Jeff Friedman

Biography: Jeff Friedman co-founded Mesa West Capital, a commercial real estate private credit firm, with initial capital from a large real estate private equity firm and the Royal Bank of Scotland. Mesa West grew to four offices and $11 billion of AUM and was sold to Morgan Stanley in 2018. Mr. Friedman was co-chief executive officer until 2023 and subsequently transitioned to Senior Advisor and remained on the Investment Committee until October 2024. Prior to Mesa West, Mr. Friedman spent three years at Maguire Partners, a large real estate development firm, where he was a Principal and in charge of capital market activities which included debt restructurings, property recapitalizations and the firm’s eventual $800 million IPO and NYSE listing in June 2003. Mr. Friedman transitioned into commercial real estate finance in 1994, as a loan originator at a subsidiary of Nomura Securities and in 1996 as a Director at Credit Suisse First Boston, both in New York. Mr. Friedman began his career in 1988 as a corporate lawyer, working initially in Tokyo for an affiliate of Sidley & Austin and subsequently in New York for Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. Mr. Friedman graduated with a B.A. from the University of California, Los Angeles and a J.D. and M.A. in Applied Economics from the University of Michigan. Mr. Friedman is on the Board of Trustees of Peakstone Realty Trust, serves on the UCLA Urban Planning Department Real Estate Industry Advisory Committee, which is tasked with creating a Masters in Real Estate Development program, and co-created Project Awareness for the Mortgage Bankers Association, an outreach program by industry professionals at HBCUs and other colleges serving underrepresented students. He is also actively involved in Urban Land Institute, including as a member of a Product Council.