of Goldman Sachs’ European distressed desk. The firm manages approximately $178 million in assets and focuses exclusively on fundamental credit investments and special situations across European markets.
Most publicly available profiles of the firm sit behind paywalls or offer little more than a company name and address. This guide consolidates verified information from regulatory filings, press releases, and institutional databases into a single reference for allocators, compliance officers, and researchers evaluating Pearlstone Alternative.
Who Is Pearlstone Alternative?
Pearlstone Alternative (UK) LLP is an FCA-authorized and SEC-registered hedge fund manager headquartered at 17C Curzon Street, 7th Floor, London. The firm was established in 2021 to invest in European credit opportunities with a focus on special situations and distressed assets.
Legal Structure & Registration
The firm operates as a UK Limited Liability Partnership. It holds authorization from the Financial Conduct Authority and is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under Form ADV filing number 324441. Dual registration gives the firm the regulatory framework to manage capital from both European and U.S.-based institutional investors.
AUM & Team Size
As of mid-2025, Pearlstone Alternative manages approximately $178.4 million in assets under management. The team consists of six professionals, with 83% classified as investment staff. That ratio reflects a lean, research-intensive structure where capital is deployed by the people who source and analyze deals rather than a large back-office apparatus.
| Firm Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full Legal Name | Pearlstone Alternative (UK) LLP |
| Founded | 2021 |
| Headquarters | 17C Curzon Street, 7th Floor, London |
| AUM | ~$178.4 million (mid-2025) |
| Team Size | 6 professionals (83% investment staff) |
| Regulatory Bodies | FCA (UK) and SEC (U.S.) |
| SEC Filing | Form ADV #324441 |
| Funds Managed | 4 (per Preqin) |
Founding Context
Ivelina Green launched Pearlstone Alternative after spending six years as a Partner at CQS, where she built and ran the Global Special Situations Group across London, New York, and Hong Kong. Before CQS, she served as Head of European Distressed Trading and Investing at Goldman Sachs in London, having started her career at Goldman Sachs New York in 2004. She built Pearlstone to do one thing well: apply deep special situations expertise to European credit as a focused, independent platform — free from the mandate constraints of a larger multi-strategy firm.
Investment Strategy: European Credit & Special Situations
Pearlstone Alternative invests in distressed and stressed European credit — loan-to-own deals, rescue financing, and special situations where legal complexity deters most competitors. The firm targets companies under cyclical or structural pressure where its jurisdictional expertise and lender relationships create an execution advantage that generalist credit funds cannot replicate.
Core Investment Approach
The firm describes its strategy as seeking “idiosyncratic opportunities with high execution complexity.” In practice, this means Pearlstone targets credits where the investment thesis depends not just on financial analysis but on managing legal restructurings, cross-border jurisdictional issues, and relationship-driven negotiations with existing lenders.
Specific strategies include loan-to-own transactions, rescue financing, and distressed debt positions in companies where Pearlstone’s team can influence outcomes through active creditor engagement. The firm leverages relationships with traditional leveraged finance lenders to reach amicable resolutions, even in jurisdictions with less creditor-friendly legal frameworks.
Pan-European Jurisdictional Expertise
European special situations investing differs materially from its U.S. counterpart. Each jurisdiction has distinct insolvency regimes, creditor hierarchies, and restructuring timelines. Pearlstone positions its Pan-European legal knowledge as a core competitive advantage, enabling the team to evaluate and execute deals across the UK, France, Germany, Scandinavia, and Southern Europe without relying on external counsel for initial assessment.
This jurisdictional breadth is particularly relevant in stressed and distressed credit, where speed of assessment and the ability to structure solutions across multiple legal systems often determines whether a deal closes or collapses.
Sourcing & Execution Edge
The firm operates in relationship-driven markets where deal flow comes through direct lender networks rather than broadly marketed processes. Pearlstone’s founding team spent a combined 22+ years building relationships with banks, advisors, and corporate management teams across European credit markets. That network generates proprietary deal flow in a segment where the best opportunities rarely reach competitive auction.
| Strategy Dimension | Pearlstone Alternative Approach |
|---|---|
| Asset Class | European fundamental credit & special situations |
| Target Situations | Distressed debt, loan-to-own, rescue financing |
| Geographic Scope | Pan-European (multi-jurisdictional) |
| Sourcing Method | Relationship-driven, non-auction deal flow |
| Execution Complexity | High (legal restructurings, cross-border) |
| Downside Protection | Structural seniority + active creditor engagement |
Leadership Team: Ivelina Green & Key Personnel
Pearlstone Alternative was founded by Ivelina Green, who serves as CIO and leads all investment decisions. The broader team includes professionals with deep experience in European credit markets, including Sarah Higgins and Miles Tadman.
Ivelina Green — Founder & CIO
Green’s career spans nearly two decades in special situations and European credit. Her track record includes:
- Goldman Sachs (2004–2015): Started in New York, moved to London as Head of European Distressed Trading and Investing
- CQS (2015–2021): Partner and Head of the Global Special Situations Group, managing a team of dedicated analysts in London, New York, and Hong Kong
- Pearlstone Alternative (2021–present): Founder and Chief Investment Officer
Industry recognition includes the Hedge Fund Journal‘s Leading Women in Hedge Funds list (2018), HFJ’s Global Report of Leading Portfolio Managers (2021), and the 2023 iConnections Women at the Forefront of Alternative Investments Report.
Green is also an active speaker at industry events, having presented at SALT, Invest for Kids Chicago, Managed Funds Association conferences, and Fund Women Week.
Broader Investment Team
Public records identify Sarah Higgins and Miles Tadman among the firm’s professionals. With six team members and an 83% investor-to-staff ratio, Pearlstone operates with one of the highest investment-focus concentrations in the boutique credit space. The founding team collectively brings over 22 years of average experience in European fundamental credit.
For allocators assessing key-person risk: Ivelina Green is the firm’s central decision-maker. Prospective investors should evaluate succession planning and investment authority delegation as part of standard operational due diligence.
Leucadia Partnership & Firm Growth
In May 2022, Jefferies Financial Group’s Leucadia Asset Management announced a strategic relationship with Pearlstone Alternative. Under this arrangement, Leucadia provides seed capital and distribution services, giving Pearlstone the operational infrastructure and capital base to scale its European credit strategy.
The Leucadia relationship is significant for several reasons. Jefferies’ institutional distribution network gives a sub-$200 million manager access to allocator relationships that would otherwise take years to build independently. For investors, Leucadia’s involvement serves as an additional layer of institutional validation — Jefferies conducts its own due diligence before committing capital and brand association to emerging managers.
Since the Leucadia partnership, Pearlstone has grown from a startup to a firm managing four distinct funds with three known institutional investors, according to Preqin data.
Regulatory Standing & Compliance
Pearlstone Alternative is both FCA-authorized in the UK and SEC-registered in the United States — dual regulation that gives institutional allocators a clear compliance framework on both sides of the Atlantic.
FCA & SEC Registration
The firm’s FCA authorization subjects it to UK conduct-of-business rules, capital adequacy requirements, and the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SM&CR), which assigns individual accountability to named senior managers. Its SEC registration under CRD number 324441 means it files Form ADV disclosures covering AUM, fee structures, conflicts of interest, and disciplinary history.
Allocators can verify the firm’s current authorization status in real time through the FCA Financial Services Register and the SEC’s Investment Adviser Public Disclosure (IAPD) database.
| Compliance Dimension | Detail |
|---|---|
| UK Regulator | Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) |
| U.S. Regulator | Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) |
| SEC CRD Number | 324441 |
| Accountability Framework | SM&CR (UK), Form ADV (U.S.) |
| Public Enforcement Actions | None identified in available records |
No public FCA enforcement notices or SEC disciplinary actions against Pearlstone Alternative have been identified as of this writing. Compliance officers should independently verify current status, as regulatory standing can change.
How Pearlstone Alternative Compares to Peers
Pearlstone Alternative operates in the European credit and special situations segment alongside firms like Arini, Chepstow Lane Capital, Athanor Capital, and larger platforms such as Manulife | CQS Investment Management. CBInsights lists Auquan, Cognitive Credit, and PEI Media Group as competitors, though these are primarily data and analytics providers rather than direct investment peers.
The meaningful comparison set includes other European special situations credit managers:
| Differentiator | Pearlstone Alternative | Typical European Credit Peer |
|---|---|---|
| Strategy Focus | Pure special situations & distressed credit | Often blended with performing credit |
| Team Composition | 83% investment professionals | Typically 50-60% investment staff |
| Institutional Backing | Leucadia/Jefferies strategic partner | Varies; many self-funded |
| Jurisdictional Scope | Pan-European multi-jurisdictional | Often UK/Western Europe focused |
| Firm Size | ~$178M AUM, 6-person team | Wide range ($100M–$5B+) |
Pearlstone’s competitive position rests on three pillars: Ivelina Green’s Goldman Sachs and CQS pedigree, the Leucadia distribution relationship, and a Pan-European jurisdictional capability that most boutique managers lack.
The honest counterpoint: at $178 million AUM with six people, the firm is still early-stage by institutional standards. Allocators should scrutinize operational resilience, key-person concentration on Ivelina Green, and whether the Leucadia relationship provides sufficient infrastructure for scaling. These are standard growing-pain questions for any sub-$500M manager — they do not invalidate the strategy, but they deserve direct answers during due diligence.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Pearlstone Alternative do?
Pearlstone Alternative is a London-based hedge fund that invests in European fundamental credit and special situations. The firm targets distressed debt, loan-to-own transactions, and rescue financing in companies under cyclical or structural pressure, focusing on deals that require complex legal and cross-border execution.
Who founded Pearlstone Alternative?
Ivelina Green founded Pearlstone Alternative in 2021. She serves as the firm’s Chief Investment Officer. Before launching Pearlstone, Green was a Partner at CQS heading the Global Special Situations Group and previously served as Head of European Distressed Trading and Investing at Goldman Sachs.
How much does Pearlstone Alternative manage?
As of mid-2025, Pearlstone Alternative manages approximately $178.4 million in assets across four funds. The firm has grown since its 2022 strategic partnership with Leucadia Asset Management, part of Jefferies Financial Group.
Is Pearlstone Alternative regulated?
Yes. Pearlstone Alternative (UK) LLP is authorized by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK and registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the United States. Both registrations are publicly verifiable through the FCA Register and SEC IAPD database.
What is the Leucadia-Pearlstone relationship?
In May 2022, Leucadia Asset Management (a subsidiary of Jefferies Financial Group) entered a strategic relationship with Pearlstone Alternative, providing seed capital and distribution services. This partnership gives Pearlstone access to Jefferies’ institutional investor network and operational infrastructure.
Where is Pearlstone Alternative located?
Pearlstone Alternative is headquartered at 17C Curzon Street, 7th Floor, London. The firm invests across Pan-European credit markets but operates from a single London office.
How can investors contact Pearlstone Alternative?
Institutional investors and allocators can reach Pearlstone Alternative through its official website or through Leucadia Asset Management’s distribution team. The firm also maintains a presence on LinkedIn and is listed on institutional platforms including PremierAlts for deal submissions.
What makes Pearlstone different from other credit hedge funds?
Three attributes distinguish Pearlstone: its exclusive focus on high-complexity special situations (rather than blending distressed with performing credit), Pan-European multi-jurisdictional execution capability, and a strategic backing arrangement with Leucadia/Jefferies that provides institutional distribution to a boutique-sized team.
