Our Team
The financing professionals at BlackSand Capital possess extensive real estate and capital markets experience, having overseen the investment of approximately $4 billion across all property sectors since 2000.
Nothing can replace the competitive advantage of local presence in a unique environment that demands creativity, flexibility, and decisive action.
B.J. Kobayashi
Managing Partner and Co-Founder
BJ Kobayashi is the Managing Partner and Co-Founder of BlackSand Capital. Mr. Kobayashi is also a member of the firm's investment committee and oversees the investment and operational activities of the company. In addition, Mr. Kobayashi is a Founding Partner of the Kobayashi Group, a property development and real estate investment firm based in Honolulu, which he co-founded in 1996. Mr. Kobayashi has 21 years of experience in real estate investment. Over the course of his career, Mr. Kobayashi has been involved in over $3.5 billion worth of real estate investments in hotels, residential, retail, land and mixed use developments.
Mr. Kobayashi graduated from Punahou School, Georgetown University’s School of Business with a major in International Business, and Georgetown University’s Law Center, where he earned a Juris Doctorate degree. Mr. Kobayashi serves on the board of directors of the Hawaiian Electric Company and is a Trustee of the Hawaiian Tax-Free Trust, Hawaii’s largest municipal bond fund. In 2011, the late U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye appointed Mr. Kobayashi to the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Committee, where he served as co-chair of the Budget and Finance sub-committee.
Mr. Kobayashi is active in community service where he serves as the President of the Georgetown Club of Hawaii, co-founder of the GIFT Foundation of Hawaii, Board member of the Shane Victorino Foundation and Director for Inspire the Keiki Foundation. Mr. Kobayashi is also a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization.
As third generation investors in Hawaii, our reputation for integrity and leadership matters even more than our innovative market expertise.
Ian W. MacNaughton
Managing Partner and Co-Founder
Ian MacNaughton is the Managing Partner and Co-Founder of BlackSand Capital. Mr. MacNaughton is also a member of the firm’s investment committee and oversees the investment and operational activities of the company. In addition, Mr. MacNaughton also serves as a Partner with The MacNaughton Group, a family owned real estate development firm.
Prior to his positions with BlackSand Capital and The MacNaughton Group, he worked in the Acquisitions Group of Starwood Capital Group Global, the Investment Management Division of Goldman Sachs & Co., and the Investment Banking Division of UBS. In other areas of business Mr. MacNaughton was formerly Chairman of the Twin Farms Collection, LLC, a luxury hospitality property in Vermont.
Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Mr. MacNaughton received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Los Angeles. His active professional memberships include the Urban Land Institute, the International Council of Shopping Centers, and the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties. As part of his extensive charity work, Mr. MacNaughton serves on the Board of Directors of the Hawaii State Chapter of the American Red Cross and the GIFT Foundation of Hawaii.
Bryan K. K. Li
Executive Vice President
Bryan Li is a member of the firm’s acquisitions and asset management team, and is responsible for BlackSand's transactional activity and business plan execution. Prior to joining BlackSand, Mr. Li was at Cirrus Asset Management from 2009 to 2010, where he was the Vice President and Hawaii Regional Supervisor responsible for acquisitions and asset management of multifamily assets. Previously, he spent five years at Fowler Property Acquisitions as Vice President of Acquisitions and Asset Management for the Hawaii region, where he managed a $100 million real estate portfolio consisting of over 1 million square feet of commercial real estate. Before joining Fowler in 2004, Mr. Li was in the Investment Banking Division at Credit Suisse First Boston from 2000 to 2003. There he was involved with more than $15 billion in merger advisory and capital markets transactions.
Mr. Li is an active alumnus of Iolani School and Georgetown University where he graduated with a B.S. in Business Administration. He is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), the Georgetown Club of Hawaii, and serves on the boards for NAIOP Hawaii, Shioi Construction and Hoo Cho Chinese School. Mr. Li is also a 2010 Pacific Century Fellow.
Benjamin J. Wang
Executive Vice President
Benjamin Wang is a member of the firm’s acquisitions and asset management team, and is responsible for the transactional activity and business plan execution of BlackSand. Prior to joining BlackSand, Mr. Wang was at The Shidler Group from 2006 to 2010, where he worked on the acquisitions and dispositions of over $500 million in commercial property throughout Honolulu, Southern California, and Phoenix.
Mr. Wang received an MBA with a focus on real estate finance from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the University of California at Berkeley. He is a member of the California Alumni Club of Hawaii, and serves on the board for the Urban Land Institute and Palama Settlement.
Will Nguyen
Associate
Will Nguyen is responsible for investment underwriting and analysis for BlackSand. Previously, Mr. Nguyen was a senior manager on the Business Development & Strategy and Corporate Development teams at Microsoft, where he was responsible for the execution of strategic acquisitions, equity investments and partnerships. Prior to Microsoft, Mr. Nguyen was in the Investment Banking Division at Merrill Lynch & Co., where he was involved in the execution of merger advisory and financing transactions.
Mr. Nguyen was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii and graduated from Punahou School. He received a B.A. degree from the University of Washington, a Juris Doctor degree with honors from Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, and is a licensed attorney in the State of California.
Michael M. Purpura
Chief Legal Officer
Michael Purpura is the Chief Legal Officer and Chief Compliance Officer and is responsible for the legal, compliance, risk, and ethics functions of BlackSand Capital. Prior to joining BlackSand Capital, Mr. Purpura was a partner and member of the Executive Committee of Carlsmith Ball LLP. He also has extensive government experience, having served as Associate Counsel to President George W. Bush and as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York and District of Hawaii.
Mr. Purpura received a B.S. in Economics from the United States Military Academy and a J.D. from the Columbia University School of Law. He is President of the Hawaii Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, President of Kahiau: A Tennis Foundation, an Advisory Board Member of the Hawaii Innocence Project at the University of Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law, and a Trustee of Linsly School in Wheeling, WV, from which he graduated.
Holly A. Park
Chief Financial Officer
Holly Park is responsible for the financial, accounting, and investor-related functions of BlackSand. Prior to joining the firm, Holly was a senior manager at KPMG LLP from 1999 to 2010. Ms. Park has over 10 years of experience in providing financial audit and accounting services to companies ranging in size from large public to small private clients. She is skilled in various industries, including financial services, real estate, hospitality, and not-for-profit organizations.
Ms. Park was born in Honolulu, Hawaii and received a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, with a concentration in accounting, from Seattle University.