MBA Hosts CREF Emerging Tech Roundtable

Twenty individuals representing technology firms and companies leveraging technology to finance commercial real estate, met virtually Wednesday, January 13th.

The inaugural meeting included traditional and emerging players in the commercial real estate finance ecosystem whose focus includes emerging technology or a creative leveraging of existing technologies in their business model. The group serves as an informal engagement forum for commercial real estate finance service providers to share ideas, compare notes and develop best practices.

Jack Cohen, Chief Executive Officer, Dark Knight Ventures, LLC moderated roundtable discussion between members while MBA staff actively listened to get a better understanding of common pain points and where the industry is heading in terms of emerging technology. (Click here for Roundtable Directory).

Given all the shifts taking place from COVID-19, many of which we can’t fully understand or articulate at this point, the CRE finance industry’s relationship with emerging technologies is sure to be impacted in various ways across different parts of the ecosystem whether it be by capital source or functional area.

As always–but particularly important during industry inflection points–there is a need for and capacity of trade associations to help spur innovation and evolution. This is true for the CRE finance industry today and its ability to effectively provide useful products and services to customers in a rapidly shifting environment. The need can be met through nurturing startups bringing new ideas to market, highlighting mature firms that leverage their economies of scale to create products that sustain or build a competitive advantage or educating members broadly on trends and new developments.

To learn more or add a representative from your firm to future roundtable activities, please contact Andrew Foster or Kelli Burke.