Lender Lounge with Kevin Kim
The podcast that gives an exclusive look beyond the title of private lending industry leaders.
Lender Lounge with Kevin Kim
Latest Episode
From Brokers to Balance Sheet Lenders: The Dynamo Capital Story
Matt Medrano and Justin Rocheleau, co-founders of Dynamo Capital, join Kevin Kim live at Fortra Con in Las Vegas to discuss their rapid rise as a Midwest-based private lender. Starting from residential mortgage and brokerage backgrounds, the duo share how frustrations with traditional lending channels led them to launch their own fund and build a balance sheet lending business. They unpack their evolution from brokering deals to becoming a direct lender, the challenges of operating in overlooked Midwest markets, and their philosophy around autonomy, disciplined underwriting, and borrower relationships. The conversation also explores team building, market expansion, and maintaining consistency while scaling a fast-growing lending platform.
From Brokers to Balance Sheet Lenders: The Dynamo Capital Story
Matt Medrano and Justin Rocheleau, co-founders of Dynamo Capital, join Kevin Kim live at Fortra Con in Las Vegas to discuss their rapid rise as a Midwest-based private lender. Starting from residential mortgage and brokerage backgrounds, the duo share how frustrations with traditional lending channels led them to launch their own fund and build a balance sheet lending business. They unpack their evolution from brokering deals to becoming a direct lender, the challenges of operating in overlooked Midwest markets, and their philosophy around autonomy, disciplined underwriting, and borrower relationships. The conversation also explores team building, market expansion, and maintaining consistency while scaling a fast-growing lending platform.
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Meet the Host
Kevin Kim, Esq.
Kevin Kim is a Partner with Fortra Law and leads the firm's corporate & securities practice. His expertise lies in fund formation, private placements, and other securities offerings for private lenders, real estate developers, and investors of all sizes. Kevin and his team have advised and prepared hundreds of securities offerings including mortgage funds, structured debt offerings, real estate syndications, crowdfunding offerings, EB-5 projects, and Qualified Opportunity Funds. Kevin's passion lies in serving his clients as a pragmatic advisor focusing on real world solutions.
Kevin is also a nationally recognized expert in mortgage fund formation. Kevin is the lead instructor for the American Association of Private Lender’s Certified Fund Manager courses, where he teaches mortgage fund managers throughout the United States on fund management and securities laws.
Kevin hosts the podcast Lender Lounge with Kevin Kim, where he interviews industry leaders, friends, and colleagues in the private lending space to learn what makes them tick.
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Previous Episodes
Special LIVE Episode | Mid-Year Outlook with Daren Blomquist & Rick Sharga
The Lender Lounge with Kevin Kim podcast hosted a special livestream featuring industry legends Daren Blomquist, VP of Market Economics at Auction.com and Rick Sharga, Executive Vice President at ATTOM.
Watch the recording of May 18th LIVE episode and hear these industry leaders’ thoughts on housing demand, build to rent, interest rates, inflation, and everyone’s favorite doomsday question: is a recession coming?
Renaissance Man | Dennis Baranowski, Fortra Law
Dennis Baranowski, renowned as The Beard and The Wise One, brings his multi-faceted expertise to the forefront on Season 2’s Finale. A powerhouse in banking and finance, the Fortra Law Partner reveals his mastery in litigation, foreclosure, TCPA, and bankruptcy. As a special treat, Kevin poses questions from some of Dennis’ cherished clients. Don’t miss this episode filled with insights, laughter, and a touch of wisdom to conclude Season 2 on a high note!
The Importance of Data | Sharon Koh, 1839 Asset Management LLC
Ever wondered about the industry’s evolution towards DSCR? Industry veteran, Sharon Koh, co-founder of 1839 Asset Management, shares her insights both on the industry as a whole and 1839’s history in the space. Born in Singapore, Sharon brings over 20 years of project finance, corporate finance and treasury experience ranging from services and manufacturing industries to large scale multi-billion-dollar utility scale energy project finance to the table, making this episode a must-listen.
Deliberate Decisions | Michael Schumacher and Chris Meinhardt, Enact Partners
Michael Schumacher, President and Founder of Enact Partners, is in a league of his own. Having executed over $1 billion in commercial real estate development and investments, Michael offers invaluable perspectives on market trends and loan underwriting. This episode, filmed in Geraci’s Irvine office, focuses on the diverse backgrounds and industry wisdom that Michael and Chris Meinhardt, former U.S. Marine Corps communications officer, bring to Enact Partners.
A True Family Office | Huy Do, PrideCo Capital
While Huy Do is a widely recognized figure in the industry, this episode unveils the compelling narrative behind PrideCo and Huy’s remarkable journey. Dive into the strategic decisions that led PrideCo into the private lending sector, fueled by Huy’s infectious enthusiasm for the industry and a distinctive philosophy intertwining networking, family, and business dynamics. This episode provides a nuanced glimpse into Huy Do’s strategic insights and industry passion, making it a must-listen for those navigating the landscape of private capital.
Competitive Advantage | Dalton Elliott, Lima One Capital
Dalton Elliott, the former driving force behind Lima One Capital’s Sales and Customer Experience, joined Kevin for a rapid-fire chat in this episode. Dalton unveils Lima One’s whirlwind journey—from inception to a recent game-changing acquisition by MFA. Discover their success trifecta: a fierce “Training, Culture, and Growth” mindset. Dalton’s narrative, combined with insights from his Real Estate of Things podcast, offers a compact yet dynamic exploration into Lima One Capital’s high-speed trajectory—a strategic blend of dedication, culture, and an unquenchable thirst for growth in the competitive world of real estate financing.
Private Lending OG | Beth O’Brien, CoreVest Finance
A “Burgers, Fries, and Shakes” mentality has been the key to scaling national private lender CoreVest Finance to great heights. Beth O’Brien, Founder of CoreVest, has been obsessed with offering true cradle-to-grave lending since the company’s founding in 2011 to catapult it through periods of significant growth. In this episode, Beth discusses this consistent focus and how it continues to help the business grow.
Facilitating Deal Flow | Eric Abramovich, Roc360
Eric Abramovich, Co-Founder and CCO of Roc360, takes a trip down memory lane with Kevin, discussing the private lending industry’s evolution from Eric’s perspective and how Roc has grown right alongside it. oc’s holistic approach and drive to be a full-service capital provider to the space has led them to become one of the top lenders in the industry. Kevin and Eric also discussed the challenges in operating a business during COVID in New York.
See a Need, Fill a Need | Steven Trowern, Temple View Capital
Maintaining a startup mentality can work wonders for business growth. Steven Trowern, CEO and Founder of Temple View Capital and MCM Capital, discussed Temple View’s focus on just that, including their history and growth over the years. Kevin and Steve also spent some time comparing the pandemic crisis to the global financial crisis of 2008 – and had some laughs around the TARP program of 2009.
Filling a Void in Private Lending | Rocky Butani, PrivateLenderLink.com
If you’re in the private lending industry, you probably know Rocky Butani with Private Lender Link! Rocky visited Kevin in his office before the California Mortgage Association summer seminar where they discussed the evolution of PLL and where it’s headed. Rocky lives and breathes the private lending space and, in this episode, gives a glimpse into his deep understanding of its dynamics.
Game Changer | Paul Rahimian, Parkview Financial
For this episode, Kevin interviewed Paul Rahimian, who has become a household name in the construction business, at Parkview Financials’ headquarters in West Los Angeles. Paul emphasized how he has remained true to his original thesis of creativity and capital preservation, even as he now competes with institutional lenders across the U.S.
Lend to Live | Beth Johnson & Alex Breshears, Flynn Family Lending / Lend2Live
For this episode, Kevin interviewed Beth Johnson and Alex Breshears to talk about their newest book, Lend2Live, and the story behind the book. The three discussed the industry’s dislocation, the importance of small, local lenders, and the difference between “private money lending” and “hard money lending / private lending.”
Investing in “Personnel” Assets | Justin Ehrlich, Churchill Real Estate
For this episode, Kevin interviewed Justin Ehrlich, founding partner at Churchill Real Estate. Kevin learned more about Churchill’s history as an NPL buyer and how they came to be an asset manager and capital provider to the private lending industry. Justin also dove into the story behind Churchill’s meteoric rise.
Pragmatic Mindset | Jennifer McGuinness, Invigorate Finance
For this episode, Kevin interviewed Jennifer McGuinness, President of Invigorate Finance. Kevin had a great time learning about Jennifer and how her mortgage career was actually a series of “accidents.” Invigorate Finance is a unique private lending business that serves both the consumer and business purpose lending arenas; Jennifer discusses the reasons for this strategy and her philosophy of diversification and pragmatism in approaching her business.
Operational Efficiency | Lisa Alberti and Mark Roberts, Western Alliance Bank
*NOTE: This episode was recorded in June 2022.*
Kevin was delighted to finally interview Mark Roberts and Lisa Alberti from Western Alliance Bank, a company that has become an integral part of the private lending industry. In this episode, Kevin talks to Mark and Lisa about the bank’s history, their backgrounds, and their bank’s philosophy on lender finance and line of credit. Lisa also discusses the new networking group, Women in Private Lending, and the impact a group like this will have on women in this space.
Reliable Capital | Ray Sturm, AlphaFlow
For this episode, which was recorded during the market volatility of May 2022, Ray Sturm and Kevin sat down and discussed AlphaFlow’s thesis from a technology standpoint, their philosophy when it comes to solving their customer’s challenges, and having discipline when it comes to an ever-changing market.
Special Mini Episode | Ruby Keys, Fortra Law
We’re dropping this mini episode in your feed to give some insight into Captivate, Geracicon’s upcoming private lending event. Kevin is joined by Ruby Keys, Geraci’s event extraordinaire, to discuss why it is a perfect opportunity for our listeners. Listen in to learn about the event’s capital-raising theme, nationwide attendee presence, and success stories from past years (including Kevin’s!).
Captivate will take place August 21-23, 2022 at the Encore at Wynn in Las Vegas, NV.
More info and registration can be found at our website: https://geracicon.com/captivate
Passionate Visionary | Trixy Castro, Aureus Finance Group
*NOTE: This episode was recorded in May 2022.*
We are kicking off Season 3 with none other than Trixy Castro, founder and CEO of Aureus Finance Group. We were honored to sit down with this industry legend in person and learn more about Trixy and her history as an entrepreneur founding Genesis Capital and Hudson Marshall in the early days of private lending. We learned all about her new vision for Aureus, including how she approached her re-entry into the market after taking a few years off. Trixy has achieved so much in the industry yet maintains a level of entrepreneurialism and excitement about private lending and what it stands for.