November 4, 2025
For more than seven years, Kat Hungerford has played a central role at the American Association of Private Lenders (AAPL), where she manages the organization’s digital systems, editorial content, and programming — including for the industry’s flagship event: the AAPL Annual Conference.
In this exclusive conversation with The Elite Officer, she gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming AAPL Annual #16 (Las Vegas, November 10–11, 2025) — a two-day event built around innovation, insight, and connection.
900+ of our industry peers come back again, and again, and again—making this not only the largest event for the industry, but one that annually breaks its own record. That speaks clearer than I ever could about why this is the one event you shouldn’t miss.
— Kat Hungerford
STRATEGY, GROWTH & CAPITAL
Uriel: Kat, it’s great to have you here — and congratulations on your outstanding work with AAPL. You’ve been part of the organization’s growth for years, so I’m curious: if you had to sum up this year’s conference in just one word, what would it be?
Kat: Thank you, Uriel. And the word of the day is adaptability. “Ever-changing, ever-evolving” is a trope in every industry these days, but that’s because it’s also the one constant. Our programming reflects that need to help professionals prepare, pivot, and grow.
Uriel: Adaptability — I like that. It feels like the perfect theme for what’s happening in private lending right now. Speaking of adapting and planning ahead, which of the strategic sessions would you say really set the tone for 2025?
Kat: We work incredibly hard to ensure sessions contain actionable takeaways and points of interest for every single attendee, dialing into both the macro and micro trends within lenders’ businesses and externally to our industry and beyond. It’s the greatest compliment to hear complaints about not being able to pick between breakouts (which is also why all our sessions are recorded) And pro tip: If you’re stuck, pick the session you think you’ll have the most questions.
Before afternoon concurrent breakouts, we start the conference at the macro level, so be sure to have boots on the ground starting 8:30AM on Tuesday with these presentations:
- “The 2026 Playbook”, presented by Nema Daghbandanand Kevin Kim from Fortra Law, gives lenders a clear roadmap for the year ahead, backed by data from what we’ve seen so far.
- “Future-Proof Capital”, led by William Tessar(CV3 Financial Services) and Eddie Wilson (AAPL), focuses on building resilient funding models that thrive through market cycles.
- Our keynote — “The Corporate Credit Outlook”with John Bringardner from Debtwire — will set the tone for macroeconomic trends impacting the industry.
TECHNOLOGY & OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY
Uriel: Technology seems to have a bigger role than ever this year — almost like it’s no longer just a supporting tool, but part of the core strategy for lenders.
Kat: If you’re wondering why, it’s because in our estimation, we’ve hit a nexus between availability, accessibility, and adoption. These days, cutting-edge isn’t limited to big budgets—which is both a potential advantage and a threat. You’ll see both sides of that coin discussed in the tech-focused sessions we’ve earmarked:
- “AI Adoption and Operational Efficiency”with Ben Fertig (Constructive Capital) explores automation, fraud prevention, and measurable ROI.
- “Emerging Technologies in Private Lending”with Shaye Wali and Jonathan Keebler (Baseline Software) takes a deep dive into AI, blockchain, and tokenization.
- And the “From Overhead to Opportunity”panel focuses on cost control, outsourcing, and smart automation to boost profitability.
RELATIONSHIPS, TRUST & LEADERSHIP
Uriel: I love that balance between strategy and innovation — but at the end of the day, lending is still a people business. Many of this year’s sessions seem to highlight that human side — relationships, leadership, and how teams actually make it all work.
Kat: Math still has to math, technology must work, but people will always be at the heart of a business’s success or failure. Several sessions tap into the human side of the resources equation.
- “Borrower Trust = Lending Power”with Tim Landwehr (Anchor Loans) explores how transparency and authenticity drive borrower loyalty.
- “Brokers: Not a Four-Letter Word” –led by John Santilli with speakers from Vault Financial, Marchants Mortgage & Trust, and Doss La—redefines the lender-broker dynamic, showing how collaboration creates efficiency.
- And “The Professional Pivot”— led by Carrie Cook (Ignite Funding) with speakers from CV3, Appraisal Nation, and CohnReznick — covers personal branding, career reinvention, and lessons from bold leadership moves.
COMPLIANCE, RISK & REGULATION
Uriel: Beyond the human side, there’s always the part that keeps everyone on their toes — compliance. It’s one of those topics that never stops evolving. What’s new or different in that area this year?
Kat: Two sessions really stand out.
- “Don’t Blacklist Your Way to Cour,”moderated by Steve Ernest, Esq. (Fortra Law), examines the legal risks of shared blacklists and the fine line between caution and overreach. During one of my first committee meetings seven years ago, we were asked to create a shared blacklist. This session will share why that remains a “no,” but provide other avenues toward the underlying need that serve to protect our members and industry.
- Then, “Valuations & Inspections: Factual, Fluffed, or Faked?”, moderated by Craig Stack(Truepic) with experts from Roc Capital, PCV Murcor, and Cathedral CPAs, focuses on maintaining valuation integrity and detecting fraud in due diligence.
MARKET INSIGHTS & DEMOGRAPHIC TRENDS
Uriel: And for those looking to understand broader market movements?
Kat: “It’s an Avocado Toast Nation” is one of my favorites — moderated by Ray Sturm (Blue Lake) with Jeffrey Tesch (RCN Capital), Hernan Hernandez (Bedrock Servicing), and Chad Murphy (Richey May). It’s a creative discussion about how shifting demographics and generational housing needs are reshaping lending strategies.
Also, “Institutional Capital Blinders?” brings together top executives like John Beacham (Toorak Capital Partners), Kirill Bensonoff (New Silver), and Ryan Sailor (Diya) to debate the future of institutional capital and its impact on independent lenders.
NETWORKING & COMMUNITY
Uriel: AAPL is known for fostering real connections. How will that play out this year?
Kat: One of the biggest challenges we’ve faced as our conference continues to grow is maintaining that feeling of being able to attend and find the right people who will truly help take your business to its next step, whatever that may be. With an event that quite literally now has too many new people to meet each year, how do we facilitate the connections and long-term relationships our event has become known for?
To meet competing needs for both scale and intimacy, we’ve worked to create spaces within the larger event to facilitate those natural connections. If you’re new to the industry, I recommend becoming an AAPL member and signing up for one of Monday’s in-person member courses, Certified Private Lender Associate or Certified Fund Manager 201. You’ll start the conference by meeting people looking for the same foundational knowledge as you. Our AAPL Roundtables are also organized to cap the conference to answer any questions you may still have and so you’re able to leave the event with several known peers. This year, in addition to our Startup, Grow, Scale, and Debt Funds mainstay roundtables, we’ll also host two additions – Operations and Licensing Compliance.
But the real star of the show—that we hope will make every element of your conference experience more intentional and accessible—is our new app. (So if you still have the one from last year, delete it; we’ve got a new version in the app stores.)
With the app, you can search by and filter attendees according to industry sector to find the types of folks you want to connect with, and after creating that connection, message one-on-one or in groups—and then export all your connections to .csv. Post to the event community in special feeds for meetups, “looking for…,” and more. See who else is attending the same sessions you’re interested in to get an idea of who might be dealing with the same business challenges you are. Use the session Q/A feature in the app to ask and upvote questions real time. And if you’re task-driven or of a competitive frame of mind, our event game gives you points for attending sessions and connecting with other attendees.
There’s so much more, from 3D maps to personalized agendas—all custom-designed by our team based on 16 years of industry event feedback. It’s not perfect (I’ve yet to see an app ever launch without a few kinks and bugs to work out)—but as a start to continue building from, it’s the one conference tool you’ll want to have ready.
(You can download it on iOS, Android, or as a web app at https://aaplonline.com/official-app)
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Uriel: For those who’ve never attended, what makes AAPL Annual the event they simply can’t miss?
Kat: People earmark time for what they find important. So the best answer I can give is that 900-plus industry peers come back again, and again, and again—making this not only the largest event for the industry, but one that annually breaks its own record. That speaks clearer than I ever could about why this is the one event you shouldn’t miss.
Kat, thank you again for sharing your time and insight with us — and congratulations on everything you and the AAPL team are building. I’ll see you in Vegas!
AAPL Annual #16
Las Vegas – November 10–11, 2025
aaplonline.com/conference
The Nation’s Largest Private Lender Event
