Vessel Technologies Establishes Powerhouse Advisory Board
Taps former Fannie Mae CEO Hugh Frater, other business leaders
to join its mission to reshape the failed housing economy
New York, NY – (August 2, 2022) – Vessel Technologies, the innovative, user-centric housing product developer, has attracted established leaders from the worlds of finance, real estate, and industry to advise the company in its drive to transform the nation’s troubled housing economy. Chaired by Hugh Frater, the former Fannie Mae CEO and a co-founder of BlackRock, Inc., Vessel’s Advisory Board shares the company’s commitment to revolutionizing the way in which homes are designed, manufactured, financed, and operated, so that each person has an equal opportunity for an extraordinary life.
In addition to Frater, Vessel Technologies Advisory Board members include: David Brickman, CEO, NewPoint Real Estate Capital and former CEO of Freddie Mac; Keith Anderson, also a BlackRock Co-Founder, and former Soros CIO; Brad Bernstein, Managing Partner, FTV Capital; Jonathan Bilzin, Co-CEO of Towerbrook Capital; David Blitzer, Founder & Co-Chairman, Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment; Mark Booth, former Chairman & CEO, NetJets Europe and MTV Europe; Jonathan Fascitelli, CEO of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment Real Estate (HBSE Real Estate); Matt Harris, Partner, Bain Capital Ventures; Jonathan Mechanic, Chairman, Real Estate Practice, Fried Frank; Ben Nickoll, Managing Partner, El Faro Partners; and, Gregory Rush, Founder & Managing Partner, Scarp Ridge Capital Partners.
“The opportunity for this great group of respected leaders to help shape what Vessel has created as a practical, innovative solution for our challenged multifamily housing economy is truly exciting,” said Advisory Board Chairman Frater. “One of our nation’s biggest challenges is housing affordability and especially rental housing affordable to those of moderate incomes who do not benefit from the subsidies provided to low and very low-income renters. I believe Vessel has the potential to address many of the challenges of creating affordable, equitable housing by looking holistically at the entire value chain in both manufacturing and operations and in so doing save money for renters. I’m honored to work with this talented, experienced team of thought leaders to support Vessel Technologies in changing the world for the better.”
Neil Rubler, Vessel Technologies Founder & CEO, said “Vessel’s mission is super ambitious, and I needed a dream team of the most brilliant minds around to help us navigate the challenges ahead. Every one of our Board members shares our commitment to finding a solution to the global housing affordability crisis. They’re all in.”
Vessel Technologies is a mission-driven housing product company focused on partnering with ‘hometowns’ to deliver aspirational homes for the “missing middle,” those who earn too much to qualify for subsidized housing and too little for current ‘market-rate’ options. Leveraging strategies borrowed from exceptional consumer product development companies, Vessel’s unique design incorporates the latest software-enabled technologies, sustainable building materials, and elegant aesthetics in apartments accessible to hard-working community members. Each Vessel property is operated by someone from the community – a vested Caretaker – who is trained and empowered to forge a career in the service of their communities and a pathway to economic opportunity for themselves and their families.
About Vessel Technologies Advisory Board Members
· Chairman: Hugh Frater - A former CEO of both Berkadia Commercial Mortgage and Fannie Mae, Frater is focused on the intersection of housing, finance, and social impact. He was a founding partner and served as Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc., which has grown to become the world’s largest asset manager. As CEO and Board Member of Fannie Mae, one of the world’s largest financial institutions, he led the company through the pandemic and championed the company’s efforts to make our housing financing system more equitable.
Currently, Frater is a Principal and Advisory Board Chairman at Shift Capital, LLC, and a Board Member at Hippo Holdings Inc. A Dartmouth College graduate with an MBA in finance from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business, where he serves on the Board of Overseers and is a member of the Real Estate Forum.
· David Brickman – Formerly CEO of Freddie Mac, Brickman is CEO of NewPoint Real Estate Capital and Executive Chairman of Meridian Capital Group, a leading commercial real estate services firm. He is also a senior advisor to real estate and financial services private equity firm Stone Point Capital. As CEO of Freddie Mac, one of the nation’s largest mortgage financing providers - where he also served as President and a Board Member and spent most of his career - Brickman led the $2 trillion company through transformative innovations in affordable and workforce housing offerings. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University, he was a professional lecturer at George Washington University, adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University, and is a non-resident Fellow at the Urban Institute.
· Keith Anderson – Prior to