Akemi Tanaka, Principal

Ms. Tanaka has over 20 years of experience in credit, real estate finance, securitization, fund structuring, private banking and asset management. Senior positions held include establishing the Japanese subsidiary of Redwood Trust, a real estate investment firm in the US. Ms. Tanaka has been an active member of the Japanese financial sector for 20 years, holding senior positions at broker dealers, commercial banks, investment managers and other financial institutions. Former employers include Tokyo Star Bank, Fidelity Investments, UBS, PaineWebber, Shinsei Bank, Morgan Stanley, Bear Stearns, and ORIX. Ms. Tanaka has been involved in raising capital for private placement real estate private equity limited partnerships, securitization products, mutual funds, and tailor-made vehicles for high net worth individuals. Ms. Tanaka has a BA in Law from Keio University, Tokyo. 

 

Akihiro Iisaka, Principal

Mr. Iisaka has a diverse background in the financial markets, ranging from structured finance product management, quantitative analysis, fixed income and equity arbitrage trading, and risk management.  Mr. Iisaka previously held senior positions with Redwood Trust Japan, Tokyo Star Bank, Bear Stearns, Aozora Bank, Lehman Brothers, Salomon Brothers, and Mitsubishi Bank.   Mr. Iisaka has an MS in Information Technologies from Shinshu University, Nagano, and a BS in Applied Mathematics and Physics from Kyoto University.

 

Mari Kawawa, Principal 

Ms. Kawawa has over 15 years of experience in real estate finance, securitization, fund structuring, derivatives and asset management in New York, San Francisco, and Tokyo. Senior positions held include Managing Director at real estate investment firm Redwood Trust (RWT), Managing Director in financial structures at asset management company Invesco, and Managing Director in structured credit products at Banc of America Securities. Other prior employers include UBS, PaineWebber, Nomura, and PriceWaterhouse. Ms. Kawawa has an MBA from Stanford University Graduate School of Business, and a BA in English from Sophia University, Tokyo.

 

Yuri Okabe, Principal 

Ms. Okabe has over 20 years of experience in real estate finance, securitization, fund structuring, hedge funds, private equity and private banking. Ms. Okabe has been an active member of the Japanese financial sector for 20 years, holding senior sales and marketing positions at broker dealers and commercial banks that including PaineWebber, Prudential Securities, Manufacturer Hanover, Barings Securities  and Citicorp Securities .  Ms. Okabe has also been involved in the private banking sector advising private investors on asset management and portfolio construction while at Citicorp Securities. Since 2005, Ms. Okabe has been involved in financial and venture incubation, private wealth investment advice, and management of celebrities. She is currently director for the monthly magazine “Ryori Tsushin”.