• Like the corporate lending arm of a bank such as JPMorgan Chase, but focused exclusively on providing loans to mid-sized businesses.
• Like Rocket Mortgage, but instead of home loans, it provides loans to mid-sized companies.

• Senior Secured Loans: Providing first-lien debt financing to middle-market companies, typically collateralized by the borrower's assets.
• Unitranche Loans: Offering a combined senior and subordinated debt facility that provides a comprehensive financing solution.
• Second Lien Secured Loans: Extending debt that is secured by collateral but has a subordinate claim to first-lien debt.
• Mezzanine Debt: Furnishing subordinated debt, which may include equity participations, to support growth or acquisitions.
• Equity Co-Investments: Making minority equity investments, often alongside debt financing, in portfolio companies.

WhiteHorse Finance (WHF) is a Business Development Company (BDC) that primarily invests in the debt and equity of privately held small and middle-market companies. Therefore, its "customers" are the companies it provides financing to, often referred to as portfolio companies. WHF primarily sells to other companies.

Given the nature of its business as a diversified lender to middle-market companies, WHF typically has a broad portfolio of investments rather than a few traditional "major customers" in the sense of repeat buyers of a product or service. However, based on its latest annual report (10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023), the companies representing its largest individual investment exposures (its largest borrowers) can be considered its major customers in terms of capital deployed. Most of these companies are private and do not have public symbols.

Some of WhiteHorse Finance's largest portfolio companies (as of December 31, 2023), which serve as its major customers/borrowers, include:

• Kaufman Hall & Associates, LLC
• Rhapsody Management LLC (operating as Rhapsody Marketing)
• TriMark USA, LLC
• BHC Holdings, Inc.
• APEX Tool Group, LLC

The major suppliers for WhiteHorse Finance (WHF) are:

• H.I.G. WhiteHorse Advisers, LLC
• PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
• Computershare Trust Company, N.A. (parent company: Computershare Limited, symbol: ASX:CPU)

Stuart Aronson Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Aronson has served as Chief Executive Officer since 2016 and a director since 2017. He also holds the position of Group Head of the U.S. direct lending platform of H.I.G. Capital, which he has held since February 2016. In this role, Mr. Aronson is responsible for developing debt solutions for both non-sponsor and sponsor borrowers in the U.S. middle market. Prior to joining H.I.G. Capital, from 1990 through 2015, he was an officer of the General Electric Company and served as President and Chief Executive Officer of GSF (GE Sponsor Finance), a leading provider of debt financing to the U.S. sponsor middle market. During this period, he was also on the board of directors of Peacock Equity Partners, a venture capital fund formed as a joint venture between GE Capital and NBC Universal. He previously led the commercial and industrial platform of GE Structured Finance (Americas), Inc., which provided structured debt and equity solutions. His career began in the syndications group of Chemical Banking Corporation.

Joyson Thomas Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Thomas has served as Chief Financial Officer since August 2019. He joined H.I.G. Capital in April 2017, and before his current role, he was the Controller for the WhiteHorse Direct Lending platform within H.I.G. Capital’s Credit platform. In this position, he oversees the financial reporting and operations of all WhiteHorse Direct Lending vehicles. With over 15 years of experience in the asset management industry, Mr. Thomas specializes in credit strategies. From January 2014 until joining H.I.G. Capital, he was a Principal and Controller for MatlinPatterson’s Asset Management (MPAM) platform, where he managed the finance function for various credit strategies, including performing and distressed credit, mortgage-backed securities, and CLO structures. Earlier in his career, he served as the Global Controller at Clearwater Capital Partners.

Jorge Collazos Chief Compliance Officer

Mr. Collazos has served as Chief Compliance Officer since 2014, where he is responsible for the company’s regulatory and compliance matters. He joined H.I.G. Capital in 2013 as Director of Compliance and currently holds the position of Deputy Chief Compliance Officer for H.I.G. Capital. Mr. Collazos brings over 20 years of regulatory and compliance experience to his role. Prior to joining H.I.G. Capital, he was the Chief Compliance Officer for the Americas for EFG International. His previous experience also includes working as a Principal Consultant with ACA Compliance Group and conducting regulatory examinations of SEC registered entities at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Pankaj Gupta President of WhiteHorse, U.S. & Global Head of Originations

Mr. Gupta is the President of WhiteHorse, U.S. and Global Head of Originations. He is also a Member of the Investment Committee.

Javier Casillas Managing Director & Global Chief Credit Officer of H.I.G. Whitehorse

Mr. Casillas serves as a Managing Director and Global Chief Credit Officer of H.I.G. Whitehorse. He is also a Member of the Investment Committee.

WhiteHorse Finance (WHF) primarily operates in the direct lending sector, specializing in originating senior secured loans to lower middle market companies in the United States.

Addressable Market Sizes:

• U.S. Direct Lending Market: US-based direct lending funds deployed approximately $500 billion in new loans in 2025. This market is a significant component of the broader private credit market.
• U.S. Private Credit Market: The U.S. private credit market was approximately $1.1 trillion in 2024, and around $1.25 trillion in the U.S. as of December 2024. It is estimated to reach $1.67 trillion in 2025.
• Global Private Credit Market: The global private credit market reached US$3 trillion in assets under management (AUM) in 2024 and is projected to grow to an estimated US$3.5 trillion by 2028. Direct lending constitutes a significant portion of this, representing about 50% of global private credit AUM, or approximately $1.5 trillion, in 2025.
• U.S. Lower Middle Market (Target Companies): The segment of companies WhiteHorse Finance targets, the U.S. middle market, comprises nearly 200,000 companies. The lower middle market, representing 90% of these companies, typically has annual revenues between $10 million and $150 million. Private equity firms focused on this market control nearly $1.7 trillion of capital.

Here are 3-5 expected drivers of future revenue growth for WhiteHorse Finance (WHF) over the next 2-3 years:

1. Deployment of Capital and Portfolio Growth: WhiteHorse Finance's primary revenue source is interest income from its debt investments. Therefore, the company's ability to effectively deploy capital into new investments and grow its overall portfolio size is a direct driver of future revenue. For example, total investments increased by $8.8 million sequentially to $651 million at the end of Q1 2025, and gross capital deployments were $45.5 million in Q1 2025 and $39 million in Q2 2025.
2. Interest Rate Environment and Effective Yield on Investments: As a business development company (BDC) that primarily invests in floating-rate debt, WHF's revenue is significantly influenced by interest rates. A higher interest rate environment allows WHF to earn more interest income from the loans it provides, while lower rates can negatively impact its weighted average effective yield on income-producing debt investments.
3. Growth and Performance of the STRS Joint Venture (JV): The STRS Joint Venture is consistently highlighted as being accretive to WHF's earnings, generating attractive returns on equity. Continued growth in the JV's portfolio and successful deployment of its capacity will contribute to WHF's overall revenue. The JV had an aggregate fair value of $310.2 million at the end of Q1 2025.
4. Focus on Non-Sponsor Deals: WhiteHorse Finance has emphasized its strategic focus on the non-sponsor market, citing better risk-adjusted returns and less competition compared to the sponsor market. Success in sourcing and closing these less competitive, potentially higher-yielding deals can drive revenue growth.
5. Resolution of Non-Accrual Investments: While not a direct growth driver, the successful resolution of non-accrual investments is crucial for improving net investment income and mitigating revenue drag. The company is actively working on getting deals off the non-accrual list, leveraging a dedicated restructuring team. For example, Telestream Holdings Corporation was reorganized and moved to accrual status in Q2 2025.

Share Repurchases

• On November 10, 2025, WhiteHorse Finance's board of directors authorized a new stock repurchase program for up to $15 million of its common stock.
• The company aims to repurchase shares at prices below its net asset value, believing it will be accretive.

Share Issuance

• In October 2020, WhiteHorse Finance privately issued $40 million in aggregate principal amount of 5.375% unsecured notes due 2025.
• In December 2020, an additional $10 million in aggregate principal amount of 5.375% unsecured notes due 2026 were privately issued.
• In August 2023, the company commenced a registered public offering of notes, intending to use the proceeds to repay its $267 million revolving credit facility, fund new investments, and for general corporate purposes.
• In June 2025, the company completed a $298.15 million term debt securitization, which included the issuance of $174.0 million in 2025 Senior CLO Notes through a private placement.

Outbound Investments

• During the third quarter ended September 30, 2025, WhiteHorse Finance made investments in two new portfolio companies totaling $14.3 million and added $4.9 million to existing portfolio companies.
• In the first quarter of 2025, WhiteHorse Finance made gross investment deployments of $40.8 million across seven new portfolio companies.
• The company's investment objective is primarily focused on originating and investing in senior secured loans to performing lower middle market companies.