Corporate Governance

Jay Lown serves as our President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Lown has over 20 years of combined experience in the financial services industry and the residential mortgage markets. Prior to our IPO in October 2013, Mr. Lown served as Executive Vice President in charge of strategic funding projects and capital markets at Freedom Mortgage since April 2012. Before joining Freedom Mortgage, Mr. Lown served as a Portfolio Manager at Avenue Capital Group from April 2011 to January 2012. Previously, Mr. Lown was a fellow at the Office of Thrift Supervision, or OTS, serving as an advisor to the Senior Deputy Director’s office, and focused on residential mortgage loan origination and residential asset valuation and RMBS. Before OTS, Mr. Lown worked at UBS Securities LLC in mortgage trading, managing an internal mortgage origination platform specializing in Alt-A mortgage loans, overseeing all units within the organization, including sales, capital markets and operations. Mr. Lown began his career at Salomon Brothers (now Citigroup) in 1991, where he spent 11 years working for the mortgage trading desk.

Sharon Lee Cook joined our board of directors in March 2023.  Ms. Cook is the founder and president of OLE Three Consulting, Inc., a management organization advisory firm that she founded in March 2022.  Ms. Cook served as a business consultant for the regulated trading platform FTX US Derivatives from February 2022 to June 2022 and has been a certified private arbitrator for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority since June 2019.  From February 2020 to January 2021, Ms. Cook served as a part-time administrative assistant at the Gulf Coast Community Foundation.  During the period from September 2017 through February 2020, Ms. Cook was not employed and was dedicating her time to various personal matters.  Between 2009 and 2017, Ms. Cook was a managing director at securities firm Incapital LLC January 2017 to September 2017, a managing director at investment banking firm D.A. Davidson & Co. December 2012 to May 2016, a managing director at Sterne, Agee & Leach Inc. September 2009 to November 2012 and a senior economic and policy advisor to the deputy director of the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Thrift Supervision from May 2007 to September 2009 where she participated in the resolution of failing banks, and the development of the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) and the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).  Earlier in her career, Ms. Cook spent 12 years as a managing director at investment management firm Legg Mason Wood Walker Inc. and was the deputy assistant director at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) for five years.  Ms. Cook is a member of the board of directors of the Prevent Cancer Foundation, where she serves on the Finance Committee, and she is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors. She is a graduate of The George Washington University.

With over 30 years of broad experience in fixed income capital markets and financial services regulation, we believe Ms. Cook offers the board of directors the ability to analyze and oversee risks and complex financial challenges faced by companies such ours. 
 

Mr. Mercer has over 40 years of management/executive experience in generating and servicing consumer loans and mortgages. Since July 2009, Mr. Mercer has served as a Senior Examiner/Subject Matter Expert – Credit Risk, Operations and Counterparty Management at the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) in Washington, D.C.  At FHFA Mr. Mercer monitored Freddie Mac’s seller/servicer and mortgage insurance counterparty risk analysis focusing on concentration of risk, regulatory risk and servicing transfer approvals.  He also monitored Freddie Mac’s credit loss forecasting and loan loss reserve adequacy for its single family and multifamily loan portfolios.

Prior to his work at FHFA, Mr. Mercer’s experience includes managing problem portfolio workouts, managing due diligence processes involving mergers and acquisitions, purchasing mortgage portfolios and developing or enhancing profit and risk models to improve portfolio predictability and profitability.  In addition to his operational experience, he also has an extensive credit risk background, having been Chief Credit Officer of Citicorp National Services.  Mr. Mercer has been involved in all aspects of credit risk management, including the development of proprietary score cards.

As president of American Equity Mortgage, Inc. in St. Louis, Missouri, Mr. Mercer was responsible for expanding the retail branch network and improving operational efficiencies which resulted in tripling annual net profits. Mr. Mercer has held senior executive and management positions in consumer lending at a series of financial institutions that ultimately became part of National City Bank, including Equibank, Integra Bank and Altegra Credit Company. Prior to that, Mr. Mercer held positions at Citicorp and Valley National Bank in Phoenix, Arizona after beginning his career with a thirteen year stint at Ford Motor Credit Company.

Since September 2009, Mr. Murin has served as the Chairman of The Collingwood Group LLC, a Washington, D.C.-based strategic investment and advisory firm serving the financial services industry that he co-founded in 2009. Since September 2012, Mr. Murin has served as President of NewDay Financial LLC, a mortgage lender that provides homeowners with FHA, VA and reverse mortgage loans, and as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Chrysalis Holdings, LLC, a private investment firm focused on building and growing successful businesses that provide home financing, data analytics and technology solutions in the mortgage banking and financial services industries. From October 2001 to October 2007, Mr. Murin served, and since December 2009, he has served, as a director on the Point Park University. From July 2011 to August 2012, Mr. Murin served as the Chief Executive Officer of National Real Estate Information Services, a portfolio company owned by funds managed by affiliates of Fortress Investment Group, LLC. President George W. Bush nominated Mr. Murin in October 2007 to serve as President of Ginnie Mae, a position which he held from July 2008 to August 2009. He also served as a consultant to the White House until he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate from January 2008 until May 2008. Prior to his nomination to serve as President of Ginnie Mae, Mr. Murin was with HUD for two years, to which he brought more than 40 years of diverse experience in the financial services, mortgage and banking industries. This experience includes having served as the Chief Executive Officer of a number of financial organizations such as Century Mortgage Co. from September 1986 to January 1989, Lender’s Service Inc. from May 1991 to December 2001, and Mortgage Settlement Network Innovations from September 2004 to August 2007. Mr. Murin served as a director for iGATE Corporation (NASDAQ: IGTE) from August 2009 to April 2013. Mr. Murin holds a bachelor’s degree in business from National Louis University. As a consequence of Mr. Murin’s more than 40 years experience in the financial services, mortgage and banking industries, including his service as President of Ginnie Mae, we believe he is well qualified to provide valuable advice to our board of directors in many important areas.