Paul N. Arena is the Founder and President of Venturi Capital Advisors, Inc. (“VCA”). A senior executive with an aggregate 21 years of experience in real estate, for the last nine years Mr. Arena has focused almost exclusively on private equity real estate, fund and entity-level private placements and structured finance transactions within the alternative investments space.
Prior to founding VCA, Mr. Arena was a Principal with Atlantic-Pacific Capital, Inc. in Greenwich, Connecticut, where he headed the real estate directs team. In this role he was responsible for the origination and placement of real estate private equity funds and direct private placements. During his tenure, he originated a number of prominent GPs, and a pipeline of directs transactions valued in excess of several billion dollars (USD).
Before joining Atlantic-Pacific Capital, Mr. Arena was a Senior Vice President in the Advisory Services division of The Carlton Group where he originated and placed equity for real estate projects and funds. During his tenure with Carlton, Mr. Arena transacted in excess of US$10 Billion of real estate capital markets and structured finance transactions, including entity-level fundraisings, joint venture and preferred equity positions and senior, mezzanine and interim debt financings.
Noteworthy transactions on which Mr. Arena has worked include:
- The USD315 million equity and debt acquisition financing of 311 South Wacker Drive, Chicago, IL;
- The USD780 million recapitalization of The Sears Tower, Chicago, IL
- The USD153 million acquisition financing of The Starrett Lehigh Building, New York, NY
- The USD132 million sale of the Gotham Hospitality Portfolio, New York, NY
- The USD85 million debt financing for 260/261 Madison Avenue, New York, NY
Prior to joining Carlton, Mr. Arena was Managing Director and then Chief Operating Officer at Strategic Resources Corporation, where, among his numerous roles, he was responsible for institutional fundraising for an offshore-domiciled real estate opportunity fund operated by the manager with AUM of approximately US$500 million. During his tenure, he and his team effectively tripled shareholder equity in the fund.
Mr. Arena has also held senior C-level positions at Grubb & Ellis and Newmark/Knight Frank, two global real estate services providers. He began his real estate career in acquisitions and investment research and strategy at NYNEX Properties Company, the development arm of the former Regional Bell Operating Company (RBOC).
Mr. Arena’s success in the private equity real estate space emanates from the strong ongoing relationships he continues to cultivate with leading managers and real estate operators globally.
Mr. Arena earned his BA, MA and PhD (ABD) in Economics from Fordham University in New York City. He currently holds the NASD/FINRA Series 63 registrations, and is also a licensed real estate Salesperson in the State of New York.