Jeff Cucunato is the lead portfolio manager for the Multi-Strategy Credit platform within BlackRock's Global Credit group. Mr. Cucunato is responsible for managing portfolios that allocate to opportunities across the global credit markets. He also chairs the credit platform's Investment Strategy Group, which focuses on evaluating investment opportunities across global investment grade, high yield, bank loans and illiquid credit.

 
Previously, Mr. Cucunato was Head of Investment Grade Credit where he led the firm's U.S. fundamental investment grade credit effort for over 10 years and spent 15 years as the lead portfolio manager for BlackRock's investment grade credit and long duration portfolios. He began his investment career in 1997 focusing on interest rate products, including management of BlackRock's inflation-linked bond portfolios. Mr. Cucunato joined BlackRock in 1995 as an analyst in the Institutional Client Business group, working with international clients and alternative investments.
 
Mr. Cucunato earned a BA degree, cum laude, in history from Dartmouth College in 1995.

Jose Aguilar, Managing Director, is a portfolio manager on the Credit Enhanced Strategies Europe team and co-manages European High Yield strategies.

Prior to joining BlackRock in 2009, Mr. Aguilar was an Associate and research analyst at R3 Capital Partners. He began his career at Lehman Brothers in 2005 working in the Global Principal Strategies and Financial Institutions Groups.

Mr. Aguilar earned degrees in business administration and law from Universidad Pablo de Olavide in Seville, Spain.

Mitchell S. Garfin, CFA, Managing Director, is Co-Head of US Leveraged Finance within BlackRock’s Fundamental Fixed Income Platform. He is responsible for managing the US High Yield and Global High Yield strategies and also has oversight responsibility for the platform’s US Leveraged loan strategies.

Mr. Garfin’s tenure with the firm dates back to 1997 when he joined as an Analyst. He spent three years in the Account Management Group where he maintained responsibility for developing and maintaining relationships with the firm’s taxable financial institution clients. In 2000, Mr. Garfin moved to the investment side of the business where he initially spent four years as an investment grade credit research analyst. Here, he was responsible for providing investment recommendations on companies in the metals & mining, paper & packaging, utilities and energy sectors. In 2005, Mr. Garfin transitioned to a portfolio management role with the investment grade credit team where he was responsible for sector positioning and trading within the commodities and basic materials sectors. Since 2007, Mr. Garfin has been a portfolio manager with the high yield credit team, and he assumed his current, senior responsibilities in 2014.

Mr. Garfin earned a bachelor’s degree, with distinction, in Finance from the University of Michigan in 1997 and an MBA degree in Finance and Economics from NYU Stern in 2005.