Khary Cuffe

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Khary Cuffe is a member of the Alternative Investments team where he serves as Executive Director of Investor Relations at Manhattan West.  Khary is responsible for the firm’s Investor Relations strategy, developing, and growing partnerships with prospective and current investors for the Alternative Investments portfolio.  Representing Manhattan West in Alternative Investment communities, Khary has a particular focus on building strategic relationships with high-net-worth individuals, family offices, and institutions. With almost 20 years of experience, he brings a wide array of financial services knowledge within the venture capital, investment banking, private wealth, and financial technology markets. He is also the co-founder of Heritage Link Brands, a global wine enterprise and certified M/WBE.

Prior to joining Manhattan West, Khary worked at Equitable Financial Advisors, a global financial services firm as a Private Wealth Banker, SoLo Funds, a FinTech start-up company, where he ran the firm’s Investor Relations Group and served as Chief of Staff. Prior to SoLo Funds, Khary worked at Legacy Growth Partners, a family office headquartered in New York, where he co-managed the firm’s global marketing and communications. He began his career in marketing for financial services firms in Los Angeles and New York and honed his expertise at Procter & Gamble, serving in brand management on both the Pampers and Old Spice brands.

Khary received a Bachelor of Arts degree in the College of Social Studies from Wesleyan University, a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School, and a Master of Public Administration degree from Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Khary was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, is an avid basketball player, and resides in the View Park/Windsor Hills area of Los Angeles with his wife and three children. He is also a committed public servant working as a Commissioner on the Culver City Parks and Recreation Commission and a Board Member on the NYC Industrial Development  Agency.

Briana Corso

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Briana Corso is an Acquisitions Associate at Manhattan West where she is integrally involved in all aspects of the firm’s real estate operations. Her primary focus is on sourcing industrial assets and providing due diligence and leasing services to the Real Estate team and the various underlying funds.

Prior to joining Manhattan West, Ms. Corso was an Acquisitions Analyst at Rexford Industrial, where she specialized in identifying and guiding the team towards motivated off-market sellers and underwrote and closed upwards of $1bn of industrial real estate transactions throughout Southern California.

A graduate of University of Colorado at Boulder, Ms. Corso earned her Bachelor of Science in Chinese. In her free time, Ms. Corso enjoys traveling, spending time with her two dogs, running, yoga, and trying new restaurants.

  • bcorso@manhattanwest.com

    • Yolanda Hirang

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    Yolanda Hirang is the Real Estate Controller at Manhattan West where she has operational oversight of all real estate financial operations, investment accounting and reporting, and regulatory compliance.   Ms. Hirang is focused on providing timely, accurate and comprehensive financial information and in building a strong accounting team that can provide the highest level of reporting and service to the company’s real estate investors and partners.

    Ms. Hirang brings with her over 20 years of real estate finance and accounting experience.  Prior to Manhattan West, Ms. Hirang worked at Staley Point Capital, where she was part of the team who executed and managed investments of over $500 Million in addition to legacy assets from Magellan Group of over $400 Million.  Prior to Staley Point, Ms. Hirang worked at MJW Investments who owned over five thousand multifamily and student housing units.  Prior to Staley Point Capital, Ms. Hirang worked at Cohen Asset Management, a commercial/industrial real estate firm with JV funds and real estate transactions of over $1 Billion.

    Ms. Hirang is a licensed CPA in the Philippines and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and Accounting from the University of Nueva Caceres.  Ms. Hirang loves to hike, read books, and travel overseas. 

    Erika Balla

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    Erika Balla is the Director of Venture Capital Strategy and Operations, where she works closely with the Manhattan West management team as they identify opportunities to acquire shares of venture-backed private companies. Erika is also responsible for streamlining the operational process for both early and late-stage divisions.

    Prior to joining Manhattan West, Erika spent 9 years at UBS Private Wealth Management where she provided tailored wealth management solutions to ultra-high net worth individuals and next-generation clients. Prior to UBS, Erika spent 3 years at Merrill Lynch Private Banking and Investment Group where she assisted with portfolio reviews, asset allocation, and performance reporting for ultra-high net worth families. Erika is licensed by FINRA with her Series 7 and Series 66.

    Erika earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Washington. Erika grew up in Tokyo, Japan and currently resides in Manhattan Beach, CA with her husband and two children. In her free time, she enjoys skiing, trying new cuisines, and traveling with her family.

    Jon Knopke

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    Jon Knopke is an Executive Director-Investor Relations at Manhattan West where he is responsible for developing and growing partnerships with prospective and current investors across the landscape of alternative investments. Mr. Knopke has a particular focus on building strategic relationships with high-net-worth individuals and family offices where he leverages his sales and entrepreneurial experience.

    Mr. Knopke began his career in sales and management where he led growth initiatives working to expand Equinox across the midwestern United States. An ambitious entrepreneur, he helped launch a fitness-based startup that grew exponentially prior to the Covid crisis. After years driving corporate growth strategies through different stages of their evolution, Mr. Knopke transitioned to a role leading investments on behalf of a family office.

    Mr. Knopke attended Indiana University and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Rockhurst University in Kansas City. A mid-west native, he currently resides in Manhattan Beach, California with his wife, two children and French Bulldog, Arlo. In his free time, he enjoys reading, travel, fitness, and cooking.

    Sabrina Waite

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    Sabrina Waite is a Senior Operations Associate on the Late Stage Venture team at Manhattan West. Ms. Waite works closely with the Manhattan West management team as they identify opportunities to acquire shares of venture-backed private companies. She helps facilitate the formation of Special Purpose Vehicles with the Compliance, Legal, and Management teams of Manhattan West and organizes subscription documents and bank transfers with a global network of institutional and family office clients and their representatives. Ms. Waite takes pride in her astute attention to detail and organizational skills which are integral to the success of the team.

    Prior to joining Manhattan West, Ms. Waite worked as a Senior Associate for Client Services at a large regional RIA in Southern California, where she specialized in high net worth, cross-border client transactions, and custodian relationships between the US and Canada. She analyzed the client’s personal finances and built customized financial plans by creating detailed client wealth analyses. Ms. Waite was responsible for $500mm in client assets under the firm’s most senior advisors.

    A graduate of California Lutheran University, Ms. Waite earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance. Outside of work, she enjoys interior design, travel, and spending time with her two dogs, Olive, and Ginger.”

    Nicole Ziai

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    Nicole Ziai is a Senior Associate on the Private Debt team at Manhattan West, where she is involved in all aspects of the firm’s private debt fund operations. Her responsibilities include analyzing investments in the private debt fund, interfacing with auditors, and leading quarterly valuation updates.

    Prior to joining Manhattan West, Nicole worked at Apollo Global Management, a leading global alternative asset management firm, where she performed security valuations tasks and led quarterly audit walkthroughs.

    Prior to Apollo, Nicole was in management consulting, where she used her problem solving and analytical skills to advise some of the largest corporations in the United States. She quickly rose to a senior position and led a group of junior analysts.

    Nicole earned a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Engineering from University of British Columbia, where she was awarded with the President’s Entrance Scholarship. She then obtained her Master of Science in Finance degree from University of Southern California. In her free time, she enjoys skiing, hiking, and doing CrossFit.

    Alex Day

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    Alex Day is a Real Estate Analyst at Manhattan West, where he collaborates directly with the real estate team to ensure timely completion of projects and overall business plan execution. He specifically deals in handling the accounting and financial logistics behind the scenes while also targeting new acquisitions and developments.

    Prior to joining Manhattan West, Alex interned for a top-producing residential real estate team at Douglas Elliman in Beverly Hills. During his college years, he also completed several summer internships in the finance and hospitality sectors in his native state of North Carolina.

    Alex recently earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration at the University of Southern California, where he was also a campus tour guide. In his free time, Alex enjoys taking full advantage of LA’s vibrant food scene and going to the latest open houses.

    Austin Ho

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    Austin Ho is a Vice President on the Private Equity team at Manhattan West. He is responsible for conducting due diligence, providing transaction support, managing companies in the portfolio, and determining suitable investments for the firm.

    Prior to joining Manhattan West, Mr. Ho worked at Intrepid Investment Bankers, a Los Angeles based investment bank and subsidiary of MUFG Union Bank, North America. During his tenure at Intrepid, Mr. Ho helped complete numerous transactions including sell-side mandates, buy-side acquisitions, and capital raises across a wide range of industries including consumer, digital media, technology, and business services.

    Mr. Ho graduated from Amherst College with a double major in Economics and Psychology, cum laude. At Amherst, he was a Senior Captain of the Men’s Varsity Ice Hockey team and served as a resident counselor. Born in Louisiana and raised in Southern California, Mr. Ho enjoys an active outdoor lifestyle. He is an avid golfer, an accomplished skier and enjoys relaxing at the beach when he is not at work.

    Reginald Tucker

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    Reginald Tucker is a Managing Director in the Venture Capital group where he is tasked with investing funds across the firm’s Fund of Funds strategy. In this role, Mr. Tucker leverages his long-tenured career of investing in public and private markets as well as his deep network of LP and GP relationships. He is uniquely skilled at sourcing opportunities across both hard to access funds as well as new and emerging firms and co-investments.

    Mr. Tucker is a life-long investor with a breadth of private investment expertise developed over 10 plus years and more than $10 billion in capital commitments across the alternatives complex. He has a long track record of successfully sourcing and identifying up and coming talent in the venture space. He has keenly navigated market trends and has significant experience seeding and structuring new funds and investment platforms to capture opportunities.

    Mr. Tucker was previously the Managing Director of Investments for the Orange County Employees Retirement System (OCERS) where he had oversight of all Private Markets. Most of his time was spent creating and building the Private Equity and Venture Capital programs. Mr. Tucker spent time sourcing and evaluating new, niche and non-traditional investments for the Unique Strategies asset class.

    Prior to OCERS, Mr. Tucker worked as a Senior Investment Officer for the New York State Common Retirement Fund (NYCRF). There he helped build out the Opportunistic portfolio from inception to nearly $7 billion in capital commitments, which included seeding and incubating bespoke and niche investment strategies as well as working closely with the emerging managers team on forming new platforms. Prior to NYCRF, Mr. Tucker worked as an Investment Officer for the State of Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds (CRPTF). There he helped source and manage the private equity, real assets and real estate investments and also managed the plan’s private equity emerging managers program.

    Mr. Tucker has been broadly recognized by his investment peers as well as investment managers in the industry. In 2013, Reggie was recognized as a Rising Star in Public Plans and a Toigo Foundation 40 Under 40 in Finance. In 2016, he was the recipient of an Institutional Investor Intelligence Opportunistic Investments Strategies award. AiCIO magazine recognized Mr. Tucker in the 2020 NextGen CIO class of 25 rising stars driving innovation in institutional asset allocation and he was also selected for the inaugural cohort of the Black Venture Institute run in conjunction with Berkeley Haas School of Business the same year. In 2021, Mr. Tucker was recognized on the list of 2021 Top Public Pension Investment Directors by Trusted Insight as well as an Institutional Investors 2021 Allocator’s Choice Awards Team of the Year finalist from his time at OCERS.

    Mr. Tucker earned a Bachelor of Science degree from New York University (NYU). Following his education at NYU, Mr. Tucker was a Robert Toigo Fellow and earned a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) in Finance from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania where he also earned a Chartered Alternative Investments Analyst (CAIA) certification. Mr. Tucker resides in Long Beach with his family.