Company History

Equipment for Companies and Returns for Investors

Founded in 1972 by Gus Constantin, Phoenix Leasing was the sponsor of a successful series of equipment leasing investment funds, sold nationwide through the broker-dealer network to retail investors for more than two decades. Phoenix Leasing returned impressive returns to investors, supplied essential equipment lease options to businesses large and small and built up the administrative, accounting and reporting capabilities that would later distinguish the company as a third-party provider of back-office services.

Branching into the Back-Office Business

In 1982, Phoenix American Financial Services was established to leverage the unparalleled back-office administrative proficiency of Phoenix Leasing as a full-service outsourced administrator for fellow sponsors in the alternative investment industry. STAR-XMS, the company’s proprietary shareholder recordkeeping and transfer agent system, was developed based on the long operational experience of Phoenix Leasing to maximize back-office efficiency. It is now available under license for self-administered funds.

Venture Capital to Jumpstart Growth

For over fifteen years, Phoenix Venture Lease provided lease financing options to startup companies in Silicon Valley and beyond. In the 1980’s and 1990’s the company helped foster the phenomenal growth of such clients as Netscape, Yahoo and Chips and Technologies. Leveraging the administrative, accounting and investor services capabilities developed for Phoenix Leasing the company achieved a proficiency with specialized venture-specific back-office support. The experience derived from Phoenix Venture Lease is the bedrock of Phoenix American’s administration offering for venture capital fund clients.

Technology Focused on Sales

Phoenix American SalesFocus Solutions was founded in the 1990s to leverage the marketing automation and sales reporting capacity of the Phoenix Leasing sales department in support of the sales teams of asset management firms. The MARS system, SalesFocus’ CRM / sales reporting and compliance application, transforms sales and asset data into actionable business intelligence to drive sales, integrating with all the most widely employed data sources and software providers. Today, SalesFocus serves some of the biggest names in the financial services industry.

Expanding and Improving Cable Television

Stemming from the contacts and knowledge gained from the equipment leasing business, Phoenix Cable was founded in 1990 to acquire, develop, and manage cable television systems for subscribers nationwide as well as agencies of the United States government. Although the principal assets and operations of Phoenix Cable were sold in the early 2000s, the company continues to provide cable television services to the men and women of America’s armed forces at the United States Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

On the Front Lines of the Internet Revolution

With the rapid adoption of the World Wide Web in the early 1990s, Phoenix FiberLink was founded to construct and manage fiber-optic networks as the nation and the world embraced the Internet as essential infrastructure for economic activity. Before its acquisition by Worldcom, the company connected businesses in 26 cities nationwide. During the days of the explosive growth of Internet startups that followed, Resource Phoenix was launched as an outsourced accounting provider to companies of all kinds looking to grow their businesses without the burden of in-house accounting teams.

Managing Agent for Aviation ABS

Since 1993, Phoenix American has performed corporate services, administration, accounting and cash management for aircraft and engine asset-backed securitizations (ABS) of every size, scope and complexity. In 2007, the Phoenix American office in Shannon, Ireland, PAFS Ireland, Ltd., was established to serve ABS clients and now employs over 60 finance professionals.

Today, the expertise and capabilities that Phoenix American has gained throughout its long history remain focused on its core mission: serving the needs and exceeding the expectations of investors in alternative funds. Backed by Phoenix American’s experience, technology and commitment to service excellence our clients’ ambition can be unlimited.