Michael Hildebrandt

In 1915 Charles Edward Merrill founded Merrill Lynch & Co. (NYSE: MER) with Edmund C. Lynch in Baltimore, Maryland. The modern Merrill Lynch was formed in 1940 through mergers with E.A. Pierce & Cassatt and, soon after, Fenner & Beane. In 1973, Merrill Lynch adopted a holding company format, with Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. as the parent and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith as the operating subsidiary. Merrill Lynch Asset Management, Inc. (MLAM) was created as an integral business unit in the Merrill Lynch family in 1976. Fund Asset Management, doing business as Mercury Asset Management, was acquired in December 1997. In 2000, MLAM and Mercury were combined under the name Merrill Lynch Investment Managers. MLAM manages the Merrill Lynch family of mutual funds, as and acts as sub-advisor to other mutual funds.

Aurora Management Partners LLC (Aurora Capital partners) is a private equity firm founded in 1991 by Gerald L. Parsky and Jeffrey S. Deutschman. The firm is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

Silver Capital Management LLC (SCM) is an independent, SEC-registered investment advisor and hedge fund manager headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded by Bruce S. Silver in 2000. SCM provides discretionary investment advice to private investment funds and certain separately managed accounts.