Urban Catalyst names Morgan Mackles SVP of Investor Relations

Utilizing 15+ years of sales, sales management, and executive experience

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Apr 02, 2019, 16:54 ET

SAN JOSE, Calif., April 2, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Urban Catalyst, a multi-asset Opportunity Zone Fund, announced today that Morgan Mackles has been appointed to the position of SVP of Investor Relations. With more than 15 years of personal sales, sales management, and executive experience, his expertise in building out scalable and repeatable sales processes has resulted in go-to-market success across multiple industries, Fortune 500 companies, and startups. In joining Urban Catalyst, Mr. Mackles returns to the Bay Area from his most recent role as Vice President of Sales at x.ai, a $44M artificial intelligence startup headquartered in New York City.

"I'm excited to come back home to the Bay Area to join forces with the amazing team at Urban Catalyst—many of whom I've known for decades," says Mackles. "Drawing from my experiences in the world of VC-backed technology startups, I believe we have a tremendous opportunity to build out a scalable and repeatable system for acquiring and supporting our firm's investors."

Based in the firm's San Jose headquarters, in his new role, Mr. Mackles will be leading the investor relations team. Reporting directly to Erik Hayden, President of Urban Catalyst, he will be responsible for securing capital commitments, building and maintaining investor relationships, and driving growth of the Urban Catalyst brand across multi-family and commercial channels.

"I look forward to leveraging Morgan's technology background and process-driven approach to provide the best possible experience for our fund's current and future investors. His ability to consistently deliver outstanding results speaks for itself," says Hayden. "A lifelong friend of mine, I am personally and professionally thrilled to have Morgan joining the Urban Catalyst team. I am confident he will make significant contributions to our strategic direction, long-term growth, and value creation."

Launched in response to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act legislation that created Opportunity Zones and Opportunity Funds, Urban Catalyst assembled an experienced team that understands how to navigate Bay Area construction processes and asset management to ensure the highest return on investment. Their combined experience has amounted to $5.9 billion in total real estate acquisition value, $4.2 billion in total development project value, and 1,500 residential units developed in Opportunity Zones. Utilizing strong relationships with city constituents and decision makers, they are exceptionally qualified to maneuver the development process and are on track to raise $250M over the next year. In fact, Urban Catalyst has already invested in their first project in a local opportunity zone, development of a brand-new office and retail complex on South First Street in downtown San Jose at the site of the old Lido night club.

About Urban Catalyst
Based in San Jose, Urban Catalyst is the first multi-asset Opportunity Zone Fund in the Bay Area focusing on downtown San Jose and downtown Oakland. Employing a world-class team of experienced local professionals to build out impact investment opportunities—multi-family, office, and industrial investment projects—Urban Catalyst is focused on advancing and improving the community while earning investors advantageous financial returns. Learn more at https://www.urbancatalyst.com/.

SOURCE Urban Catalyst