CapitalBrain Network

Fernando De Leon is the Founder and CEO of Leon Capital Group, a real estate investment and development firm with approximately $2.5 billion in assets. Leon Capital Group invests in shopping centers, net leased properties, multifamily assets, self-storage and senior debt instruments. Mr. De Leon is the sole General Partner of over 250 partnerships across the Leon Capital Group of companies. Mr. De Leon is the Manager of Chimera Capital and LCG Ventures. Chimera is a trading strategy focused on publicly-traded securities in the real estate and retail sectors, where the firm’s real estate development platform affords it a unique insight on long/short positions. LCG Ventures is an early stage private equity investment vehicle in the healthcare and retail sectors. LCG Ventures invests growth capital in companies that can benefit from a real estate development solution and growth plan provided by Leon Capital. Additionally, Leon Capital, along with the Perot Companies, co-founded the European Industrial Company which currently controls over $400 million in industrial assets in the European Union. Mr. De Leon began his career as an analyst at Goldman, Sachs & Co in New York. Mr. De Leon received a Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, from Harvard University, where he was a Hoover Foundation Scholar and National Coca Cola Scholar. He serves on the board of True Health Diagnostics, CityVet and Commercial Real Estate Exchange along with other portfolio companies, as well as the Harvard Interviewing Committee and the Dallas Assembly. Mr. De Leon and his wife Patricia oversee the De Leon Family Foundation, whose efforts are focused on education and food supplies in South Texas and Northern Mexico.

Chief Operating Officer

Kyle Miller

832.563.2397
kyle@leoncapitalgroup.com
LinkedIn

Kyle Miller serves as Chief Operating Officer of Leon Capital Group where he manages all company operations including development, asset management, finance, and accounting, as well as the company’s human resource functions. In this role, Kyle also provides leadership in company strategy and relationship management. Prior to joining Leon Capital, Kyle managed the operations of the publicly traded Whitestone REIT. At Whitestone, Kyle oversaw a 61 property portfolio in five regions across the southwest United States and founded the company’s property development platform. Before joining Whitestone, Kyle led the Retail Development Group for Trammell Crow Company’s Houston office. In this role, he was responsible for originating, financing and executing retail developments and acquisitions in the Houston region. He has actively developed over one million square feet of retail properties, and over two million square feet of development projects, in the Houston market. Prior to business school, Kyle served as a Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy flying the F-14 Tomcat. As an aviator, Kyle participated in combat operations in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan as well as instructing future aviators in fighter tactics and was selected as a Naval Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN) instructor. Kyle was also an adjunct professor at the University of Houston’s Bauer College of Business where he taught Real Estate Finance and Development to graduate students and served on the business school’s Real Estate Advisory Board. Kyle is a Graduate with Merit from the United States Naval Academy and earned an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

General Counsel

Rob Pivnick

Rob Pivnick joined Leon Capital Group in 2015, as general counsel for the firm, where he provides strategic counsel and advice by drawing upon more than 15 years of experience at an AmLaw 200 law firm, focusing on real estate and as in-house counsel for Goldman, Sachs & Co., advising on real estate and capital markets. He has participated in the negotiation and closing of over 900 real estate related transactions totaling more than $13 billion. Mr. Pivnick is an active member of the Dallas Bar Association, Texas Bar Association, Mortgage Bankers Association, Commercial Real Estate Finance Council and serves on the board of the Texas Council on Economic Education. He has both a law degree and an M.B.A. from Southern Methodist University, and received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Emory University. Mr. Pivnick is an advocate for financial literacy, and has authored a book on savings and investing for young adults/millennials.

Managing Director, Multifamily

David Cocanougher

972.989.3528
david@leoncapitalgroup.com
LinkedIn

David Cocanougher serves as Managing Director of the Multifamily division at Leon Capital Group. David is responsible for directing development of ground-up projects, portfolio-level oversight of operations and asset management of the existing properties, and conducting special projects focusing on housing development. While at Leon Capital Group, David has successfully implemented a development platform to complement the value add acquisitions strategy. Under David’s leadership, Leon Capital Group has increased its multifamily market presence in all major Texas metros and has established a development pipeline that will include Cary, Chapel Hill, Nashville and Denver. Prior to joining the company, David worked for JPI, where he served in multiple capacities including On-Campus Student Housing Development, conventional acquisitions and asset management as well as Student Living value add acquisitions. In all, David has been responsible for over $1 Billion in multifamily asset transactions, and is currently overseeing the development and rehab of over 3,000 units. David received his undergraduate degree in Business from Texas A&M University, where he later obtained a Masters in Land Economics and Real Estate.

Managing Director