John DeCaro and Chris Cebula of Elementum |
Elementum is an independent, SEC-registered alternative investment manager specializing in collateralized natural event reinsurance investments ("Risk-Linked Investments" or "RLI"). The firm is located in Chicago and focuses on natural event exposed investment - from liquid catastrophe bonds to high-alpha collateralized reinsurance investments.
Elementum was launched in December 2009 by John DeCaro, Tony Rettino, and Mike France. The principals have worked together in the Risk-Linked Investment arena since 1995. Prior to founding Elementum, they worked together in the Reinsurance and Risk-Linked Investments group at Stark Investments, a leading multi-strategy hedge fund in Milwaukee. Elementum’s team includes all of the former members of the group at Stark, as well as a former member of Stark’s Business Development team.
Chris Cebula and Dr. Krause |
Dr. David Krause, AIM
program director said, "John DeCaro and Chris Cebula again did an
excellent job in the classroom today. They were able to take a complex topic, structured
catastrophic bonds, and explain it at a level that the students understood. Cat bonds are fixed income instruments where
the principal and coupon interest are exposed to severe but infrequent
catastrophes (e.g., hurricanes and earthquakes). They discussed risk linked
investments and the practical application of how cat bonds trade and are
valued."
John DeCaro |
John C. DeCaro, CFA is a Founding Principal and Portfolio Manager at Elementum. He is responsible for the firm’s portfolio construction, investment selection, tactical trading and hedging. Prior to launching Elementum, he co-managed Stark Investments’ Reinsurance and Risk-Linked Investments team from September 2005 through November 2009. John has 12 years investment experience managing a variety of reinsurance and risk-linked investment strategies. John earned a B.S. in Finance from the University of South Carolina and an M.S. in Financial Markets and Trading from the Illinois Institute of Technology, and received the Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 1997.
Chris Cebula |
Christopher Cebula, CFA initially joined Elementum as an Analyst and advanced to Portfolio Management Associate. Prior to Elementum he worked in an Operations/Trading Assistant role at Phalanx Capital Management. Chris graduated magna cum laude from Marquette University’s Applied Investment Management Program, has passed both levels of the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) exam, and holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
Hurricane |
Severe Wind Storm |