CR3 Markets

Mendoza College of Business, University of Notre Dame

Industry: FinTech, PropTech

Founding Student Name(s): Jakub Drwal, Jack Wayman, Andrew Vittiglio

Brief Description of Solution: CR3 Markets is revolutionizing commercial real estate investing by allowing investors to access primary issuance and secondary markets within commercial real estate assets.

Funding Dollars: $800,000

What led you to launch this venture? Jakub worked in real estate private equity and realized that there is a huge need for real estate investors to have liquidity and mark-to-market pricing. On the other hand, Jakub knew that real estate sponsors are always seeking new ways of raising capital. CR3 Markets was formed to bring these two needs together.

What has been your biggest accomplishment so far with venture? Hiring a full-time CEO and CTO, onboarding first property to Platform, and then building further property pipeline.

How has your business-related major helped you further this startup venture? As a Finance major at ND, I have learned all about capital structuring and financial markets which led to understanding of how to build CR3 Markets.

Which business class has been most valuable in building your startup and what was the biggest lesson you gained from it? Real Estate Capital Markets was the most valuable class in building CR3 Markets. It helped us position the business from an understanding of why people want to invest into real estate and the benefits/detriments of having a public market for real estate securities. More so, the understanding of CMBS/RMBS really helped us structure our real estate products.

What business professor made a significant contribution to your plans and why? Professor David Hutchinson as he helped us map out how a public commercial real estate market will work.

What founder or entrepreneur inspired you to start your own entrepreneurial journey? How did he or she prove motivational to you? Mark Zuckerberg is an entrepreneur I look up to as he always has a long-term vision of how to build Facebook. He is constantly innovating to make Facebook the most successful company out there.

What is your long-term goal with your startup? Onboard and have thousands of commercial properties trading on a daily basis.

How has your local startup ecosystem contributed to your venture’s development and success? Notre Dame’s Venture Ecosystem was our earliest supporters and investors which allowed for us to bring on key hires and partners. Additionally, we were able to access leading Advisors within real estate, exchanges, and FinTech due to ND Alumni.

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