Board of Directors
board of directors
Anya Coverman serves as president and CEO of the Institute for Portfolio Alternatives (IPA), a leading advocacy organization for the portfolio diversifying investment industry. In this role, Anya leads the organizations efforts to bring together top asset managers, product distribution partners and industry service providers and drive industry progress through education and advocacy initiatives Previously, she served as the IPA’s senior vice president of government affairs and general counsel. In the role, Anya led the IPA’s legislative, regulatory and legal initiatives, including the IPA’s Political Action Committee (PAC), served as the primary liaison and senior policy representative before Congress, the executive branch, and federal and state financial and self-regulatory agencies, and counseled the IPA on all internal legal and governance matters. Prior to joining the IPA in 2017, Anya was the deputy director of policy and associate general counsel at the North American Securities Administrators Association, the national association representing state financial regulators. She has also practiced corporate and securities law at the international law firm Greenberg Traurig LLP in Washington, D.C., and, prior to that, at a boutique financial services law firm in New York City. Anya received her J.D. from American University’s Washington College of Law and her B.A. from the University of Miami. She is admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia, Virginia, New York and Texas.
Mr. Bhavsar directs CNL’s private capital investments, financial management and other corporate services, while jointly managing capital markets activities and day-to-day operations. Since its founding in 1973, CNL has formed or acquired companies with more than $34 billion in assets. Mr. Bhavsar was previously chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Corporate Capital Trust, a CNL-sponsored business development company now listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Mr. Bhavsar also served as chief financial officer for CNL Bank. During his tenure there, he managed an investment portfolio in aggregate of $400 million, including non-government backed securities and other credit investments. With more than 18 years of experience as a chief financial officer, Mr. Bhavsar is well-versed in complex federal and state regulatory reporting environments. Additionally, Mr. Bhavsar was lead independent director and head of the Audit Committee of Currency Exchange International, Corp., an exchange-listed bank holding company, and reviewed and approved public financial statements and filings. Mr. Bhavsar also served as executive vice president, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Florida Choice Bank, and senior audit manager of Hacker Johnson Cohen and Grieb, a specialized Accounting and Auditing firm for state and regional banks. Mr. Bhavsar received a Bachelor of Science and a Masters in Accounting from the University of Florida. He is also a graduate of the Banking School at the University of Virginia.
Bill Duffy joined Fidelity in 2020 as Vice President of Alternative Investments. In this role he is responsible for expanding Fidelity’s alternative investment platform solutions, providing clearing and custody clients with access to alternative investments. Additionally, as a subject matter expert, Bill educates Fidelity clients and prospects about alternative investment solutions available through Fidelity. Prior to Fidelity, Bill worked in the Asset Management Solutions division of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. At Schwab, he was Managing Director of Relationship Management, leading the team responsible for relationships with over 700 third-party asset managers. Prior to that, he was a Sr. Manager of Marketing and Strategy on Schwab’s alternative investment platform team. In that role, he was responsible for developing the strategy to grow Schwab’s alternative investment solutions available to RIAs, including identifying third-party asset managers for participation on Schwab’s platform. Additionally, he collaborated with industry partners to develop and deliver alternative investment education to thousands of RIAs who custody assets on the Schwab platform. Earlier in his career, Bill was an Executive Director at Deer Isle Capital, a boutique alternative investment marketing and advisory firm, where he was responsible for marketing alternative investments to RIAs, family offices, and institutional investors. Earlier in his career, he held various roles at T. Rowe Price Group.
Matthew Fries currently serves as the Head of Due Diligence for Cetera Financial Group. In this role, he actively manages the team responsible for due diligence and product support functions for all Cetera broker/dealers. His areas of responsibility include product diligence and selection, ongoing product monitoring, and driving awareness, education, and sales of products amongst all Cetera advisors. With over 20 years of experience in the financial services industry, Matt joined Cetera in August of 2015. Previously, he worked as the Chief Operating/Investment Officer for Questar Capital, where he was responsible for overseeing all operational and investment functions within the company, as well as developing company strategies and management tactics. Prior to this, he had been employed as a Sales and Practice Development Manager for Securian Financial Services since 1999. Matt earned his Bachelor’s degree in economics and history from the University of Notre Dame, and holds Master’s degrees from both the University of Wisconsin (MA) and the University of Minnesota (MBA). He possesses Series 4, 7, 24, 53, 55, 63 Securities Licenses as well as Life and Health Insurance Licenses.
Chase Bolding is a Managing Director at Invesco Real Estate. His primary responsibilities entail acting as Chief Investment Officer and Portfolio Manager for one of Invesco’s publicly registered non-traded REITs. His secondary responsibilities include sourcing and structuring value-add and opportunistic investments throughout the US. His investment capabilities include equity and equity joint ventures, debt and hybrid structures. Chase began his investment career in 2007 and joined Invesco Real Estate in 2010. Prior to joining Invesco, he worked for Greenfield Partners, a real estate private equity fund headquartered in Connecticut. Chase earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from The University of Texas at Austin and is a Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA) charterholder.
Brendan Cuddihy is the Chief Operating Officer at CAIS. He oversees the Operations, Client Service, and Integrations teams. Brendan is responsible for funds and investment product operations, including onboarding, integration of workflows, reporting, and investor/manager relations. He has more than 10 years of experience in the asset management and financial services industry, having worked at US Bancorp and Moody’s Corporation. Brendan graduated Cum Laude with a BA in Economics and received his MBA from Marist College. Brendan holds his Series 7 and Series 63 licenses.
Daniel Cullen has over 20 years of experience in tax planning for structured real estate transactions, related fund formation, and securities law matters. Mr. Cullen is viewed as a leading professional in the taxation of real estate funds, REITs and related structures. Chambers USA recognizes his contributions as REIT counsel. Mr. Cullen serves as an adjunct professor at Northwestern University School of Law, teaching the Taxation of Structured Real Estate Transactions. In addition, Mr. Cullen has served as a REIT columnist for the Journal of Passthrough Entities and has received industry recognition for his work relating to Section 1031 like-kind exchange matters. Mr. Cullen is a member of the Firm’s North American Tax Practice Group Management Committee and previously served as Chair of the Firm’s Chicago Tax Practice Group.
Michael T. Ezzell is President and Chief Executive Officer of Inland Securities Corporation (ISC), the broker dealer for Inland Real Estate Investment Corporation (IREIC) and Inland Private Capital Corporation (IPC). Mr. Ezzell is responsible for ISC’s corporate strategy, sales, broker dealer relationships, securities operations, compliance, and distribution channels. He also works closely with new product development, due diligence, and information technology. Mr. Ezzell has more than 25 years of extensive investment management, financial and strategic leadership experience. Prior to joining Inland Securities in 2015, Mr. Ezzell held positions with Cole Capital in leadership and executive roles for over five years. Most recently, he served as Executive Vice President of American Realty Capital Properties, Inc. (ARCP) and CEO and President of Cole Capital. He was responsible for all aspects of the management of the nontraded REIT sponsor’s distribution and investment management business, including sales, product development, broker dealer relationship management, securities operations, and capital markets. Prior to the merger of Cole Real Estate Investments (Cole) with ARCP in February 2014, Mr. Ezzell served as Senior Vice President of Product and Business Development for Cole, securing selling agreements with broker dealers for existing and new product offerings, opening new distribution channels and overseeing due diligence and new product development. Prior to joining Cole, Mr. Ezzell served as Director of Investment Research at AIG Advisor Group, where he was responsible for managing investment research for a network of broker dealers serving independent financial advisors. In that role, he managed the research and due diligence for all packaged investment products including mutual funds, variable annuities, alternative investments and third-party money managers. During his career, he also held positions with J.P. Carey Asset Management. Mr. Ezzell received his Bachelor of Arts degree with double majors in Economics and Political Science from Stetson University. He also holds Series 7, 24 and 63 securities licenses with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
Nancy Fahmy is head of Alternative Investments and Specialty Asset Management for the Investment Solutions Group at Bank of America. The Alternative Investments group is responsible for providing advisors and clients with access to a range of platforms and investment solutions including hedge funds, private equity, managed futures and physical precious metals. Specialty Asset Management has extensive experience managing timber, farm and ranch land, oil and gas, mineral interests, real estate and private businesses. In addition to leading Alternative Investments, Nancy led Capital Markets for the Investment Solutions Group from 2017 to 2018. Prior to her appointment as head of Alternative Investments in 2015, Nancy was responsible for Private Equity and Real Assets Origination and distribution within Merrill Lynch Alternative Investments. Before joining Merrill Lynch Alternative Investments in 2008, Nancy was responsible for the Third Party Derivatives and Structured Investments business in Global Markets & Investment Banking. Prior to joining Merrill Lynch in 2006, she was a Director at Deutsche Bank and Bankers Trust where she held senior Over The Counter derivatives specialist positions in the Corporate and Investment Bank and Private Wealth Management for over ten years. Nancy holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Finance from the University of Delaware. She was selected as a Global Ambassador for Bank of America’s partnership with Vital Voices. The program brings together influential global women leaders from public and private sectors to mentor women from emerging markets engaged in small businesses and social enterprises. Nancy serves on the Limited Partner Advisory Council for Sponsors for Educational Opportunity. Nancy also serves on the board of Bank of America’s Corporate Benefits Committee and is on the bank’s Investing in Women Leadership Council. Nancy was also honored by Mercado Global as a Financing Social Good Honoree. Mercado Global is a Brooklyn-based accessory brand and non-profit that empowers rural Latin American women to become entrepreneurs.Nancy was also elected as a board member to The Institute for Portfolio Alternatives (IPA). The IPA Board of Directors consists of senior executive leaders from all corners of the portfolio diversifying investments industry.
Ms. Adamson is a Partner and Co-Head of Distribution within Ares Wealth Management Solutions, which oversees Ares’ client management activities in the global wealth channel. Prior to joining Ares in 2021, she was a Managing Director, Head of Institutional Sales and Investor Relations at Black Creek Capital Markets, where she oversaw fundraising and relationship management for institutional investors, large registered independent advisors, family offices and ultra-high net worth individuals. Previously, Ms. Adamson served as a Director on the Hedge Fund Capital Introduction Team at Deutsche Bank, where she advised global hedge funds and asset managers on fundraising initiatives across strategies, and was responsible for covering institutional investors, family offices and funds of funds across the UK, Scandinavia and Switzerland. During her career at Deutsche Bank, Ms. Adamson authored the company’s annual Alternative Investment Survey. Ms. Adamson began her career at Citigroup within their prime finance sales team. Ms. Adamson holds a B.A. from Princeton University in History and an M.B.A. from Oxford University Saïd Business School.
Angie Fisher is Director - Funds Management & Operations, Core Spaces Chicago. Ms. Fisher served in a similar capacity at Cole Capital. Her experience also includes leadership roles at Edward Jones, OppenheimerFunds, Davis Funds, and American Century Investments, where she worked with brokerage clients, transfer agents, operations teams, and project teams implementing new business and process improvement initiatives. Ms. Fisher earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in organizational management, both from University of Phoenix. She holds FINRA Series 7 and 63 licenses. In addition, she is certified in Agile methodologies, is a certified Agile product owner and has a CMFC® designation.
Jay Frank is the President and Chief Operating Officer of Cantor Fitzgerald Asset Management, a division of Cantor Fitzgerald. Cantor Fitzgerald is a global financial services, investment banking, and asset management firm. Mr. Frank joined Cantor in 2015 and oversees the day-to-day operations of the business, performs an active role in product construction and strategic initiatives including leading the creation and launch of the first ‘40 Act fund focused on private infrastructure as well as the integration of the firm’s mutual fund, ETF and SMA platforms with their private markets platform. In addition, Mr. Frank launched the private wealth distribution platform accounting for $13 billion in assets under management. Throughout his career, Mr. Frank has been involved in the creation, structuring, launch, capital formation, management, and monetization of dozens of real asset strategies with over $35 billion in aggregate value. He has worked closely with wealth management, accounting, tax and legal firms on the education, due diligence and implementation of sophisticated real assets solutions including Real Estate Investment Trusts, Interval Funds, Business Development Companies, 1031 Tax Deferred Exchanges and Qualified Opportunity Funds. Mr. Frank earned a B.A. in Business Economics with an emphasis in Accounting from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He holds FINRA Series 7, 24, and 63 licenses and is an Investment Banking Representative. Jay lives with his wife and two daughters in Santa Monica, California. Jay plays an active role in Happy Trails for Kids, a non-profit organization committed to improving the lives of foster youth across Los Angeles.
Thayer Gallison currently serves as Senior Vice President, Capital Markets – Head of Product Strategy for Cottonwood Residential. In his role, Thayer is responsible for structuring Cottonwood’s product offerings, communicating all aspects of the Cottonwood product platform to an audience of broker-dealers and registered investment advisors, and represents the company with industry associations. Thayer also focuses on business development strategies, and manages due diligence relationships with broker-dealers, RIAs, and third-party due diligence firms. Thayer has spent more than 21 years in the financial services industry, beginning his career with an RIA where he managed the manager selection and due diligence process, and also led investment committee meetings where client portfolio allocations were determined. Thayer joined Advisor Group in 2011, where he was Director of Alternative Investments before ultimately leading the investment research and due diligence team. In 2017, Thayer joined Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services, where he served as Vice President – Due Diligence Officer, and united the product research and due diligence functions from across Ladenburg’s network of broker-dealers. Thayer earned his Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Emory University. He has earned Series 7, 24, and 66 Securities Licenses and he is a CFA Charterholder.
For more than 20 years, public and private companies have relied on Jason Goode for fund formation, M&A, public securities offerings, and private placements. He focuses his practice on the REIT and real estate fund industry. Jason regularly advises boards of directors on corporate governance issues and also counsels brokerdealers on compliance with applicable FINRA rules. He is active in several industry organizations and is a frequent speaker on securities and corporate governance issues. Jason influences the real estate industry through his leadership with the Institute for Portfolio Alternatives (IPA), where he is the co-chair for the Policy and Government Affairs Committee and is the former chair of the Legal and Regulatory Committee. He interviewed Robert Telewicz, a top official at the SEC, during IPAVision 2020. Jason serves as a director of ACG Atlanta, a chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth, and as vicechair of M&A South (formerly ACG Capital Connection), the premiere networking event in the South for deal makers. Jason is listed in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business in the REITs category and The Best Lawyers in America© in the Securities/Capital Markets category. He has also been named “Legal Elite” by Georgia Trend magazine.
James Hannigan is a Managing Director in the Client and Product Solutions group at Apollo. Prior to joining Apollo in 2021, James was a Managing Director in the Alternative Asset Management division of Blackstone. Previously, he was an Associate Vice President at FRM Americas LLC and an associate in the asset management group of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP. James graduated from Vanderbilt University with a BA in philosophy and received a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law.
Brian Hurley is a Managing Partner at Brookfield and General Counsel for Brookfield’s Public Securities Group. In this role, he oversees the legal and compliance functions and is also actively involved in the Public Securities Group’s investment funds business, including product and business development. Prior to joining Brookfield in 2010, Mr. Hurley was an attorney at Paul Hastings LLP and a member of the Investment Management Practice Group, where he focused his practice on representing investment advisers and various investment companies. Mr. Hurley earned a Juris Doctor degree from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of the Holy Cross.
Michael Keogh is a Managing Director with iCapital. As head of Investment Product Development Michael implements programs and products where iCapital helps advisors access the private capital markets in HNW focused structures including registered funds, private placement insurance and model portfolios. As part of his role he helps private capital fund sponsors gain access to the accredited investor segment of the high-net-worth market. Michael advises fund sponsors on structuring their offerings to meet the unique needs of the HNW advisor market. Prior to joining iCapital, Michael spent eight years with BlackRock where his responsibilities included developing proprietary tender offer funds and liquid alternative mutual funds. Previously, he served in various roles with OppenheimerFunds during a 20-year tenure with the firm. Michael earned a BS in Accounting from St. John’s University. He holds FINRA Series 7, 63, and 24 licenses.
Dennis Martin is a managing director at PGIM Real Estate and global head of Private Wealth & Client Solutions on behalf of the real estate business and Montana Capital Partners (mcp) – a PGIM-owned global private equity secondaries manager. Based in Newark, New Jersey, Dennis leads the team responsible for working with PGIM Investments to launch new strategies and structures that address the alternative investments requirements of global wealth advisors and their high-net-worth clients. The Private Wealth & Client Solutions team is also responsible for growing PGIM Real Estate and mcp’s presence in the Defined Contribution and OCIO channels. Prior to his current role, Dennis was head of the Americas Business Development team, where he was responsible for managing and developing PGIM Real Estate’s client relationships with U.S. & Latin American institutional investors in support of our real estate, agriculture and impact capabilities. Before joining PGIM Real Estate, Dennis was a managing director in RREEF’s Client Relations group, where he developed and managed client and consultant relationships in the Midwest and Eastern regions. Prior to that, he was the director of real estate investments for Lucent Asset Management Corp., the pension asset management subsidiary of Lucent Technologies, Inc., and practiced law with Goodwin Procter LLP, and O’Melveny & Myers LLP. Dennis has a bachelor’s degree in political science from St. John’s University and a law degree from the New York University School of Law. He has been an active participant in PREA since 2000, serving on the board of directors from 2001 to 2006 and as chairman from 2004 to 2005. In addition, Dennis serves on various church and community service organizations including as a member of the Board of Trustees for Children’s Aid and Family Services.
John P. McCarthy, Jr. is the Chief Executive Officer of Starwood Real Estate Income Trust, Inc. and is also a member of the board of directors and the Advisor’s Investment Committee. Mr. McCarthy has also served as a Managing Director of Starwood Capital since July 2015, where he was responsible for managing and expanding relationships with Starwood Capital’s investors around the world. Mr. McCarthy previously served as Global Head of Asset Management for Starwood Capital from March 2009 to May 2012, during which time he also served as a member of Starwood Capital’s Investment Committee. Prior to rejoining Starwood Capital, Mr. McCarthy served as Senior Portfolio Manager and Deputy Head of Europe for the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (“ADIA”) from June 2012 to May 2015. During this time, Mr. McCarthy served on ADIA’s Executive and Global Strategy committees. Prior to this, Mr. McCarthy served as Global Co-Head of Asset Management for Lehman Brothers Real Estate Private Equity from June 2005 to February 2009 and was a Partner at O’Connor Capital Partners (“O’Connor”), Co-Head of European Business and Head of European Asset Management. Prior to joining O’Connor, Mr. McCarthy previously worked for 17 years at GE Capital, where he held a variety of positions, including managing the firm’s real estate investing activities across Central Europe and serving as Chief Investment Officer for the Midwest Region in the United States. Mr. McCarthy received a B.S. degree in finance from the University of Connecticut, and an MBA with a concentration in accounting from Fordham University.
Patrick McGowan is a Managing Director, serving as the Head of Manager Research and Head of Alternative Investments at Sanctuary Wealth. In his current position, he spearheads a team that is responsible for developing all Alternative Investment activities, including the firm’s private equity, private credit, real asset, and hedge fund investing strategies, as well as the Sanctuary Investment Research Focus List. Mr. McGowan is a member of the Sanctuary Asset Management Investment Council, which plays a pivotal role in constructing the Firm’s global economic and capital market views, providing invaluable global asset allocation guidance, and managing model allocations. Mr. McGowan also leads the Alternative Investment Committee. Before joining Sanctuary, Mr. McGowan held a senior leadership position at the GP-stakes firm Azimut Alternative Capital Partners (BIT: AZM), a Milan-based wealth manager, where he focused on strategic growth initiatives for the firm’s investments in mid-market private markets GPs. Before that, he worked at Invesco Private Capital, a leading institutional PE and VC fund-of-funds, within the trillion-dollar asset manager, Invesco (NYSE: IVZ). Prior to Invesco, Mr. McGowan worked at a Carlyle Group venture, formerly known as OC Private Capital, focused on strategic growth initiatives in private wealth for the $1 billion close-ended private credit interval fund (TAKIX). Prior to this role, Mr. McGowan had various roles at OppenheimerFunds, AI Insight, and Altegris Investments. Mr. McGowan earned a Bachelor of Science from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. He holds FINRA Series 7 and 63 registrations.
As Vice President of Alternative Investments, Paul Mumma leads the team responsible for non-traded REITs, non-traded BDCs, non-traded closed-end funds, hedge funds, private equity, private placements, structured products, and syndicate offerings on the Ameriprise platform. Prior to his current role, he was Vice President of Product Management and Development for Asset Allocation and Alternative Investments at Columbia Threadneedle Investments. In this role, he oversaw the development of a number of different products including mutual funds, hedge funds, institutional separate account strategies, and ERISA-qualified collective funds. Paul was also Head of Product Management for RiverSource Investments (now part of Columbia Threadneedle Investments). Paul earned a B.A. in English from Truman State University and an MBA from the University of St. Thomas. He is also a CFA charterholder. Paul has 28 years of financial services experience and has been with Ameriprise for 23 years.
Mr. Napier serves as Head of Real Estate Client Strategy JPM Real Estate investment Trust (JPMREIT) and Executive Director of JPM Global Alternatives. In his role, he leads a team of investment specialists focused on advising professional clients on real estate strategies and execution across regions, risk levels, equity, debt and defined contribution partners with clients across the wealth management channels positioning J.P. Morgan private real estate capabilities. Previously, he was leading wealth management at Heitman LLC where he led distribution, product development and operations for the channel. Prior to this, Scott held senior leadership roles at Invesco and Oppenheimer Funds. Mr. Napier is a member of the Investment and Wealth Institute and holds the CIMA designation and maintains Series 7, 66, 63 and 24 FINRA licenses. He received a M.B.A from Emory University Goizueta School of Business and B.A from The University of Texas.
Alison Nest is a managing director and the head of Alternative Investments for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management based in New York City. She is responsible for the development, sourcing, onboarding and servicing of alternative investments distributed to retail and institutional clients. Alison has been with the Firm for nearly two decades and has held a number of roles across the Investment Solutions and Field organizations, including head of Strategy, Business Development and Risk as well as head of Offshore and Private Wealth Management Product. She also served as the CFO for various business units within Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. She joined the Firm from Smith Barney in 2009, where she started her career in 2004 as an analyst. She holds a B.S. cum laude in finance and accounting from Georgetown University, is a class of 2024 “MAKER” and serves as co-chair of the MMI Alternative Investments Community and co-chair of the Investment Solutions Women in Wealth Chapter.
Mr. Pascucci is a Managing Director of UBS Financial Services and serves as Head of Global Alternative Investment Solutions for UBS, where he is responsible for research, sourcing, underwriting, structuring, risk management, administration and distribution of all alternative investment products, including hedge funds, commodity pools, as well as private equity, credit, real estate, infrastructure and impact offerings. He is the President and a Director of the Firm’s registered investment advisor entities and its commodity pool operator. His responsibilities include oversight of product origination, manager selection, investment and operational due diligence, portfolio construction, and approval for distribution across regions of all alternative offerings. Prior to joining UBS in 2010, he served in various capacities at Citigroup Global Market’s Inc. and related entities since 1996. He was a Managing Director of Citigroup Alternative Investments LLC (“CAI”), a division of Citigroup that administered its hedge fund, fund of hedge fund, and commodity pool businesses, and served for several years as Chief Investment Officer of the Hedge Fund Management Group. He was President, Chief Investment Officer, and Director of Ceres Managed Futures LLC, a registered commodity pool operator and commodity trading advisor. Mr. Pascucci was also a Managing Director of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC, where he served as Chief Investment Officer of Alternative Investments from August 2009 to June 2010. He began his career at Citigroup Global Markets as a Senior Credit Risk Officer, focused primarily on market and counterparty risks associated with hedge fund and commodity pool clients.
Sheila Rapple is a Managing Director and Global Head of Investor Services in Blackstone’s Private Wealth Solutions Group. In this role, she oversees investor services and devotes many of her efforts towards helping to build out the processes needed to support new products and channels. Prior to leading Investor Services, she was Head of the Internal Sales & Service Desk for the Private Wealth Management Group. Before joining Blackstone in 2011, Ms. Rapple worked with Legg Mason, Inc., most recently as Director, Separately Managed Account Product Manager in Legg Mason’s retail distribution unit, where she was responsible for SMA product maintenance, product development, platform placement, sales, marketing, operations, and client service. Ms. Rapple began her career with Smith Barney Asset Management working in their sales and marketing team promoting Smith Barney mutual funds and separately managed accounts. Ms. Rapple received a BS in Marketing & Management from Siena College.
Brian has over 29 years of public accounting experience serving real estate clients ranging from small private companies to publicly traded and multinational companies. He serves as Deloitte’s Global Real Estate Audit & Assurance Leader and U.S. Real Estate Leader for Clients and Growth. He previously served as the Central Region Real Estate Audit Leader, co-led our national practice for REITs and real estate internal audit practice. Brian has significant experience serving partnerships, investment managers, property managers, institutional advisers, private equity firms, developers, hotels, homebuilders, and public pension advisers. Brian is also the Deloitte Private Audit leader for the Chicago practice. He is accredited in IFRS and has substantial experience in fund formation, SEC matters, mergers and acquisitions services, internal controls, fair value accounting and auditing and tax consultations. He has participated in numerous financing transactions, including public stock and debt offerings. Brian has co-authored several point-of-view articles and served as host and presenter on several Deloitte’s Dbriefs webcasts and real estate industry events. He was a former adjunct professor at DePaul University. He has also contributed to the Wharton Real Estate Review, Commercial Property Executive, and the US Private Real Estate Fund Compliance Guide. Brian was moderator and panelist at the 2021 and 2022 AICPA Real Estate and Construction Conference, moderator and panelist at several IMN Non-listed REIT Conferences, a keynote speaker at the 2018 NAI FMA Realty Conference in Lincoln, NE, and presenter at the 2013 SEC Compliance Outreach Program in Chicago. Brian serves as the Lead University Relationship Partner for DePaul University and Co-Chair of the Dean’s Advisory Council for the College of Business at DePaul University. Brian served as the 2023 commencement speaker for the Kellstadt School of Business.
Peter Schaffer is a senior leader with over 25 years of experience at asset management and independent broker dealer firms directing product management, risk, compliance, client growth and retention functions. Currently, Peter leads all sales and product management efforts for alternative investments, annuities, structured products, insurance, and investment banking services at Avantax Wealth Management, a $85B IBD firm. Specific to alternative investments, Peter is tasked with building a complete, competitive, and strategically sound product line. These responsibilities include expanding into new asset classes, building partnerships with 3rd party platforms, and managing sponsor relationships with asset management firms. Prior to joining Avantax, Peter was Senior Vice President of Product Risk Management, and Corporate Supervision for LPL Financial. In this role he had direct governance oversite of LPL‘s $750+ billion product platform of alternatives investments, mutual funds and annuities. Peter was on the Board of LPL’s Political Action Committee, a member of the firm’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion council, led Employee Resource Groups and was a mentor to many employees. With international experience at Franklin Templeton and Russell Investments, Peter led the product development and/or governance functions in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia and the Americas. His responsibilities included overall global product strategy, planning, pricing, governance, and reporting. Peter developed his customer-first mindset in a variety of leadership positions in sales, marketing, client retention and operations at Franklin Templeton, Charles Schwab and Wells Fargo Securities. Peter holds a B.A. in economics from the University of California, Berkeley, and a MBA from the University of San Francisco. He is FINRA licensed 7, 24 and 63 and is a Certified Regulatory and Compliance Professional from Georgetown University. Outside of work, Peter mentors student athletes at the University of California, Berkeley where he competed on the track team, captaining his senior year.
Justin Schwartz is an Executive Director of Product Management in Wealth Management Services at DTCC where he manages AIP, the Alternative Investment Products platform. Justin has been working on AIP for the past 12 years and has been at DTCC for 19 years where he has held product and relationship management roles to advance processing and automation services for corporate actions, derivatives, insurance, equities and alternative investments. Justin received a B.A from the University of Virginia and an M.S. in Finance from Northeastern University. He is active on many alternative investment industry groups including the IPA Technology, Innovation and Operations Committee, NICSA Alternative Investment Committee, SIFMA AMG Alternative Investment Operations Forum, DCALTA Implementation & Operations Committee; Justin also chairs the AIP Roundtable.
Michael P. Sealy is Chief Strategy Officer for Sealy & Company. He is responsible for growing Sealy’s market position, the design and launch of new investment products, and other strategic initiatives. Michael directly oversees the raising of capital for the company’s investment vehicles to achieve the company’s investment goals. He has established and maintains industry, business, and capital relationships with strategic partners to generate ongoing deal flow. During his tenure at Sealy, Michael has also served as Vice President of Construction & Development. In this role, he was directly responsible for managing all components of the development and construction process from conception to final closeout. Mr.Sealy was also responsible for tenant and capital improvement activities, site selection, client/partner relations, master land planning, the formation of association documentation, project budgeting, and land dispositions. Michael also expanded, documented, and digitized all construction management policies and procedures to ensure Sealy’s industry-leading standards are applied consistently and efficiently across the platform. Mr. Sealy graduated from Southern Methodist University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics. He is a member of the North Texas Commercial Association of Realtors, Real Estate Counsel, a board member of the Folsom Institute for Real Estate – Southern Methodist University, and is actively pursuing his CCIM designation. He is a member of Sealy’s Investment Committee and the Sealy Strategic Equity Partners Management Committee. In addition to his responsibilities within the firm, Michael manages ventures in a variety of industries, such as oil and gas, internet marketing, and residential lot development, on behalf of Sealy principals.
Chris Shaw is the Vice President for multiple clients and business areas within SS&C. In this role, Chris leads the strategic relationship and operational support for clients in the retail alternative and direct participation program markets. He is responsible for all aspects of the client relationship including the strategic direction of the servicing model supporting his clients’ various initiatives relative to current industry trends. Chris joined SS&C through the DST Systems, Inc. acquisition. He joined DST in 1993 as a unit manager, working his way up through the organization he has successfully managed the DST SalesConnect product and various client models including: retail, broker distributed, bank, institutional and proprietary fund models. Chris received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Economics from the University of Kansas, Lawrence. He has served as a member of the NICSA Transfer Agency Committee and Chairman of the IPA Operations Committee. He is a current member of the IPA Operations Committee, the DTCC AIP Client Executive Board and the NICSA Alternative Investments Committee.
Brad Sussman leads new product development and manager research for the Alternative Investment Group at Raymond James. Prior to joining Raymond James, Mr. Sussman led new product development and strategy for Cowen Investment Management, a strategic investor in alternative investment managers. Before Cowen, Mr. Sussman was a Managing Director at Merrill Lynch, where he was a voting member of the Alternative Investments Investment Committee, co-headed hedge fund due diligence and led non-traditional mutual fund due diligence. Prior to Merrill Lynch, Mr. Sussman was a Portfolio Manager at Ivy Asset Management for over a decade and was responsible for managing $3.5 billion across 18 hedge fund of funds portfolios. At Ivy, he also served as a member of the Investment Risk Management Committee and Product Development Team. Before Ivy, Mr. Sussman worked as Vice President of Research for Bear Hunter Specialists. He began his career as a Financial Advisor Associate at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., where he serviced accounts for high net worth individuals, families, foundations, trusts and pension funds. He received a BA in Political Science from Yale, and is a CFA and CAIA Charter Holder.
Dallas Whitaker is the chief executive officer and a co-founder of Carter Exchange, a national real estate investment and management company that sponsors institutional-quality real estate exchange programs that are intended to qualify for tax deferral under Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code. Mr. Whitaker is responsible for strategic day to day leadership of the company and establishing long range goals, strategies, plans and policies.. He is also a co-founder and shareholder of Carter Multifamily. Mr. Whitaker has a 37-year career in commercial real estate participating in over $8 billion of acquisitions, development, leasing and capital raising activities. His expertise comprises a range of investment advisory experience, risk capital management, investment fund formations, and commercial property services. From January 2015 to November 2018, Mr. Whitaker served in various capacities as a senior executive with Carter Validus, a Tampa, Florida-based sponsor of public and private real estate investment programs with assets under management, at its peak, totaling over $4 billion in the data center and healthcare sectors. In his roles at Carter Validus, which included Chief Portfolio Manager, Senior Vice President and Chief Investment Officer of CV Data Center Growth & Income Fund, Mr. Whitaker’s responsibilities included overseeing acquisitions, portfolio leasing, new fund formations and supporting fundraising efforts for its $3 billion capital raise. In 2017, he co-founded Carter Multifamily, a sponsor of multifamily investment programs headquartered in Tampa, Florida. In 2007, he founded Greystone Equity LLC., a commercial real estate investment and advisory firm with investments in the office, industrial, data center and multifamily sectors. Previously, from 2000 to 2007, he served as a Senior Vice President with Colonial Properties Trust, a publicly traded, mixed-use focused REIT where he was a key member of an executive management team that built a 20 million square foot office and mixed-use property portfolio through development, mergers and individual acquisitions. Prior to Colonial, Mr. Whitaker spent the first half of his career focused on leasing, development, brokerage and property management working with regional and national real estate investment and development firms JMB Realty Corporation, Carter & Associates and Daniel Corporation. Additionally, Mr. Whitaker currently serves on the board of directors of ADISA and has been very active in various industry associations including serving on the board of directors and as chapter president of NAIOP, CCIM and the Real Estate Investment Council of Tampa Bay. He is a licensed real estate broker in Florida and Alabama, holds the Certified Commercial Investment Member designation and obtained a bachelor’s degree from Furman University.
Patrick Willis is a Managing Director of Blue Owl and Head of Private Wealth Strategic Partnerships for Blue Owl Securities. Mr. Willis joined Owl Rock in 2016 and leads the group responsible for managing the firm’s strategic distribution partnerships and platforms across Blue Owl’s private wealth business. Prior to joining Blue Owl, Mr. Willis served in various fund management and distribution roles at CNL Financial Group across multiple product verticals. Prior to joining CNL, Mr. Willis was Director of Finance for Core Realty, Inc. Mr. Willis received a B.A. in English and Philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania, Magna Cum Laude, with Distinction in Philosophy, and a Certificate in Finance and Accounting from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Willis maintains Series 7, Series 24 and Series 63 registrations.
Kate joined LPL Financial in July 2017 and is currently Senior Vice President, Investment Product Management and Retirement Partners. Kate is responsible for the strategic vision and day to day management of the Mutual Fund, 529, ETF, TAMP Product offering, the Alternative Investments business unit, and other firm-wide initiatives including M&A Activity, Reg BI, DOL, Secure 2.0 and State Fiduciary Rules. Kate brings 20+ years of experience and a diverse background in financial services with roles across operations, compliance, branch supervision, investment product management and advisory platform management. Prior to her current role, Kate was at MetLife Securities and MML Investors Service as Director of Product Management. Before that she worked for Lincoln Financial for 12 years in various roles. Kate received a BA in Finance from Belmont Abbey College, certificate from the Securities Industry Institute at The Wharton School and holds FINRA Series 7, 24 and 66 Registrations.
