‘I genuinely love helping clients achieve their goals and complete their projects’

In our latest Five Minute Interview, Tony Sanchez speaks to Sandy Oliveros, Portfolio manager for the Spanish market at Fiduciam.

What is the best thing about being in the bridging and development finance business?

It might sound cliché, but I genuinely love helping clients achieve their goals and complete their projects.

Whether it’s a short-term refurbishment or a ground-up development, I feel like I’m contributing to something tangible and meaningful.

At Fiduciam, I’ve had the pleasure of managing development loans for affordable housing projects in Spain.

Many of these units were purchased by couples who were first-time buyers, which hopefully meant new homes for new families.

What keeps you ?

Coffee, a good night’s sleep, and the discipline to achieve my personal and professional goals, in that order!

What qualities do you look for in your employees or colleagues?

A good sense of humour, you can’t go through life without it.

Beyond that, I would say that a person who is analytical, solution-oriented, and not afraid to speak up has a place in the private lending world.

Are you an optimist or a pessimist?

I’m the living embodiment of the saying, “Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.” It wasn’t until my postgraduate program in financial risks that I realised being pessimistic isn’t necessarily negative.

It’s simply one of the possible outcomes in a world of probabilities.

The key is to acknowledge those risks and be prepared to control and mitigate them.

What did you want to be as a child?

Definitely not a financial analyst, I can tell you that!

As a kid, I was always juggling different interests, and my career aspirations reflected that, from wanting to be a doctor, to an artist, to an engineer.

What will be the greatest challenge facing the bridging and development finance industry in the coming months?

Not in the short term, but looking further ahead, a key challenge will be predicting economic policies amid unstable political scenarios around the globe.

Additionally, I would keep an eye open for increased competition in the private lending sector.

As profitability in certain markets becomes more attractive and barriers to entry remain low, more players might enter the field, making the market even more competitive.

Who or what makes you laugh?

Basically, anything. I especially have a soft spot for satirical comedy TV shows.

Do you dread Monday mornings?

I don’t. I’ve come to realise that Mondays are just another day of the week.

I think dreading Monday mornings often comes from a lack of confidence in ourselves and in our own abilities.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I guess it wouldn’t hurt to be a bit more optimistic on life.

With whom would you most like to have dinner?

With my family, who live on the other side of the planet.

FOLLOW ON GOOGLE NEWS