Our Team

Crawford’s experienced team is characterized by intense collaboration and wisdom across market cycles.

Our seasoned team is defined by its disciplined, thoughtful approach and steady hand across market cycles.

Christopher Crawford

Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer

Chris Crawford has built and led investment teams at world-class investment managers and successfully guided billion-dollar portfolios across market cycles.

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Prior to forming the General Partner, Mr. Crawford was Managing Director, Portfolio Manager and head of the Boston office with Stark Investments, managing a $1.5B long/short equity portfolio within a $12 billion multi-strategy global hedge fund from 2006 to 2009. From 2003 to 2006, Mr. Crawford was Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager with Putnam Investments in Boston, where he was co-Portfolio Manager of the Putnam International Capital Opportunities Fund. From 2000 to 2003, Mr. Crawford was a Partner and Senior Analyst with ABACUS Investments/ABRY Partners in Boston. From 1996 to 2000, Mr. Crawford was Assistant Vice President with Wellington Management Company in Boston, where he served as a Global Industry Analyst responsible for the media industry and as a Portfolio Manager for $600 million in client assets, including $500 million in institutional accounts and the $100 million Clariden Media Fund, an open-end mutual fund. From 1991 to 1995, Mr. Crawford was a Senior Analyst and Manager with New England Consulting Group & Quantum Associates where he completed numerous domestic and international consulting engagements with senior executives in Fortune 500 companies focused on mergers and acquisitions, corporate strategy, organization, marketing and operations. His clients included Coca-Cola, Miller Brewing, Unilever, Hallmark Cards, South African Breweries, Dun & Bradstreet, Sears, Heinz, Frito-Lay, MCA and Philip-Morris.

Mr. Crawford received an MBA from The Wharton School of Business where he was named to the Directors List. Mr. Crawford also graduated from the University of Pennsylvania magna cum laude as a Benjamin Franklin Scholar with a BA in Physics, BS in Economics, BAS in Systems Engineering and an MA in International Relations. Mr. Crawford is an Investment Adviser Representative* with the Massachusetts Securities Division and holds FINRA Series 65 certification. Mr. Crawford is an investor in Crawford Capital Partners, L.P.

*Registration as an Investment Adviser Representative with the Massachusetts Securities Division does not imply any certain level of skill or training.

Jonathan R. Saunders

Partner and Senior Analyst

Jonathan Saunders is a veteran hedge fund analyst whose disciplined, research-driven approach has been pivotal in driving performance of equity portfolios from start-up phase to multi-billion AUM.

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Prior to forming the General Partner, Mr. Saunders was an equity analyst with Stark Investments, a $12 billion multi-strategy global hedge fund from 2006 to 2009. As an equity analyst, Mr. Saunders was responsible for the equity team’s positions in the financial services, REIT and industrial sectors. From 1999 to 2006 Mr. Saunders was President and Chief Operating Officer of private equity firm Blue Wave Holdings Corp., where he sourced investments, negotiated and executed transactions, and significantly improved operating results at portfolio companies in the commercial real estate and automotive services sectors.

He holds an MBA from Boston University and a BA from the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Saunders is an Investment Adviser Representative* with the Massachusetts Securities Division and holds FINRA Series 65 certification. Mr. Saunders is an investor in Crawford Capital Partners, L.P.

*Registration as an Investment Adviser Representative with the Massachusetts Securities Division does not imply any certain level of skill or training.

Scott L. Utzinger

Partner and Chief Operating Officer

Scott Utzinger is a seasoned institutional investor with more than two decades of experience spanning portfolio management, equity analysis, investment operations, and Fortune 500 strategy consulting.

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Prior to joining the General Partner in October 2012, Mr. Utzinger was an equity analyst at Fidelity Investments, where he was responsible for the media and retail sectors at the firm’s institutional investment division, Pyramis Global Advisors, from 2010 to 2012. Prior to Fidelity, Mr. Utzinger was Vice President and Global Industry Analyst at Wellington Management Company from 1999-2009. During more than a decade at Wellington, Mr. Utzinger followed the internet, media, travel, and leisure sectors and served as sector portfolio manager for more than $1 billion in institutional client and mutual fund assets. From 1995 to 1997, Mr. Utzinger was Lead Consultant at Booz Allen & Hamilton, a global management consulting firm, where he focused on M&A, reengineering, strategy and marketing assignments in the media and consumer packaged goods sectors for clients ranging from PepsiCo to Viacom to Seagram/MCA/Universal. From 1993 to 1995, Mr. Utzinger was a Senior Project Manager at New England Consulting Group, working with Fortune 500 executives on marketing and management strategy projects for a broad array of media and consumer packaged goods clients, including Heinz, Bausch & Lomb, SmithKline Beecham, CPC International, and Southern New England Telephone.

Mr. Utzinger received an MBA from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, where he was named an Arjay Miller Scholar. Mr. Utzinger also graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s Management & Technology program summa cum laude with a BS in Economics from The Wharton School of Business and a BAS in Systems Engineering from the School of Engineering and Applied Science. Mr. Utzinger is an Investment Adviser Representative* with the Massachusetts Securities Division and holds FINRA Series 65 certification. Mr. Utzinger is an investor in Crawford Capital Partners, L.P.

*Registration as an Investment Adviser Representative with the Massachusetts Securities Division does not imply any certain level of skill or training.

Jared Montagna

Chief Financial Officer (E78 Partners)

Jared Montagna is a Chief Financial Officer for E78 Partners. Crawford has hired E78 and Mr. Montagna to serve as its part-time outsourced CFO. Mr. Montagna brings over 14 years of accounting experience with a focus on alternative investments.

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Prior to joining E78, Mr. Montagna was Controller at Mathisys Advisors, LLC where he was responsible for managing daily accounting and operations for a proprietary trading firm. Before starting with Mathisys, Mr. Montagna held the role of Chief Financial Officer with KSA Capital Management, LLC, where his duties included accounting, operations, finance, and client service functions for two long/short equity hedge funds.

Mr. Montagna also gained experience as Controller at Nine Chapters Capital Management, LLC, a quantitative hedge fund focused on long/short US and Japanese equities. Mr. Montagna started his career with Rothstein, Kass & Company, spending five years as an auditor in the firm’s financial services practice in Roseland, NJ. Here, Mr. Montagna conducted financial statement audits for a variety of long/short equity, distressed debt, private equity, and fund of fund clients.

Mr. Montagna graduated from Lehigh University with a BS in Accounting and is a CPA in the State of New Jersey.

Gail Mattera

Compliance Consultant (E78 Partners)

Gail Mattera is a Chief Compliance Officer for E78 Partners. Crawford has hired E78 and Ms. Mattera to serve as its part-time outsourced compliance consultant. Ms. Mattera brings over 17 years of compliance and accounting experience with a focus on alternative investments.

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Prior to joining E78, Ms. Mattera was a Fund Controller at Sandalwood Securities in Roseland, NJ. She joined Sandalwood in 2010, and was responsible for deliverables associated with Sandalwood’s accounting, audit, compliance and operational due diligence activities.

Before starting with Sandalwood, Ms. Mattera spent five years with Rothstein, Kass & Company where she was an Audit Supervising Senior Associate. As an Audit Senior, Ms. Mattera specialized in audit engagements for hedge funds and fund of funds, with diverse operations, structures, and investment strategies.

Ms. Mattera holds a MS in Accountancy from the Fairleigh Dickinson University, and a BA in Geography from the University of Delaware. Ms. Mattera is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and is the New Jersey affiliate past President of the American Women’s Society of Certified Public Accountants.

Strong Collective Investment Experience

Strong Collective Investment Experience

External Service Providers Enhance Operational Integrity and Best-of-Breed Controls

Crawford is proud to extend our internal capabilities via a top-tier team of institutional-grade service providers, including:

KPMG