TheMReport — News and strategies for the evolving mortgage marketplace.
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MCROWD Meet the Industry's MCrowd WHO'S MOVING ON AND WHO'S MOVING UP IN THE INDUSTRY The housing industry is welcoming a superstar recording artist to its ranks, as companies around the nation expand lending efforts and hire new leadership. EDWARD A. BOLMARCICH. Amalgamated Bank has initiated its own full-service home mortgage division, and the bank has named Edward A. Bolmarcich as the department's SVP and director of residential lending. Bolmarcich, who has more than 25 years' of experi- ence as a mortgage banker, will head up Amalgamated's strategic growth as the company works to "provide working people with a more afford- able local source for home financing." ANDREW BOUGH. In Chicago, Solidifi has appointed Andrew Bough as the organiza- tion's chief valuations officer. Bough, an industry veteran, has accrued nearly two decades of expe- rience in the real estate, banking, and mortgage sectors. Prior to joining Solidifi, Bough was the head of credit and valuations for ING Direct USA. President and CEO of Solidifi Jason Smith stated, "ING Direct USA was one of our first clients. Andrew un- derstands our philosophy and focus on integrity and doing the job right." ROBERT CESTARI. Joining Knight Capital Group, Inc., as the company's managing director for commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) and commercial real estate debt trad- ing, Robert Cestari has departed his previous position with PrinceRidge Group. In his new role, Cestari is one of two newly hired leaders for Knight's institutional fixed income sales and trading division, and department co-head Al Lhota noted that Cestari's addition to the team is part of the company's decision to expand into the CMBS market. OLIVER CHANG. Formerly the head of U.S. housing strategy for Morgan Stanley, Oliver Chang has moved on to become the co-founder and managing director of new asset man- agement firm Sylvan Road Capital LLC. Targeting investments in the single-family rental market, Chang and his partners plan to put more than $1 billion into the market during the next two years, and Sylvan Road will utilize an initial capital commit- ment of $300 million from a private equity firm to begin its investment strategies. IVAN CHOI. The Asian Real Estate Association of America (AREAA) has named Ivan Choi as its chair-elect. Choi will assume the leader- ship post following AREAA's national convention this month, where he will be officially installed as the organization's chair- man of the board. Currently, Choi serves as the SVP of Virginia-based Matt Martin Real Estate Management, and he also has prior directorship experience as a member of the board for REOMAC. EDWARD A. DAHLKA JR. As Taylor Capital prepares to launch its third national line of business, Cole Taylor Equipment Finance, the company is wel- coming Edward A. Dahlka Jr. as the division's president. With more than four decades of experience in leasing and equipment financing, Dahlka has previously performed as the president of LaSalle National Leasing Corporation. Speaking out on his new role, Dahlka said, "I'm delighted to have joined Cole Taylor Bank." JIM FERRITER. Following the departure of the company's CEO, Texas-based Caliber Funding LLC has appointed Jim Ferriter as the compa- ny's new president. Ferriter has been a part of Caliber, a national wholesale and retail mortgage lender, since July 2011, and most recently, he served as the company's SVP of retail pro- duction. While performing as SVP, Ferriter was responsible for heading up Caliber's growth initiatives, as well as working to build customer relationships and preserve the com- pany's loan origination controls. GARY GUNN. Churchill Mortgage has promoted Gary Gunn to controller of the company. Gunn brings to his position 35 years of finance and accounting experience, and he formerly served as the CFO for Madison Mill, Inc., and Wood Ridge Development, Inc. In his new role at Churchill, Gunn will oversee the company's financial reporting and will make sure branch departments are set up to maximize efficiency and profitability. 20 | THE M REPORT