Kara McShane

If Kara McShane had to describe the past 12 months in one word, it would be “Challenging. There were a whole host of reasons, but I’ll give just one: office workouts.” Still, looking at Wells Fargo’s activity in spite of the challenges that came commercial real estate’s way, and hearing its peers and competitors laud the bank’s overall market influence, you’d never know it was anything but smooth sailing.

Led by McShane, Wells Fargo truly set the pace. With $30.4 billion in originations, the firm was the No. 1 global real estate bookrunner in 2024, but it also delivered $15.4 billion in balance sheet originations, and $6.7 billion in agency originations. Moreover, Wells Fargo’s 2024 balance sheet included $28 billion in construction loans, the largest amount in the nation. 

“Our clients recognized our unparalleled market expertise, distribution depth and trading capabilities, and the value we bring to them,” McShane told Commercial Observer. “Simply put, our clients continue to want to work with us because they know we are relentless in achieving best execution and pricing.”

After consolidating its commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) originations and securitizations business with its capital markets teams in 2023, Wells Fargo spent 2024 executing across those augmented lines. The firm was the nation’s top securitization bookrunner with $17.3 million in CMBS and $2.6 billion in collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) in 2024, of which $13.4 billion were single-asset, single borrower (SASB) loans.  

“We knew there was an enormous CMBS and CRE CLO opportunity with approximately $1 trillion of CRE debt maturities coming in each of the next few years, and we wanted to position Wells Fargo to capitalize on it,” said McShane. “We focused on delivering differentiated market content, idea generation and competitive loan quotes. But, most importantly, we worked tremendously hard to deliver best execution on behalf of our CMBS and CRE CLO clients.”  

This improvement across the securitization space is already one of McShane’s legacies. Since taking control of Wells Fargo’s CRE platform in 2019, McShane has targeted both the CMBS and CLO spaces. Wells Fargo’s CLO bookrunner business grew from a 10.8 percent market share in 2023 to a 30.3 percent market share in 2024. 

Wells Fargo also ranked first among all banks in terms of agency lending, as it made $3.8 billion in Freddie Mac loans and $2.9 billion in Fannie Mae loans. While this activity was muted at the start of the year, McShane told CO that when the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) started to get more aggressive in the second and third quarters, the bank decided to hold the line. 

“We view the agencies as partners, clients and stakeholders,” she said, noting that Wells Fargo originates and sells loans to the agencies, but also retains risk as a delegated underwriting and servicing (DUS) lender, advises them on risk, provides liquidity through secondary market trades, and bookruns their CMBS issuance. 

“We believe the GSEs will rely heavily on their well-capitalized partners, like Wells Fargo, and together we will continue to play an important role in financing housing in this country,” she added, when asked about a future when Fannie and Freddie are likely to be privatized. 

Notable 2024 deals included Wells Fargo serving as the lead financial adviser to Blackstone in a $4 billion SASB financing for a $10 billion take-private of AIR Communities, a multifamily real estate investment trust; closing a $620 million floating-rate SASB loan for the Hyatt Regency Orlando, a 1,641-key Florida hotel; and serving as joint bookrunner with Barings on a $590 million CMBS offering for the JW Marriott Marco Island, 809-room luxury resort in Marco Island, Fla.

The volatility that shook the market this April doesn’t faze McShane. “We are undoubtedly here for our clients amidst this uncertainty,” she said. “We stand ready to use our fortress balance sheet, to advise, and to provide capital markets solutions. Clients remember when you deliver for them during volatile times.

As for McShane’s proudest moment this past year? “The sheer success of our CRE platform this past year,” McShane said. “We received a lot of accolades, but nothing makes me more proud than hearing from our clients what a great job my team is doing.  We are firing on all cylinders, and I’m proud of the leadership and collaboration that has gotten us here.”