Ivan Kaufman serves as our Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of our board of directors. Mr. Kaufman has extensive experience operating a diverse array of companies that spans four decades and numerous cycles. He is the Founder, Chairman, President and CEO of Arbor Realty Trust, Inc. (“ART”), a non-affiliate of our Company that is a leading multifamily and commercial real estate lender and real estate investment trust, which he took public in 2004. In addition, Mr. Kaufman is the Founder and CEO of Arbor Commercial Mortgage, LLC (“ACM”), an affiliate of our Company that is a multifamily finance company that Mr. Kaufman established in 1995. In 2016, ART formally acquired the agency lending platform of ACM. Mr. Kaufman was also the founder of Arbor National Holdings, Inc. (“ANH”), ACM’s predecessor, and of its lending subsidiary, Arbor Mortgage, Inc., which he created in 1983. ANH became publicly traded in 1992 and was sold to Bank of America in 1995. Mr. Kaufman earned a Bachelor of Arts in business administration from Boston University.

Kevin Slawin serves as our Chief Strategy Officer and is a member of our board of directors. Dr. Kevin Slawin, M.D. is the Founder and Managing Partner at RCM. He is an experienced oncologic and robotic surgeon, biotech consultant, investor and founder of technology businesses focused on oncology, T cells and immunotherapy, among other breakthrough healthcare technologies. Dr. Slawin founded Bellicum Pharmaceuticals, Inc., which he took public in 2014. He also plays a guiding role in several investments managed by RCM. He serves on the board of directors of 3DBio Therapeutics, Inc., FIZE Medical, Inc., K2 Biolabs, LLC, Miami Medicos, LLC and Demeetra AgBio, Inc. In 2020, Dr. Slawin served as a board member and interim CEO of AsclepiX Therapeutics, Inc., where he helped steer their Series A financing round. Dr. Slawin earned a Bachelor of Arts in Biochemistry from Columbia University, and an M.D. from Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Paul Elenio serves as our Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Elenio also currently serves as the Chief Financial Officer of ART, a position he has held since 2005. Mr. Elenio joined ANH, the predecessor company of ACM, in 1991. Throughout his tenure at ACM, Mr. Elenio has held the positions of Vice President, Controller, Vice President of Finance, and Senior Vice President, Finance. As Chief Financial Officer of ART, Mr. Elenio is responsible for overseeing all aspects of its financial operations, including financial reporting, tax planning, budgeting, the appropriate utilization of its capital, as well as its investor relations. Prior to joining ACM, Mr. Elenio was employed in Ernst & Young’s auditing department from 1989 to 1990. Mr. Elenio earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from St. Bonaventure University.

William Connolly serves as our Secretary and Vice President. Mr. Connolly also currently serves as the Executive Vice President & Special Counsel at ART. Mr. Connolly joined ART in 2007 and works with ART’s Chairman and other executives in structuring and implementing its various strategic and corporate initiatives. He is also responsible for managing and negotiating significant transactions while ensuring coordination between third parties and the many departments across ART. In addition, he directs legal management of loan originations; asset purchases and sales; asset management activities, including loan restructuring and workouts; and collateralized loan obligation (CLO) structures. Prior to joining ART, Mr. Connolly was an associate at Kelley Drye & Warren LLP. Preceding that role, he was an associate at Kaye Scholer LLP. Mr. Connolly earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Government from the University of Notre Dame and a Juris Doctor from Fordham University School of Law.

John Natalone serves as our treasurer. Since 2008, Mr. Natalone also has served as the Executive Vice President — Treasury and Servicing at ART, where he is responsible for managing all of ART’s financing and banking relationships. In addition, he oversees ART’s Treasury and Servicing operations and is a member of its loan committee. Mr. Natalone joined ANH, and held the title of Senior Director, Office of the President from 1991 to 1995, in which he assisted ANH’s President in running various business units. Prior to joining ART, Mr. Natalone held positions at GE Mortgage and Ernst & Young. Mr. Natalone earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Pennsylvania State University and is a Certified Public Accountant.

Mr. Walker currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of The Dibble Group, an insurance brokerage and consulting firm he founded in 2018. From January 2000, he worked in several roles at Nemco Group, LLC — an insurance brokerage and consulting firm — including as its Co-Chief Executive Officer until April 2012, when it was acquired by a subsidiary of NFP Corp. Mr. Walker also founded and served as Chief Executive Officer of OSI Benefits, an insurance brokerage consulting firm from 1995 to January 2000. Mr. Walker serves as a board member of: NFP Corp., an insurance broker and consultant providing specialized property and casualty, corporate benefits, retirement, and individual solutions; APi Group, a service provider of safety, specialty, and industrial services; and Houlihan Lokey, Inc., a publicly held, global investment banking firm. Mr. Walker earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Economy from Colorado College. We believe Mr. Walker’s lengthy and comprehensive experience in the investment banking field make him well qualified to serve on our board of directors.

Mr. Modlin is a self-made executive who made his mark on the Manhattan real estate industry by age twenty seven. Mr. Modlin currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of A. Modlin Consulting, a consulting agency he founded in 2015. In 2000, Mr. Modlin co-founded and served as Chief Executive Officer of The Modlin Group, a boutique real estate firm located in New York City. Before leading The Modlin group, Mr. Modlin held the position of Senior Vice President of a private real estate firm which owned and managed multi-family assets in New York and Florida. Previously, Mr. Modlin held senior positions at The Carlton Group and Haves, Pine and Seligman honing his experience in capitalizing commercial real estate with debt and equity. Additionally, Mr. Modlin has provided noted developers with consulting services in the areas of finance, development and management. Mr. Modlin couples his professional successes with active community and charitable work. He has served as Deputy Mayor and Trustee of Saddle Rock Village in Nassau County, New York, Chairman of the Board and President of the North Shore Hebrew Academy and Treasurer of the Great Neck Synagogue.

Mr. Mack currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman of Sightly Enterprises, Inc., a marketing and media technology company, focused on digital video advertising and analytics. For the past 28 years, Mr. Mack has invested in many startups, a majority of which are technology companies and many of which are digital marketing technology companies. He worked on Wall Street for 23 years where he brought companies public, raised debt capital and sold high yield bonds at Bear Stearns and Prudential Securities. Mr. Mack currently sits on the advisory board of Lead Edge Capital, a venture capital and private equity firm. From January 2012 to September 2019, Mr. Mack served as a board member of OneSpot, a marketing technology company, and prior to that, from April 2014 to December 2018, Mr. Mack served as a board member of Welcome Commerce, a SaaS company offering eCommerce solutions. Mr. Mack earned a Bachelor of Science in Economics with majors in Finance and Entrepreneurial Management from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, as well as an MBA from the Stern School of Business at New York University.