A highly regarded economist and real estate investment manager, Udi Erez is CEO of El Ad US Holding, Inc. Mr. Erez comes to El Ad after earlier serving as CEO of ELAD Group Canada Inc., where he oversaw the growth of the company’s portfolio to $3 billion in assets. Among the highlights of his initial tenure with El Ad, Mr. Erez successfully negotiated and closed on the MetCap residential portfolio, one of the largest residential acquisitions in Canadian history, valued at $750 million. During his six years at the helm of the Canadian division, Mr. Erez was responsible for acquiring 18,000 residential units and 7 million square feet of commercial and retail space throughout Canada. He also developed and opened 5,000 residential condominiums. In 2007, Mr. Erez launched Erez Capital Fund, focusing on development and purchase of income-producing properties in the United States and Canada. With a base of foreign investors, the fund raised over $100 million and acquired shopping centers, plazas and office buildings in prime markets across North America. Earlier in his career, Mr. Erez was a partner at Arthur Andersen in Tel Aviv. He also served in various advisory capacities for the Israeli government, supervising inflationary tax legislation for the treasury department and consulting on government subsidies and financial reporting. Mr. Erez received his bachelor’s degree in economics and accounting from Hebrew University of Jerusalem. A certified public accountant, Mr. Erez has lectured on advanced accounting issues at his alma mater and is the author of several articles and textbooks.