Bay Point chooses Shearwater for capital catapult

opinion

by Alasdair Whyte

April 8, 2026

Chris Miller had a unique introduction to asset risk. He was flying a twin-engined Boeing F/A-18 Hornet at night when one engine flared out. Miller circled while waiting to land back on the aircraft carrier. Then a bolt of lightning struck the nose of his fighter jet.

Miller was temporarily blinded. This meant he had no idea in which direction he was flying. He grasped the ejector seat handle and started counting down to the earliest point that the fighter jet would hit the sea. Fortunately, his sight returned before the countdown reached zero. He landed without any more problems.

The engine was fixed and the whole aircraft checked over to make sure it was perfect. But when another squadron going on duty needed an aircraft, Miller and his US Marine Corps colleagues all agreed that this was the aircraft they wanted to get rid of. The fact that professional and rational Marine pilots saw this aircraft as less desirable is a great introduction to the vagaries of aircraft values.

Fast forward nearly 40 years and Miller has spent much of his career focused on aircraft values and asset risk. Now, he and his colleagues at Shearwater Global Capital are joining Bay Point Advisors to build out a dedicated aviation finance vertical. Miller will lead the effort as part of Bay Point’s expanding portfolio of private credit strategies.

Bay Point, based in Atlanta, Georgia, specialises in investing in niche, asset-backed markets that traditional lenders typically avoid. Private aviation finance fits well with Bay Point’s existing business in real estate, private marine vessels, litigation finance and financing collateralised limited partnership interests.

Bay Point first got involved in private business aviation by investing in deals that Miller’s Shearwater Global Capital brought to it. “We have been working together for more than eight years now and have been discussing a formal relationship for about five years,” says Miller.

He launched Shearwater in 2014 when he left Guggenheim Partners’ Business Aircraft Investment Group (which was acquired by Stonebriar Commercial Finance, now Eldridge Capital). “Bay Point has been one of my bigger financing partners since the start. They have access to broader pools of capital, so we will be able to offer a cheaper cost of capital whilst still doing pure asset-based deals,” says Miller.

“We’ve done a lot of deals with Chris and finally decided it’s best to get together,” says Charles Andros, managing partner and chief investment officer, Bay Point Advisors. “Chris has spent 12 years building the relationships, the deal flow and the track record. We are excited to add him to the Bay Point team.”

Shearwater and Bay Point both specialise in providing capital to borrowers who do not fit typical bank criteria. “The majority of our loans are real estate-backed loans,” says Andros. “A lot of these loans are short-term bridge loans. We see similar clientele with aircraft finance deals. There is a lot cross-selling between asset classes. We see a lot of borrowers who are not banked and looking for financing.”

Shearwater has always been a global lender. Miller says that it will continue doing international deals but joining Bay Point’s team will make him more competitive in the US.

“We are opportunistic in the aviation space. We will look at aviation real estate, special mission aircraft and older aircraft. We want to have a balanced portfolio,” says Miller. “We do not want aircraft of just one type.” Shearwater and Bay Point have always liked financing pre-delivery or construction financings. Miller sees lots of opportunities for these.

The new agreement is happening at a time when financial markets are choppy. “There are a lot of things happening. Number one, we’ve got a new Fed governor coming this summer. That kind of keeps things on pause a little bit,” says Andros. “We have the war in Iran and that causes inflationary pressures and then we have the growth of AI, which is a concern for employment in the US and all over the world. So, the next six to nine months are uncertain but that also brings opportunities.”