Mastering Debt Decisions and Alternative Investments with Stas Sukhinin

In this episode of the DealQuest Podcast, I sat down with Stas Sukhinin, a finance veteran with over 19 years of experience spanning investment banking, corporate lending, and alternative asset management. Stas began his career at internationally recognized institutions including UniCredit and Societe General, where he helped pioneer mezzanine loan products and shape the market in Eastern Europe. By age 29, he had become a senior partner at one of the region's largest mezzanine lenders, managing a team of 20 finance professionals and overseeing a $450 million loan portfolio.

After serving on boards of several private companies and deepening his expertise across credit investments and corporate governance, Stas recognized early opportunities in alternative assets. He joined a crypto investment fund at its inception in 2017 and continues to lead its strategy and operations. In our conversation, Stas pulls back the curtain on what really happens inside credit committees, shares hard-won lessons about debt management, and offers a unique perspective on the intersection of traditional finance and emerging digital assets. Whether you're considering a loan, planning an exit, or exploring alternative investments, this conversation provides insights that could save you from costly mistakes.

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING

When I asked Stas what he wanted to be as a kid, his answer surprised me. At just 14 years old, a classmate brought a business magazine to school. Stas started reading it and realized there was this entire world of business owners making millions selling their companies. That moment crystallized his path.

"I quickly figured out that I wanted to be in a corporate lending department because I could see the business, I could see the financials, I could speak with the business owners," Stas explained. "And then on the other side, I was working with numbers at the bank."

His first professional role as a junior credit analyst gave him exactly what he wanted. He started working with small businesses that had no financials, progressed to mid-sized companies, then large corporations. Each step taught him something new about how deals really get done.

WHAT HAPPENS INSIDE CREDIT COMMITTEES

One of the most valuable parts of our conversation was Stas pulling back the curtain on credit committee dynamics. A lot of business owners apply for loans without understanding what actually happens when their application gets reviewed. According to Stas, the reality is nothing like what you see in movies.

"Sometimes it's just, is this in line with our credit policy? Or if it's a big deal, this can be okay, it's going to be a sizable size in our portfolio, do we want this?" Stas described. "There's certain strategic thinking that business owners, when they apply for credit, don't really think about."

The factors affecting approval can seem completely unrelated to your specific deal. Maybe the bank already has your competitor in their portfolio. Maybe the receivable financing department has a different relationship with someone in your industry. One offhand comment from a committee member who hasn't even read the full memo can change the entire trajectory of a conversation. They might approve the loan but at a higher interest rate because someone mentioned the sector seems risky.

WHY STRONG COMPANIES FAIL IN MONTHS

Stas has seen companies go from healthy to restructuring in three or four months. The pattern is predictable once you understand how multiple factors compound during a downturn.

"Revenue decreases or stagnates. Then the margins are deteriorating because there's more competition, they need to provide discounts, clients don't feel really good," Stas explained. "So you have revenue decrease and margins deteriorating. Then you end up thinking you have low debt to EBITDA ratio, but now it's around five. And then banks want higher interest rates. And if it was three months ago when many potential lenders wanted to finance you, now during a downturn they all become conservative."

Everything hits simultaneously. Your financials deteriorate on multiple levels. Your refinancing options shrink. Interest rates climb. The safety margin you thought you had evaporates. I've seen this in my work with clients where a 10% revenue drop can mean a 20% or 30% drop in EBITDA because fixed costs don't adjust that quickly.

This echoes what Tom Dillon shared when we discussed funding sources and when not to take on certain types of capital. Understanding your downside scenarios is critical before taking on any debt.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN EXPERIENCED AND FIRST-TIME OWNERS

One of the most important distinctions Stas made was between first-time business owners and experienced operators when it comes to debt decisions.

"I think it's crazy to assume that everything is going to be okay. No business has everything going okay," Stas said. "Experienced people know that it's going to be white and black all the time and you need to prepare for those. You need to build this safety of margin."

He emphasized that nothing can kill a business with very low leverage. You can sustain anything. You can downsize three times and survive whatever comes your way. But high leverage without refinancing options puts you in a corner. And another issue he sees frequently is business owners who don't actually understand their financial standings because of weak financial functions inside the company or limited understanding of how financials work.

VOLATILITY AND CUSTOMER CONCENTRATION

When I asked Stas how much debt is too much, he focused on two critical factors that define your risk profile.

The first is volatility of income. Utilities and telecom have one level of earnings volatility and can handle more leverage. A SaaS business that just started selling has completely different volatility characteristics. The more volatile your revenue, the more cautious you need to be with debt.

The second factor is customer concentration. Stas runs scenarios asking what happens if you lose one or two main customers. What happens to your revenue next month? What's your EBITDA? What's your operating cash flow? Can you at least serve your interest payments?

This connects directly to M&A valuations. Concentration risk affects how buyers price deals. Sometimes we structure adjustment provisions rather than accepting a discounted multiple. If all clients stay, the seller gets full value. If key clients leave and aren't replaced within a specified period, there's an adjustment. It's another example of the old saying in dealmaking that if you give me a price, I'll give you a structure.

THE 2017 ICO BOOM AND VENTURE INVESTING

Stas joined a crypto investment fund at its inception in 2017 during the ICO boom. His perspective on that period is refreshingly honest.

"We invested in a lot of ICO projects. I think 90% of them just didn't deliver. They went to zero," he admitted. "But some of them made returns like 50x, 100x. So it was a really good time."

What struck me was his observation about liquidity. Unlike traditional venture deals where holding periods now average at least seven years, crypto investments can reach liquidity events in three or four years through token distributions. He wonders why more VCs still don't invest in crypto given this significant advantage.

This reminds me of my conversation with Gerry Hays about VentureStaking and alternative approaches to early-stage investing. The venture landscape is changing rapidly, and traditional models aren't the only path forward.

WHEN VCS BLOCK DEALS THAT MAKE SENSE

Stas shared a story that illustrates a tension many founders don't anticipate until it's too late. A business owner had been working on a project for five years with VC backing across multiple rounds. When a buyer offered to acquire the entire company, it represented a life-changing event for the founder. But for the VC, it was roughly a 1x return.

"They basically blocked this deal because they said for us it's easier to write this off than get 1x," Stas recalled. "They said we will either sit with this and see what happens or right now get 1x. It doesn't make any sense for our model."

The company ended up in a long corporate conflict and eventually shut down. The founder later spoke at an event about structuring boards of directors specifically because he had lost majority control and couldn't push the deal through. This is something I discuss frequently with clients. Understanding your capital needs and protecting your governance rights from the beginning can determine whether you have options later.

DUE DILIGENCE ISN'T WHAT YOU THINK

Stas is blunt about the limitations of financial audits and due diligence processes. There are many legal ways to present financials in the most favorable light, and sophisticated sellers use all of them.

"There are so many things how you can book your expenses as capital and then it doesn't show on the P&L, or how you hide certain liabilities," he explained. "Really go through it, especially the revenue. Make sure that revenue exists and those customers exist."

He pointed to recent Wall Street Journal stories about credit providers going bankrupt despite having conducted due diligence. Even large financial institutions miss things. The seller is always incentivized to show you the best picture possible.

One area he emphasized specifically was working capital provisions in purchase agreements. If you don't have detailed provisions about working capital, you don't really understand what you're getting. He's seen sellers drain working capital before closing, taking everything possible.

THE STABLECOIN OPPORTUNITY

When I asked about trends in the crypto space, Stas focused on stablecoins as the biggest application use case. Transaction volume is already in the trillions, though many people in developed countries don't realize the scale because they don't need to transact across borders.

Stablecoins are digital tokens designed to match one dollar in value. Unlike Bitcoin, which fluctuates dramatically, stablecoins stay stable. Companies like Circle, now publicly traded, issue regulated stablecoins from the United States.

The potential Stas sees is in programmable money. Imagine putting conditions and terms into a smart contract that executes automatically. You confirm that work is complete, send that confirmation to the contract, and receive payment immediately without depending on human judgment. Trade finance, letters of credit, any transaction that currently requires bank intermediaries could benefit from this efficiency.

Goldman Sachs reportedly switched to settling bond transactions using private blockchain technology and reduced settlement time from three days to a few minutes. When Stas talks about why this matters, he points to accessibility. People in developing countries who struggle to get bank accounts can suddenly participate in the financial system.

FREEDOM AND REMOVING GATEKEEPERS

When I asked Stas my final question about freedom, his answer connected directly to his work in crypto.

"For me, it's also the main value that I'm making most of my decisions around," he said. "It's very important not to be constrained by certain things and just do whatever you want."

He sees crypto as removing gatekeepers from money. Companies in certain sectors have struggled to open bank accounts simply because of regulatory pressure unrelated to any wrongdoing. Stas believes people should have rights to access money and transact freely unless they've actually done something wrong.

For business leaders considering their financing options, debt structures, or alternative investments, this episode offers practical wisdom from someone who has seen deals from multiple angles. Stas brings the perspective of an insider who understands what happens behind closed doors at lending institutions and investment committees.

Tune in to this episode to hear Stas Sukhinin share how credit committees really make decisions, why strong companies fail fast when leverage catches up with them, and where he sees opportunity in stablecoins and programmable money.

Listen to the full episode of DealQuest Podcast with Stas Sukhinin: Available on all major podcast platforms

FOR MORE ON STAS SUKHININ
linkedin.com/in/stassukhinin  
thesourcer.so

FOR MORE ON COREY KUPFER
https://www.linkedin.com/in/coreykupfer/
https://www.coreykupfer.com/

Corey Kupfer is an expert strategist, negotiator, and dealmaker. He has more than 35 years of professional deal-making and negotiating experience. Corey is a successful entrepreneur, attorney, consultant, author, and professional speaker. He is deeply passionate about deal-driven growth. He is also the creator and host of the DealQuest Podcast.

Get deal-ready with the DealQuest Podcast with Corey Kupfer, where like-minded entrepreneurs and business leaders converge, share insights and challenges, and success stories. Equip yourself with the tools, resources, and support necessary to navigate the complex yet rewarding world of dealmaking. Dive into the world of deal-driven growth today!