RobertDouglas Adds Two Senior Investment Bankers to Los Angeles Office
Los Angeles – February 26, 2013 – Investment banking services firm RobertDouglas is pleased to announce that it has added two senior investment bankers, Stephen O'Connor and Chris Ropko, to its new Los Angeles office in Century City. O'Connor and Ropko will play a key role in originating, underwriting and executing lodging transactions from coast to coast.
"Stephen and Chris are tremendous additions to our firm," said Rob Stiles, a co-founder of RobertDouglas. "They each possess the experience, intellect, energy, and integrity that we expect will be the hallmark of every one of our team members."
Stephen O'Connor, Managing Director and Principal, Member of the Board of Managers
Prior to joining RobertDouglas, O'Connor was a Senior Director of Cushman & Wakefield's Equity Debt & Structured Finance Global Hospitality Group, based in Los Angeles. With Cushman & Wakefield and its predecessor company, Sonnenblick-Goldman, O'Connor completed more than $3 billion in real estate transactions, located throughout North America and the Caribbean, representing a variety of structures that include dispositions, debt financings and equity recapitalizations in both single asset and portfolio transactions.
Earlier, he worked at HVS International in San Francisco where he appraised more than $1 billion of lodging assets and land. He received a Master of Management in Hospitality degree from the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Dartmouth College.
Chris Ropko, Director
Ropko was most recently a Portfolio Manager at PIMCO where he focused on sourcing, structuring, negotiating and executing public and private commercial real estate transactions across the capital structure, primarily through the BRAVO family of fund vehicles. While at PIMCO, Ropko evaluated more than $15 billion of investment opportunities involving CMBS, performing, sub- and non-performing loan portfolios, mezzanine loans, preferred equity and direct equity investments secured by all major property types, including hospitality assets.
Prior to joining PIMCO, Ropko was an Associate at Goldman Sachs in the Real Estate Principal Investment Area focused on acquisitions and asset management. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel Administration with a concentration in Real Estate and Finance from the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration. He is registered with FINRA as a Series 7 General Securities Representative.
"We are focused on putting our clients, as well as investors and lenders, at the heart of our business," comments Doug Hercher, a co-founder of RobertDouglas. "We know from experience that building a truly client-focused firm means starting with the best players, which is why we are so excited to have Stephen and Chris onboard."
About RobertDouglas
RobertDouglas is a real estate investment banking firm with offices in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, and Nashville that specializes in the sale, financing, and equity capitalization of hotel, resort, and gaming properties throughout North America. Founded in January 2013 and currently led by its four partners, Rob Stiles, Doug Hercher, Stephen O'Connor, and Evan Hurd, RobertDouglas offers access to exceptional domestic and international institutional investor and lender relationships as it combines the capital markets sophistication of top-tier investment banks with diligent hotel underwriting and proven asset management experience.
For more information, contact info@robert‐douglas.com or go to www.robert-douglas.com.
Douglas Hercher
Managing Director & Principal
+1 (212) 993-7424
