Eric Kaplan
Director, Center for Financial Markets, Milken Institute
As Director of the Milken Institute Center for Financial Markets Housing Finance Program, Eric Kaplan focuses on the health, sustainability, and reform of the US housing finance ecosystem. He regularly engages policymakers, regulators, and industry stakeholders on such issues as the roles of public and private capital, primary and secondary market dynamics, and lending and servicing practices, maintaining a focus on consumer, industry, and systemic impact.
Kaplan brings over 26 years of housing and mortgage experience across a variety of finance, legal, and policy roles. Prior to joining Milken, Kaplan served as a managing partner at Ranieri Strategies LLC, where he worked closely with founding partner and chairman, Lewis S. Ranieri, on FinTech opportunities and housing policy efforts. He joined Ranieri Strategies from Shellpoint Partners LLC, where he established a post-crisis private-label residential mortgage-backed securitization (RMBS) platform as head of mortgage finance. Kaplan is a leading advocate for the creation of new and improved RMBS standards to facilitate the return of private capital as a safe and scalable source of home financing. He spearheaded and chaired the Structured Finance Association (SFA) “RMBS 3.0” task force and was one of the primary authors and editors of the RMBS 3.0 Green Papers. A former SFA board member, Kaplan co-chaired the SFA Residential Mortgage Committee, served as a residential mortgage representative on the SFA Issuer Cabinet, and co-chaired one of the U.S. Treasury-led Private Label Securitization Initiative working groups.
Kaplan currently serves as Vice Chair of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Consumer Advisory Board (CFPB CAB). The CFPB CAB acts as a source of market intelligence and expertise for the CFPB, helps advise and consult the CFPB on its work, informs the CFPB about emerging practices and trends in the consumer finance industry, and shares analysis and recommendations.