Formida Capital, a real estate capital solutions provider, announced its official launch today. Backed by funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. (“Oaktree”), Formida offers flexible solutions across the entire capital stack, providing debt, mezzanine financing, and equity for real estate projects throughout the U.S. The company is led by President Wade Hundley, formerly CEO of Starwood/TPG-backed venture ST Residential. Hundley is joined by Jeffrey Giudice, Managing Partner and Head of Lending, who leads the firm’s direct lending business. Giudice brings extensive experience from his recent role as Managing Director and Head of the West Coast office for Ladder Capital. Additionally, Formida has brought Jordan Kirkbride on as Managing Director of the Loan Originations team, who joined from CBRE and Hodges Ward Elliott, where he spent six years advising on hospitality debt.
Established with a focus on the middle-market sector, Formida addresses critical debt and equity needs across the commercial real estate spectrum, combining the reliability of institutional capital with the agility and responsiveness of a private investor.
“With Formida, we see significant opportunities across a wide spectrum of categories in the high-growth U.S. markets. The need to recapitalize assets is immense, given the unprecedented and drastic repricing,” said John Brady, Oaktree’s Global Head of Real Estate. “Due to the extended pullback in lending by regional and community banks, there’s an opportunity for Formida to bridge the gaps by offering both debt and equity solutions.”
Formida’s core offerings include direct lending, bank capital solutions, and special situations. Direct lending options encompass fixed- and floating-rate loans on transitional/value-added business plans secured by all asset classes across all U.S. markets. Loans range from $5 million to over $75 million, specializing in higher leverage stretch senior financing (up to 85%+ LTV), selective mezzanine loans, preferred equity, and participating debt.
“Launching Formida presents a unique opportunity to fill the void of smart institutional capital for higher leverage middle-market deals at a time when borrowers are experiencing one of the largest value resets we’ve seen in recent years,” said Giudice. “As a private provider of debt and equity capital with institutional backing, Formida aims to bridge this gap.”
With a balance sheet lending approach, Formida holds all investments in-house, eliminating reliance on securitization or third-party partnerships, ensuring direct alignment with client goals and surety of execution. Every transaction—from origination to asset management—is managed internally, providing clients with a seamless experience and exceptional service. Formida’s relationship with Oaktree and its deep capabilities and trusted relationships across all aspects of the real estate debt and equity investment markets allow Formida to lend intelligently into some of the most challenging market sectors.
Formida will partner with regional and community banks and financial institutions, extending lending capabilities through co-lending, creating white-labeled loan products, and offering balance sheet de-risking solutions.
“Middle-market commercial developers and real estate owners have historically relied on community and regional banks to fund quality projects. That lifeline has dried up,” said Hundley. “These banks and their borrowers are grappling with increased cap rates and significantly higher interest rates. This creates an opportunity for Formida to help these banks retain their borrowers and for developers to sustain their projects by providing essential capital.”
Formida will engineer creative solutions for owners, developers, and operators in high-growth markets across the breadth of real estate classes. For example, “Formida will go beyond standard offerings, providing hotel owners with the resources needed to fuel growth and address specific financial pressures,” said Kirkbride. Because of Hundley’s prior experience at ST Residential, Formida also brings an unmatched understanding of luxury residential and condominium capital. Developers and property owners can work with Formida to meet the unique structural demands of the luxury real estate market.
For more information about Formida and its comprehensive real estate capital solutions, please visit Formida.com.
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