Fidelity Bancorp Funding is gearing up to expand its small-balance bridge lending platform, with the aim of raising capital from institutional and high-net-worth investors to help fill the gap as banks scale back their activity.

Charlie Woo, president of the firm’s bridge lending platform, joined Santa Ana, California-based Fidelity Bancorp this month from San Francisco-based bank Wells Fargo to spearhead an initiative that will include growing loan originations and borrower relationships as well as expanding the firm’s roster of investors. Woo will draw on his experience in the real estate finance sector, which included a long tenure as a vice-chairman in Wells Fargo’s investment bank.

“I was very active in the private credit and bridge lending sector but was more active from an M&A and capital raising standpoint. In that role, I saw an institutionalization of the capital flowing into this space,” Woo said. “The lure of doing this on the principal side was too much.”

Fidelity Bancorp Funding Inc., a leading financial institution specializing in commercial real estate, multifamily and single-family residential bridge loans and permanent financing, is pleased to announce the appointment of Charlie Woo as President of its private lending group, Fidelity Bridge Loans LLC. In this role, Woo will be responsible for expanding the companies Bridge Lending division.

Woo brings over 27 years of real estate finance experience to Fidelity Bancorp Funding Inc., most recently serving as Vice Chairman in Wells Fargo’s Corporate & Investment Banking division. His achievements at Wells Fargo includes becoming the youngest Vice Chair in the firm's history where he specialized in mergers & acquisitions, as well as debt and equity capital raises for clients across the United States. He led Wells Fargo’s U.S. regional investment banking coverage group and demonstrated remarkable results in the specialty finance and alternative lending sectors.

“Regional banks originated 62 percent of all commercial real estate loans in 2022,” said David Frosh, CEO of Fidelity Bancorp Funding. “Higher interest rates and the resulting balance sheet stress has caused these banks to tighten their purse strings which has created a significant growth opportunity for private lenders like Fidelity Bridge Loans.”

I had the good fortune of being taught by Peter Drucker while getting my MBA at Claremont University. One evening, Drucker quipped that he had been a journalist, mathematician, investment banker, economist, and a few other things before settling on writing, consulting and teaching.

He said the job he most disliked was being an economist.

The reason, he stated, was because economists were rarely right. They could tell you what happened but could almost never forecast what was going to happen. It seems I could have been a terrific economist – as I have incorrectly believed inflation and a recession were right around the corner for the past five years!

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this week that consumer prices rose at the fastest annual rate in decades. This was mostly driven by the largest government spending since World War ll. More importantly, this is untargeted spending. Instead of using the money to build assets like roads, bridges and water storage facilities, the money was dropped on people’s heads. Money supply is up 30%. So much money fell from the sky that spending has stayed strong, while savings rates are the highest in decades.