Global Real Asset Capital is led by Michael Lyon
and Joshua Marks, who bring multidisciplinary experience in real estate, asset management, complex workouts and senior government roles.

 

Michael Lyon

Managing Director

Michael Lyon brings over twenty-five years of experience to GRACAP, with a focus on opportunity identification, asset strategy, and workouts.  He has a diverse background including extensive experience in real estate acquisition, corporate and property workouts, and loan restructuring.  He has legal experience as an attorney at a prestigious Washington, D.C. law firm and as General Counsel of one of the country’s largest distressed asset and acquisition companies.  He also has government service experience in key roles at the Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) related to the response and recovery from the Savings and Loan crisis. 

Mr. Lyon has managed the acquisition of both individual properties and bulk portfolios from individual and government sellers. This includes the acquisition of over $200 million in residential land assets and non-performing loans that generated extraordinary profits, and over $200 million of debt restructuring in residential and commercial assets. Key clients have included Carl M. Freeman Companies, GE Capital, Daiwa Securities, and The Inland Group.

He played a central role in the U.S. government’s management of the S&L Crisis in the late 1980’s and 1990’s.  He served as Special Assistant to the Chairman of the FDIC and as Assistant Director for Resolutions for the RTC during the recovery from the crisis. At the RTC, Mr. Lyon specialized in failed thrifts with at least $500 million in assets. He developed policies for marketing distressed assets and portfolios to the public.

Following government service, Mr. Lyon developed a successful real estate investment and advisory practice. He has broad transactional, financial and negotiation experience in analyzing, purchasing and managing property assets. He advised and assisted clients in acquiring over $200 million in assets from the government agencies, enabling highly profitable returns. He closed 12 loan restructuring transactions, eliminating $120 million in debt through value-driven negotiations with financial institutions.

Mr. Lyon was trained as a lawyer and practiced banking, international and corporate law at Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C. He has also served as General Counsel for a leading Space Tourism firm, Space Adventures, and for a major real estate asset management and workout company, J. E. Robert Company (which had over $3 billion of distressed assets under management during this period).

Mr. Lyon holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he graduated cum laude (1984). He holds a B.A. from Brandeis University, where he graduated summa cum laude in History (1981) and was elected Phi Beta Kappa. He has also studied at the London School of Economics. Mr. Lyon was appointed to the Finance and Banking Policy Working Group for President Obama's 2008 campaign and is active in both regional and national politics.

Mr. Lyon is also Managing Director of Lyon Capital, a consulting and investment advisory firm based in Falls Church, Virginia. Lyon Capital works with clients in the real estate, energy and aerospace sectors in developing international strategic partnerships, investments and attracting government support for new projects.

mlyon@gracap.com

 

Joshua Marks

Managing Director

Josh Marks brings a diverse background in corporate finance, investment, operations management and restructuring work inside and outside of bankruptcy. He focuses on risk analysis, income optimization, financial modeling, debt and equity structuring, tenant leases, bankruptcy and workout opportunities at GRACAP.

 

He has raised over $300 million in debt and equity transactions for startup and growth companies, and has restructured over $100 million in debt obligations in both private and public entities. He has managed over $125 million in new asset leases and has been responsible for corporate real estate operations.  As a corporate officer he has led successful investment exits through acquisitions and an Initial Public Offering. 

 

Between 2003 and 2008, he served as an executive of Washington, DC based MAXjet Airways, the award-winning international airline that pioneered the all Business Class sector. He was Executive Vice President (2007-2008) overseeing improvements in operational reliability, flight occupancy and revenue.  He managed the company’s Chapter 11 preparation, filings, creditor committee relationships and court hearings. Prior to serving as Executive Vice President, he was Chief Financial Officer (2006-2007) managing a $80 million restructuring of the company’s senior secured and unsecured debt, a follow-on equity financing, and $30 million of new leases.  

 

Prior to MAXjet, Mr. Marks served as CEO and COO of two successful technology companies in the Web infrastructure and integration spaces.  Both companies were acquired generating returns for investors. He participated in the restructuring of a third technology company, using bankruptcy proceedings to successfully auction the company’s assets.

 

In addition to these executive roles, Mr. Marks has been an active investor and board member in startup and ongoing ventures, where he helped firms raise additional capital, develop capital investment strategies and restructure existing debt and equity. He has participated with affiliates as an investor in development projects, including multi-family residential properties.  He has served as a director of Fonality, a venture capital backed technology company, and Worldreach, a donor-advised fund.

 

Mr. Marks holds an MBA with Distinction from Harvard Business School (1999) where he focused on finance.  He also holds a B.A. in History (1997) magna cum laude from Harvard College, where he was elected Phi Beta Kappa. He was an Adjunct Faculty member of the George Washington University School of Business where he led research programs.  He is a licensed pilot with land and seaplane ratings.  Mr. Marks was appointed to the Transportation Policy Working Group for President Obama's 2008 campaign, developing policy recommendations and authoring studies. He was active in ground operations for the campaign and remains active in regional and national politics.

 

Mr. Marks also serves as a Director and Chief Financial Officer at eJet Aviation Holdings, an aerospace company that supports the conversion and operation of airliners as VIP and charter aircraft. eJet offers a fixed-cost maintenance program for private operators and small airlines in partnership with Lufthansa Technik.

jmarks@gracap.com

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