Founder, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
Richard S. Hollander is the Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of MetWest Ventures and MetWest Realty Advisors. Mr. Hollander began his career in 1984, running Drexel Burnham Lambert’s West Coast investment grade fixed-income division, which oversaw all real estate and mortgage-related activities in addition to covering all West Coast banks and financial institutions. In order to capitalize on the opportunities present in the real estate market, Mr. Hollander left Drexel in 1989, forming The Signature Group. In 1992, he launched Metropolitan West Financial (now MetWest Ventures), an asset management and investment management platform based on the acquisition of the securities lending operations from Bank of America. Under Mr. Hollander’s leadership, MetWest Ventures nurtured the development of several financial and investment advisory companies, with a combined AUM of $80 billion. These companies specialized in a wide range of investment management services, including core fixed-income, value equity (both domestic and international), securities lending, corporate high yield, and distressed debt.
Mr. Hollander earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from Ithaca College and completed his Master’s degree in Finance at St. John’s University, where he was later awarded an honorary doctorate. He is a Honorary Trustee of the Skirball Cultural Center.