Leonard Cotton Biography and Net Worth

Leonard W. Cotton is Independent Director of Blackstone Mortgage Trust Inc. Mr. Cotton has been a director since 2014. Mr. Cotton is the former vice chairman of Centerline Capital Group (a position he held from 2006 to 2008). He was also on the executive committee of the Commercial Real Estate Finance Council, or CREFC, from 2001 to 2010 and was president of CREFC from 2007 to 2008. Mr. Cotton previously served as chairman and chief executive officer of ARCap REIT (a position he held from 1995 to 2006), a real estate finance company acquired by Centerline Capital Group in 2006, and chairman and chief executive officer of ARCap REIT’s predecessor, REMICap. During his tenure at ARCap REIT, Mr. Cotton was instrumental in establishing ARCap REIT as a nationally recognized CMBS investor in subordinated bonds. From 1992 to 2002, Mr. Cotton was a president and partner in Harbour Realty Advisors, a real estate-related special situation investment and commercial property management company. Prior to joining Harbour Realty Advisors, Mr. Cotton was engaged in a number of real estate related entrepreneurial endeavors, including acting as consultant on real estate workout strategies and the development of high-end residential properties. Mr. Cotton also serves on the board of trustees of Bowdoin College. He started his career in 1972 with Citibank, working in commercial real estate lending and workout business units. He also served as an independent director of FundCore Institutional Income Trust Inc., a public unlisted mortgage REIT, from 2010 to 2012 and is a former board member of the Real Estate Roundtable. Mr. Cotton received an M.B.A. in Finance from Columbia University and a B.A. in American History from Bowdoin College. Mr. Cotton has significant experience in various aspects of commercial real estate, including lending, equity investment and development, which we believe gives him unique insight into our investment activities.