A former Big 4 Accounting Firm employee who passed all four parts of the CPA exam in his first sitting and long-time commercial banker, John Sigeti is a skilled finance and brokerage expert with more than 20 years of professional experience.

He brings a demonstrated history of success delivering first mortgage, working capital, and mezzanine debt to real estate developers, manufacturers, retailers and distributors.

John started his career at General Electric in 1991, where he spent five years before leaving to further his education at the State University of New York at Buffalo.

He earned a dual degree in Accounting and Electrical Engineering in 1997, having passed all four parts of the CPA in the first sitting prior to graduating. He spent two years at KPMG’s Buffalo office working with manufacturing and contractor clients before beginning a long and successful tenure at M&T Bank, where, in 2000 he started a construction lending business in downstate New York.

For the next decade John managed M&T’s downstate construction lending division, concentrating on multifamily and home builder lending in Hudson Valley, downstate NY, Long Island and northern New Jersey. At its peak, the division had over $350MM in committed construction loans and $250MM in outstanding balances. The portfolio experienced minimal loan loss (less than 7 bps) over that 10-year period while enjoying premium spreads (average at 400 bps over cost of funds). During that time, John personally oversaw the business development and portfolio management of over $1B in construction loans. He had $2MM in lending authority and, through committee, could approve up to $40MM in construction lending relationship credit.

In 2010, the bank tasked him with running the disposition of assets M&T purchased from the FDIC – Bradford Bank and K Bank. These banks had failed as a result of the deteriorating construction lending environment in the Baltimore, Northern Virginia marketplace. In 2011, after successfully disposing of the bulk of the assets, John refocused his career back in his home town, Buffalo, directing the development of cross border banking for M&T. He developed a strong understanding of cross-border banking and became an expert in helping Canadian companies access banks in the region.

John left M&T in 2014 to help grow Five Star Bank’s presence in Western New York. In his two-year tenure there, John was directly responsible for approximately $200MM in new loan production.

John launched Sigeti Capital Markets in 2016. A committed advocate for his clients, John operates with deep integrity and over-delivers on his promises, every time.