Choosing the most influential rainmakers in the commercial real estate industry is not an easy task even in the best of times. Our criteria is to look for the men and women that have delivered something new, structured a highly-complex deal or introduced a change that bettered a process or transaction. But making those choices during a pandemic, when dealmaking has collapsed, investors are sitting on the sidelines and tenants and landlords are in disarray? The selection process becomes downright difficult. Anyone, it seems to us, who can cut a deal in these times is deserving of the title. However as we went through the nominations we were more struck than ever with the grit, expertise and dedication of the people in this particular slice of the CRE industry. Despite the paralysis, deals did get done, complex structures were put in place and innovation ran amok. On the following pages you will meet these debt & equity rainmakers and learn about their accomplishments.

INDIVIDUALS

VALERIE K. ACHTEMEIER As an EVP in CBRE's capital markets debt and structured finance group, Valerie K. Achtemeier leads a national capital markets advisory service team focused on debt and structured finance transactions. In her 39-year career, she has closed more than $40 billion in transactions. She also serves alongside Darla Longo and Barbara Perrier on National Partners, an industrial and logistics capital markets team that has closed more than $25 billion of industrial sales and debt capital markets transactions in 2019 alone. In the past three years, Achtemeier has closed more than $3 billion in debt deals, including a $910 million industrial portfolio loan she brokered in 2019. When she isn't at the deal table, she is leading the industry in other ways. She is a member ULI Women's Leadership Initiative and National Executive Board and is a mentor for young female professionals entering the industry. Last year, she helped place 80 women in CRE-related internships.

JOE F. BIAOU Joe F. Biaou has built a reputation on providing clients with credible solutions to market changes. He is the founder and managing partner of FRB Realty Capital, and has spent more than a decade as a financial intermediary for debt and equity for real estate transactions. He takes a creative approach to capital solutions, and customizes a unique deal structure for each client. This approach has led him to successfully close deals like the recapitalization on a ground lease on a New York City hotel estimated at $125 million. This is an innovative way to secure more favorable terms for the senior debt position. In the last decade, FRB Realty Capital has grown organically without the need for outside partners, and in 2021, it plans to continue that growth pattern with the integration of mREIT Millennium Mortgage Trust, which will focus on ESG projects, and Millcap.