Wharton Restructuring and Distressed Investing Conference 2026
The Wharton Restructuring and Distressed Investing Conference is the largest student-run event in the United States focusing on restructuring and distressed investing. Organized by the Wharton School, this annual conference serves as a pivotal forum for industry practitioners, academics, and students to exchange ideas and insights.
The 2026 conference, themed "Restructuring in the Age of Private Credit," will delve into the evolving dynamics of private credit and its growing influence on the restructuring landscape. Key discussions will cover innovative restructuring strategies, the shifting balance between traditional and private credit lenders, and forward-looking approaches to distressed investing in the current economic environment.
Attendees can look forward to keynote addresses from Michael Patterson, Co-President and Founding Partner at HPS Investment Partners, and Vikas Keswani, Partner at HPS Investment Partners. The agenda also includes panels on topics such as crypto restructurings, the relationship between banks and private credit, and trends in private credit workouts. Additionally, the conference offers ample networking opportunities for professionals to connect and share ideas.
This conference is ideal for professionals in restructuring, distressed investing, private credit, and related fields who seek to stay abreast of industry trends and network with peers.
Speakers(40)
Benjamin Beller
Partner at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
Benjamin S. Arfa
Partner, Restructuring and Finance Department at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Brian Bolin
Partner at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP
Brian Resnick
Partner, Restructuring Group at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Chris Koenig
Partner at Kirkland & Ellis
Christian L. Oberbeck
Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer & President at Saratoga Investment Corp.
Christopher Greco
Partner, Restructuring Group at Kirkland & Ellis, LLP
Christopher Greco is a partner in the Restructuring Group of Kirkland & Ellis and serves as the global co-chair of the Firm’s Recruiting Committee. He represents companies, sponsors, and investors in complex liability management, financings, recapitalizations, restructurings, and other special situation transactions. Mr. Greco earned a BS from Villanova University and a JD from Wake Forest University School of Law.
Dan Kelsall
Partner at AlixPartners
David F.W. Cohen
Partner at Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP
Eli Vonnegut
Partner, Restructuring Group at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Evan Maass
Managing Director at Centerbridge Partners
Fran Blair
Managing Director, Credit Investments at PSP Investments
Fred Sosnick
Global Co-Head, Restructuring at A&O Shearman
Igor Fuks
Managing Director at Golub Capital
James Doak
Managing Director and Head, Capital Structure Advisory Group at Stifel
Jane VanLare
Partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
Joe Zujkowski
Partner at Latham & Watkins LLP
Joseph Goldschmid
Portfolio Manager & Partner at Oak Hill Advisors
Justin Lee
Co-Head, Banking & Finance at Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP
Kate Thompson
Partner at Joele Frank
Kumanan Ramanathan
Managing Director at Alvarez & Marsal
Laurent Lantonnois
Executive Director at HPS Investment Partners
Laurent Lantonnois is an Executive Director at HPS Investment Partners in their New York office, where he manages all workouts and restructurings for the middle market private credit strategy. Prior to this role, he was a member of BlackRock’s global restructuring group, providing legal advice across the firm with a focus on public LME transactions and other distressed situations. Before joining BlackRock, Laurent was an Associate at White & Case LLP. He holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) from Stanford Law School, a Master of Laws from the College of Europe, a Master's degree from the Université Catholique de Louvain, and a Bachelor's degree from the Université de Namur.
Leon Caine
Managing Director at Brightwood Capital Management
Matt Barr
Co-Chair, Restructuring Department at Weil, Gotshal, & Manges LLP
Michael Leitner
Senior Managing Director at Stonepeak
Michael Patterson
Co-President and Founding Partner at HPS Investment Partners
Michael Patterson is Co-President and a Founding Partner of HPS Investment Partners, where he serves as the Portfolio Manager for the HPS Specialty Loan Funds and the Core Senior Lending Funds. He is also the Chairman and CEO of the HPS Corporate Lending Fund and the HPS Corporate Capital Solutions Fund. Prior to HPS, he held positions at Silver Point Capital and Goldman Sachs. Mr. Patterson holds an AB in Applied Mathematics from Harvard College and an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.
Nate Simon
Principal, Special Situations Group at Ares Management
Ned Schodek
Partner at A&O Shearman
Peter Sluka
Partner at Latham & Watkins LLP
Rachel Murray
Managing Director at Moelis & Company
Richard Eddison
Managing Director at Third Point
Ross M. Kwasteniet
Partner at Kirkland & Ellis
Russell Mason
Managing Director at Houlihan Lokey
Sandeep Parihar
Managing Director at JPMorgan
Sheel Patel
Partner at Mayer Brown
Shubham Saharan
Deputy Editor, US Private Credit Team at 9fin
Swapna Deshpande
Partner & Managing Director at AlixPartners
Vikas Keswani
Partner at HPS Investment Partners
William H. Hardie III
Managing Director at Houlihan Lokey
Zachary D. Rosenbaum
Partner at Kobre & Kim
Event Details
- Date
- February 20, 2026
- Location
- 🇺🇸 New York City, United States
- The Plaza Hotel
- Audience
- Industry practitioners, academics, and students in restructuring and distressed investing