Lending Boss Departs A&E After Leadership Shakeup

Weeks after being supplanted at the top of A&E Real Estate Finance, Joseph Fingerman is exiting altogether.

The former head of A&E Real Estate’s financing arm recently left the platform, the Commercial Observer reported. He is departing alongside Zachary Bermudez, with both reportedly considering a return to the banking industry.

“Zachary and I would like to express our sincere gratitude to Douglas and the partners for providing us with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help build this business from the ground up,” Fingerman said in a statement. “I am confident that AEREF will continue to thrive and grow, thanks to the solid foundation we’ve established together.”

Earlier this month, Daniel Allen was installed as the president and chief investment officer at AEREF, replacing Fingerman as the head of the financing platform. At the time, Fingerman was said to be sticking at the firm and remained involved in all parts of the business.

“Joseph was instrumental in the successful launch of AEREF,” A&E head Douglas Eisenberg said. “Both he and Zachary are leaving the business in a strong position for continued success.”

As president of AEREF, Fingerman built a 20-person team in charge of underwriting, origination and loan servicing. AEREF originated more than $250 million worth of loans during Fingerman’s tenure in charge and the platform has another $750 million worth of loans in the pipeline.

Prior to joining AEREF in September 2023 — months before the platform’s official launch — Fingerman spent 15 years leading Signature Bank’s commercial real estate team. The bank was among the biggest financiers of rent-stabilized properties, but was seized in 2022 by regulators after depositors rushed to pull out money from the institution; Fingerman and his team at Signature were laid off shortly thereafter.

Prior to joining Signature in 2007, Fingerman led real estate lending at North Fork Bank.

— Holden Walter-Warner