Angel Oak Looks to Leverage Technology Moving Forward

Angel Oak Companies announces another year of growth highlighted by its gross assets under management1 (AUM) surpassing $17 billion. The firm also completed a record six non-QM securitizations in 2019 totaling approximately $3.1 billion, exceeding the volume in 2018 by approximately $2 billion. 

Angel Oak plans to further integrate a data-driven, analytical approach and leverage its expertise and technology to provide best-in-class service across its entire platform.

“People want to invest with us because of our vertical integration, which allows us to control credit and growth thoughtfully,” said Sreeni Prabhu, co-CEO and Chief Investment Officer at Angel Oak Companies. “We’re proud of what we have built, and we see a bright future ahead as we tap into our information sources and data to improve our overall business and better serve investors.”

Angel Oak’s mortgage platform, led by Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions and Angel Oak Home Loans, funded a company record $3.3 billion in non-qualified mortgages in 2019, a 52% increase in volume compared to 2018. In Q4 of 2019 alone, the company funded over $1.1 billion in non-QM, surpassing the volume in Q4 of 2018 by 67%. In 2020, Angel Oak anticipates funding over $8 billion overall in residential mortgages. Angel Oak credits its customer service and efficient integration of technology, such as the MyHomeLoan Mortgage App and QuickQual tool, as catalysts for its rapid growth in the lending channels last year. Angel Oak has become one of the largest servicers of non-qualified mortgages and manages $4.4 billion of servicing assets.

“As established leaders in the non-QM space, we are always looking to innovate and adapt to better serve our investors and customers,” said Mike Fierman, managing partner and co-CEO of Angel Oak Companies. “We are uniquely positioned to capitalize on this continually growing market. Incorporating a more analytical and tech-led approach will help us strategically expand and continue to originate healthy loans.”

Angel Oak also continues to enhance its environmental, social and governance (ESG) investment approach as it more formally incorporates ESG factors into its public and private strategies. Additionally, the firm launched its first closed-end fund, Angel Oak Financial Strategies Income Term Trust (NYSE: FINS), and celebrated with a bell-ringing at the New York Stock Exchange in June.

To accompany its record growth, Angel Oak Companies hired 63 people in 2019, increasing its total head count to 711. The lending units improved and expanded the firm’s Dallas facility, tripling its square footage to accommodate more than 100 staff members. The firm also moved its Atlanta-based investment management headquarters into a larger, LEED-certified office space in June.

Angel Oak Companies received eight industry awards in 2019, four of which commend employees ranking in the top tier of their respective fields, and four of which highlight the company’s non-QM lending leadership, company culture and pacesetting corporate growth:

• Angel Oak Companies was named a 2019 Pacesetter by the Atlanta Business Chronicle.
• Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) named Angel Oak among its ACG Fast 40 for the fourth time.
• Angel Oak was named a Top Workplace by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for the fifth year in a row.
• Scotsman Guide ranked Angel Oak a Top Mortgage Lender, the only lender exclusively offering non-QM to be ranked.
• Angel Oak’s Marie Griffith and Ushma Gandhi were named to National Mortgage Professional Magazine’s 40 Under 40.
• Angel Oak was named to MReport’s second annual list of the Top 25 Companies in Mortgage and Servicing.
• Chris Barker was named a Most Connected Mortgage Professional by National Mortgage Professional Magazine.
• Scotsman Guide named Steve Arnold a Top 50 Wholesale Account Executive.

To learn more about Angel Oak Companies, please click here.