Sweetwater Private Equity Hires Experienced Professionals from K1 Investment Management and Blackstone

Sweetwater Private Equity, an investment manager focused on small-cap companies, has bolstered its team with two seasoned professionals from the private equity world. Kellen Haines, a Principal with over 13 years of experience at K1 Investment Management, has joined the firm to help lead its investment team. Haines will focus on sourcing, executing, and structuring tailored liquidity solutions for founders, employees, general partners, and co-investors, while also broadening the firm's investment capabilities.

Prior to joining Sweetwater, Haines was a Principal at K1 Investment Management, where he served on several boards of growth-stage software businesses. His responsibilities included sourcing, deal execution, and capital formation. Haines began his career at Utility Consulting Group and holds an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management and a BS in Business Administration from the USC Marshall School of Business.

Kassy Haleen, who brings over 11 years of investment and capital formation experience from her time at Blackstone, has joined Sweetwater’s capital formation team. Haleen started her career in Blackstone's secondary private equity group in 2013, a time when secondaries were still a niche market. At Blackstone, she grew from Analyst to Principal across the firm's New York and Los Angeles offices. Haleen's role at Sweetwater will involve building and managing relationships with institutional investors and consultants across the firm's private equity strategies.

Sweetwater Private Equity, established in 2016, manages over $1.6 billion in RAUM (Real Assets Under Management) with investments in over 80 tech-enabled services companies within the technology, healthcare, and industrial sectors. The firm continues to deploy capital in direct secondary transactions across the small-cap segment of the private market.

With the addition of Haines and Haleen, Sweetwater aims to expand its reach and expertise, leveraging their extensive experience in the private equity space. The hires are part of the firm's ongoing efforts to strengthen its investment capabilities and broaden its portfolio of tech-enabled services companies.