Steven Adelkoff JD, MBA, CAIA
Joined Seton Hill
2008

For over two decades, Steven Adelkoff has worked in all aspects of the structured finance, alternative investment and capital markets industries. He has lead teams negotiating domestic and international transactions involving real estate, commodities, power generation, renewable energy, commodity exploration, structured finance, investment management platforms, and investments funds representing a range of strategies. His diverse skill set allows Mr. Adelkoff to meld legal, regulatory, tax and accounting aspects of transactions to achieve world-class results. After joining the global law firm now known as K&L Gates, LLP in 1988 (where he was an equity partner for over 15 years), Mr. Adelkoff became a leading expert in sophisticated off-balance sheet and leasing transactions, including synthetic leasing, leveraged leasing, silos/lilos, sale/leaseback transactions and credit tenant leases. Representing independent power producers, utilities, exploration companies, lenders (both senior and mezzanine) and equity participants, Mr. Adelkoff successfully completed international and domestic transactions totaling billions of dollars in industries ranging from power generation and timber to commodity exploration and LNG facility development. He participated in the development and acquisition of over 400 MW of wind energy representing both developers and lenders. Over the last decade, Mr. Adelkoff has focused on the formation and operation of global investment funds, with particular attention to investment strategies and risk management. His expertise extends from international private equity investments to hedge funds, venture capital funds, commodity funds, real estate funds, and collateralized debt obligation transactions. Mr. Adelkoff has most recently developed expertise in socially responsible investment funds. Mr. Adelkoff has become a recognized expert in Shariah compliant law and investment vehicles. He served as lead counsel to Shariah Capital and supervised all legal, tax and accounting issues and documentation for the Al Safi Trust platform, the first Shariah compliant alternative investment platform. Mr. Adelkoff also served as lead negotiator for the formation of Dubai Shariah Asset Management, Ltd., Shariah Capital’s joint venture with Dubai Multi Commodities Centre Authority (a sovereign affiliate of the Dubai government). He has advised real estate fund managers, rating agencies and investment banks regarding Shariah compliant investments. Mr. Adelkoff acts as the Chief Compliance and Legal Officer of Fairwinds International Bank (San Juan, PR). He is an owner of Arrakis Development, LLC, a private equity firm focusing on power and infrastructure investments in the Caribbean and Central America. He was an owner and acted as the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of International Electric Power, LLC, an international developer and operator of investment grade power assets. In this role he led teams developing or acquiring power assets in places as diverse as Haiti, Pakistan, Panama and the Cayman Islands. Mr. Adelkoff previously acted as President of Renewable Manufacturing Gateway, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization whose mission was to make impact investments for private foundations such as the Richard K. Mellon Foundation and the Claudia Benedum Foundation in companies that advanced the economic development goals of those foundations. Using venture capital structures, Renewable Manufacturing Gateway was provided with millions of dollar of Foundation support to further its impact investing goals. Mr. Adelkoff has published numerous articles, including “Shariah Compliant Real Estate Operations and Finance”, which appears in the reference book Real Estate Finance, published by Butterworths. He often serves as an industry source for the media, including the New York Times and CFO Magazine. A Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst, he is a frequent lecturer on topics as wide-ranging as Shariah compliant investment vehicles and credit tenant leasing. Mr. Adelkoff also is an adjunct professor of the MBA program at Seton Hill University, where he teaches Law and Business Ethics (with an emphasis on behavioral economics and its impact on ethical decision making). He holds the Series 7, Series 63 and Series 24 designations, which allows him to act as a principal in a securities broker/dealer firm. Mr. Adelkoff earned his Juris Doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law (where he graduated Magna Cum Laude), his Master of Business Administration degree from Cornell University – The Johnson School of Management, and his Bachelor of Arts degree from Rutgers University.

Education

  • B.A., Rutgers University (New Brunswick, NJ) (1985)
  • Juris Doctorate, University of Pittsburgh School of Law (1988)
  • MBA, Cornell University Johnson School of Management (2006)

Certifications

  • Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Series 7, 63 and 24