D.A. Davidson expands development financing group

D.A. Davidson is expanding its real estate development finance underwriting group by hiring three professionals and starting a branch devoted to the Southeast United States.

Davidson hired Ben Vera, Matt Chorske and Jayden Thieman. Though Davidson has Southeast offices in Tennessee, Florida and Louisiana, Vera, who will be a director in the Atlanta office, will be its first development finance employee in the Southeast.

“Each of these individuals brings a unique perspective and skillset that strengthens our ability to serve clients across diverse markets,” said Kyle Thomas, managing director of the firm’s Development Finance Group. “We’re especially excited about expanding our presence in the Southeast and continuing to build out our analytical capabilities with top talent.”

The Development Finance Group specializes in providing capital for real estate development including public and private infrastructure projects, land acquisition and vertical construction through customized bond transactions. The group typically works with special districts and/or tax increment financing.

Vera was founder and managing partner of Cardinal Capital Advisors, where he advised developers on large-scale, mixed-use and master-planned commercial and residential projects. He also was vice president of the CIM Group, where he led municipal capital markets strategy and execution. 

“With recently passed legislation unlocking new special district tools and the tremendous growth occurring, it makes a lot of sense to expand and plant a flag here in the Southeast,” Vera said. “I’m looking forward to serving our great clients in this region of the country.”

Chorske will serve as a director in Colorado. He has more than 27 years of experience in structuring and executing more than $4 billion in municipal debt financings. His background includes leadership roles at US Bank, BBVA USA, and Western Alliance Bank, and serving as a banker at Piper Sandler’s Special District Group. 

“Having worked with this talented team on the buy side of the market for many years, I have long admired their commitment and highly respected reputation in this industry,” Chorske said. 

Thieman, a recent graduate of the Colorado School of Mines, will be a quantitative analyst. D.A. Davidson said her strong mathematical and analytical skillset will support the Development Finance Group’s financial modeling and transaction structuring.

There is a great deal of residential and commercial growth in the Southeast and so it makes sense for Davidson to put a local person in the area to specialize in development finance, Thomas said.