Key Takeaways
- • Horizon Technology Finance Corporation (NASDAQ: HRZN) and CR Financial Holdings, Inc. (CRFH) formed a joint venture with initial capital commitments totaling $100 million to provide growth capital to small- and micro-cap public companies based primarily in the U.S.
- • The joint venture will target growth financing in the $5-25 million range, with the ability to upsize, according to Horizon CEO Mike Balkin.
- • Governance is split equally: a four-person board and a four-person investment committee, with Horizon and CRFH each holding half of the seats.
- • The vehicle may use warehouse credit facilities to leverage its initial capital and will receive support on larger deals from Monroe Capital, which had approximately $24 billion in AUM as of January 1, 2026.
- • CRFH contributes capital markets relationships through its subsidiary Roth Capital Partners, a full-service investment bank headquartered in Newport Beach, California.
Summary
Horizon Technology Finance Corporation (NASDAQ: HRZN), an affiliate of Monroe Capital, announced the formation of a new joint venture with CR Financial Holdings, Inc. (CRFH), the holding company for Roth Capital Partners, LLC, according to a Business Wire release dated March 19, 2026. The joint venture will provide growth capital financing to small- and micro-cap public companies based primarily in the United States. Horizon and CRFH will make initial capital commitments totaling $100 million, and the vehicle intends to leverage that capital through warehouse credit facilities entered into from time to time.
Governance and investment decisions will rest with a four-person board and a four-person investment committee, with Horizon and CRFH equally represented on each. The joint venture expects to be supported on larger investments by Monroe Capital, a private credit manager the release describes as having approximately $24 billion in assets under management and more than 500 portfolio companies as of January 1, 2026.
Horizon CEO Mike Balkin said the joint venture targets a multi-billion-dollar market he believes is underserved, with a primary focus on growth capital financing in the $5-25 million range. He described the venture as fully aligned with Horizon's long-term strategy of expanding capacity to support high-growth companies and increasing scale. The venture also extends Horizon's existing focus on secured loans to venture capital- and private equity-backed companies and publicly traded companies.
Byron Roth, Chairman of CRFH, said the venture gives the group an opportunity to broaden its capital solutions for publicly traded companies and expects it to be an active participant in growth financing. CRFH contributes capital markets expertise through Roth, which offers capital raising, equity research, sales and trading, M&A advisory, and corporate access services. The release characterizes the partnership as well suited to delivering growth-focused debt to small- and micro-cap public companies.
Governance and investment decisions will rest with a four-person board and a four-person investment committee, with Horizon and CRFH equally represented on each. The joint venture expects to be supported on larger investments by Monroe Capital, a private credit manager the release describes as having approximately $24 billion in assets under management and more than 500 portfolio companies as of January 1, 2026.
Horizon CEO Mike Balkin said the joint venture targets a multi-billion-dollar market he believes is underserved, with a primary focus on growth capital financing in the $5-25 million range. He described the venture as fully aligned with Horizon's long-term strategy of expanding capacity to support high-growth companies and increasing scale. The venture also extends Horizon's existing focus on secured loans to venture capital- and private equity-backed companies and publicly traded companies.
Byron Roth, Chairman of CRFH, said the venture gives the group an opportunity to broaden its capital solutions for publicly traded companies and expects it to be an active participant in growth financing. CRFH contributes capital markets expertise through Roth, which offers capital raising, equity research, sales and trading, M&A advisory, and corporate access services. The release characterizes the partnership as well suited to delivering growth-focused debt to small- and micro-cap public companies.
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