THE TOP 100 MAGAZINE

Bryce Hollander

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A passionate and innovative finance professional, Bryce Hollander believes deeply in the power of disruptive finance and choosing the path less traveled.  After graduating high school early and enrolling in college to study anthropology, she decided to quite literally, take the road less traveled.  With newfound freedom and a hunger to see what was just beyond the next vanishing point, she traveled America’s heartland exploring its hidden cultures, people, and perspectives.  Bryce classifies herself as an observer, which over a lifetime has allowed her to develop an innate understanding of the human experience and its relationship with the desire for autonomy, recognition, support, and community.

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Since that time, Bryce has voraciously continued to pursue knowledge and first-hand experience, which eventually led her to land feet first in finance.  She “feels like one of the lucky ones” who succeeds in finding the place where passion and career overlap. She seeks to integrate new and emerging technologies into the world of private lending and alternative commercial finance. When you implement effective technology, it allows you dilute risk, which in turn creates greater inclusivity. “Change is imperative; efficiency makes space for equity.”

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Today, Bryce serves as chief operating officer at Stellar Mutual, a privately held commercial lending brokerage and strategy company, headquartered in Freehold, NJ. Using her finance experience and diverse skillset, she leads the company’s growth strategies for operations, marketing, and branding. We recently had the pleasure of speaking with Bryce to learn more about her career journey, current role at Stellar Mutual, and thoughts on the finance industry.

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Let’s begin with your background. How did you get your start in finance?

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In August 2017, after previously gaining my insurance license, I moved back to New York City with the hope of getting a Series 7.  Instead, I ended up starting my career in a typical Wall Street “boiler room” and instead of a stock brokerage, I was the newest employee on the sales side of a merchant cash advance brokerage. While learning the industry, I began to notice more and more lost revenue as appropriate leverage was not as important as a faster dollar, and in turn, client success was not a part of the equation.  Yes, we all want to make money; I just think we have the tools to be more ingenious in how we do so. That is the point when it started to become my goal to integrate technology and equity, in order to advance the success of American business owners.  I eventually decided to leave Wall Street and do a deep dive into my own abilities and strategy.  I built my own remote brokerage firm, to provide business financing consultations and funding to business owners while addressing the inequities I had encountered.

 

What brought you to Stellar Mutual?

 

Daniel Sharbani.  He was a breath of fresh air in an industry often beset by a lack of imagination.  He saw my abilities and I saw someone who I thought could go the distance as a great leader. He brought me on and boom, we were off to the races. I think synergy is where great companies start to gain an advantage because the “why” is never in question.  Officially I am here to implement policy, process, and tools to continue growth and increase our ability to scale.  The emphasis we put on great work from our team and personal development allows us to cultivate an environment where the sky is not the limit.  That’s why we chose the name Stellar, we want to go beyond what someone’s individual experience has told them is possible, and mutual because of the importance of teamwork and shared support. We believe or rather know that success starts with mindset. There is a reason neurons and galaxies look alike. 

 

What is your process for scaling a company?

 

I use a multitude of strategies, but I believe deeply that the foundation is in working with human nature instead of against it.  I integrate I/O principles to build positive work environments and you can often find me workshopping with sales in order to gain insights that allow me to develop cohesive teams.  By isolating individual strengths, we are able to tailor workloads to effectively support professional development and ultimately the growth of the company.  On the more analytical side, I complete workflow assessments, introduce automation, and build out tracking systems to collect data - one of the most valuable assets we can procure.  I then use analytics to reveal weak points in the organization and figure out what kind of support is needed and where.  After putting policies in place and in practice, I focus on building new verticals that benefit our big picture ideas and will carry us forward into the next phase of expansion.

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Tell us a bit about Stellar mutual and how it differs from other financial services companies. 

 

We don’t see ourselves as a financial service company, but rather an organization that has the ability to have a huge impact on how and why we do business in America. Ethics is a huge part of that.  In our space, it’s easy to find oneself surrounded by sharks but we deeply believe that education can combat hard sales tactics providing a better user experience for our sales teams and clients.  We also deeply believe in data security protecting sensitive information and choosing what is best for the industry over personal gain. Leadership is the root of why we are able to be different.  Daniel Sharbani brings his core values to the company:  Relationship building, showing people how to tap into their love more and their egos less, remembering the power of fun, reminding people that they have potential, encouraging them to believe in themselves regardless of their backgrounds or upbringing, and convincing them that they can do anything they put their minds to. Daniel’s motto is, “Creating the hidden opportunities that are lying within.” He knows that by unlocking people’s natural abilities and understanding how different types of brains process information, you are able to channel those abilities into each person’s individual success, which ultimately crosses over into the company’s success.

 

How is the MCA industry being affected by an increase in regulations?

 

Until recent years, the MCA space had been highly unregulated. However, we’re now seeing more regulations rolling in, which I personally support.  Most regulations seem to be geared towards more transparency in how information is given to the clients and removing unethical collection practices.  I do not think we should be waiting for the government to prescribe these fixes; I believe it’s our industry’s responsibility to bring thought leaders together to develop self-accrediting systems that will raise the value of companies transacting within our space. Most industries have professional organizations, specific methods of conduct, and accepted standards. Internal regulations can be built to ensure responsible and equitable practices, centering client needs and guiding them to work within reasonable financial constraints. Developing and leaning into regulations allow everyone to thrive in the marketplace. We have a responsibility as leaders in the space to encourage best practices with everyone we work with. 

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What are the advantages of working in the MCA sector of the industry?

 

Unsecured capital lending is a tool that is not going anywhere. Because of that, I believe the space has the potential to be a large part of the disruptive finance movement.  Having the ability to build independent credit criteria and utilizing technology to service those notes gives us an advantage over institutional lending. Because the industry is essentially in its infancy, we are all working within the startup space. This allows companies in the space to develop and launch ideas that would otherwise be cast aside. Stellar Mutual is constantly fine-tuning our future development and project launches by what we see reflected in market demand and technological advancement. In my role at Stellar Mutual, I seek to be a part of this innovation and to support an industry shift moving us towards greater responsibility, technological innovation and operationalize a data-driven approach.