Key Takeaways
- • Richard Shamos joins Akin as a partner in its investment management practice and funds group in Los Angeles, bringing expertise in private credit, evergreen structures, and insurance-focused fund vehicles from his prior role at Kirkland & Ellis.
- • The hire strengthens Akin's integrated platform for sponsors across the full credit lifecycle—from capital raising and structuring through deployment and risk management—at a time when evergreen and hybrid fund structures are reshaping private credit markets.
- • Shamos brings significant experience advising buyout and growth capital sponsors on credit-focused fund platforms, direct lending vehicles, and insurance-rated note feeders, extending Akin's capabilities in an increasingly integrated market.
- • The addition deepens Akin's West Coast presence and supports the firm's strategy to serve clients building permanent capital platforms and executing complex, bespoke fund structures.
Summary
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld announced the appointment of Richard Shamos as a partner in its investment management practice and funds group in Los Angeles, marking a strategic expansion of the firm's capabilities in private credit and alternative capital structuring. Shamos joins from Kirkland & Ellis, where he was a partner in the West Coast investment funds group, bringing specialized expertise in credit-focused fund platforms, direct lending vehicles, and emerging evergreen and hybrid fund structures.
The hire reflects broader market shifts in how sponsors are raising and deploying permanent capital. According to Akin co-chair Abid Qureshi, "Credit and evergreen funds are central to how sponsors are raising capital today, and Richard brings deep experience across precisely those products." Shamos's background advising on private credit vehicles, insurance-rated note feeders, and buyout and growth capital platforms positions him to support clients navigating an increasingly integrated market where traditional fund structures are being supplemented by evergreen and hybrid alternatives.
Barbara Niederkofler, co-leader of Akin's investment management practice, emphasized that Shamos "meaningfully expands our depth in core growth areas that are critical to our funds clients—particularly private credit, evergreen structures, and insurance-focused products." The addition reinforces Akin's integrated approach, which combines fund structuring advisory with capital solutions services. Akin's investment management practice comprises more than 100 lawyers globally and advises sponsors and investors across the full lifecycle of private investment funds, from formation and fundraising through operations, liquidity solutions, and complex secondaries transactions.
Shamos cited the firm's premier private funds platform and integration of fund structuring with capital solutions as key factors in his decision to join. "Akin has a premier private funds platform centered on innovative and bespoke structures," he noted, adding that the integration benefits clients building the permanent capital vehicles increasingly demanded by the market. The hire extends Akin's West Coast investment management footprint and underscores the firm's focus on serving sponsors constructing sophisticated, multi-vehicle capital platforms in an evolving regulatory and market environment.
The hire reflects broader market shifts in how sponsors are raising and deploying permanent capital. According to Akin co-chair Abid Qureshi, "Credit and evergreen funds are central to how sponsors are raising capital today, and Richard brings deep experience across precisely those products." Shamos's background advising on private credit vehicles, insurance-rated note feeders, and buyout and growth capital platforms positions him to support clients navigating an increasingly integrated market where traditional fund structures are being supplemented by evergreen and hybrid alternatives.
Barbara Niederkofler, co-leader of Akin's investment management practice, emphasized that Shamos "meaningfully expands our depth in core growth areas that are critical to our funds clients—particularly private credit, evergreen structures, and insurance-focused products." The addition reinforces Akin's integrated approach, which combines fund structuring advisory with capital solutions services. Akin's investment management practice comprises more than 100 lawyers globally and advises sponsors and investors across the full lifecycle of private investment funds, from formation and fundraising through operations, liquidity solutions, and complex secondaries transactions.
Shamos cited the firm's premier private funds platform and integration of fund structuring with capital solutions as key factors in his decision to join. "Akin has a premier private funds platform centered on innovative and bespoke structures," he noted, adding that the integration benefits clients building the permanent capital vehicles increasingly demanded by the market. The hire extends Akin's West Coast investment management footprint and underscores the firm's focus on serving sponsors constructing sophisticated, multi-vehicle capital platforms in an evolving regulatory and market environment.
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