Real Estate Committee
Explore the Business Innovation of Blockchain Technologies.
Our Real Estate Commitee
Become A Part Of FBBA
John Markunas
Real Estate Chairman
John Dean Markunas is a real estate industry blockchain advisor and business development consultant. He is the Principal Consultant with Power of Chain Global Consultancy LLC, a blockchain advisory firm.
Mr. Markunas’ work covers several distinct real estate sectors; property title insurance, real estate transactions, real estate tokenization along with a special focus on global land registry systems and land governance.
He has over 30 years of commercial real estate experience including marketing and sales, real estate development, brokerage, appraising, and title insurance focusing on the U.S. and Latin America markets. Outside of the U.S. he has lived and worked in Mexico and Brazil.
John is an enthusiastic advocate and supporter of blockchain technologies. He is an active member of the following blockchain organizations:
Foundation for International Blockchain Real Estate Expertise (FIBREE)
Non-profit based in The Netherlands. New York City and Region Chapter Chair.
Mr. Markunas is a prominent public speaker on blockchain use in the real estate industry, author of several articles covering a variety of topics on blockchain and its impact on real estate industry processes. He is a GBA Certified Training Instructor.
Mr. Markunas has a BS degree in Business Administration from Florida State University. He also holds an MBA in Finance and Marketing from the University of San Francisco, State of California. He is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese.
Raleigh "Lee" Steinhauer
Real Estate CoChairman
Raleigh “Lee” Steinhauer, Esq. is President and founder of The Steinhauer Group, LLC, a strategic government & legal affairs firm located in Central Florida. He also currently serves as Government & Legal Affairs Director for the Greater Orlando Builders Association (GOBA), and Government Affairs & Legal Counsel for the Apartment Association of Greater Orlando (AAGO).
Lee obtained his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from the University of Delaware, and juris doctorate from Seton Hall University School of Law. Lee previously worked as an attorney in New Jersey and New York, and is currently licensed to practice law in Florida, New Jersey, and New York.
Lee is active in business and community related organizations in Central Florida and is currently Chair of the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce Governmental Affairs Committee. Lee was also a member of the 2019-2020 Orange County Charter Review Commission.
Lee is the author of the book The Art of The New Cold War: America vs China. What America Must Do to Win. The book analyzes the geopolitical clash between America and China and explores the areas of national defense, foreign policy, education, immigration, technology, and the economy.
Lee lives in Winter Garden with his wife Allison, son Alexander, and a sheltie named Peyton.
Laura Pamatian
Real Estate Member
Laura
Pamatian, a resident of Delray Beach, Florida, has 20 years of experience in
the domestic and international marketing and sales of luxury resort and
vertical real estate development. She has represented many prestigious offerings
of 5-star Residences by globally recognized brands, including; The Ritz
Carlton, Mandarin Oriental, Auberge Resorts and The Grand Hyatt, to name a few.
She
is the Founder of HeightZero Real Estate and Consulting (HeightZeroRealEstate.com),
assisting developers and commercial property owners with proper direction on
the journey into alternative capital raise and liquidation of
equity utilizing AI and Blockchain Technology. Her advisory
experience in strategy and application is growing exponentially across the
industry spectrum as this cutting-edge tech gains traction.
A
key member of the growing FIBREE Miami Chapter (Foundation for International
Blockchain and Real Estate Expertise – fibree.org), Laura is instrumental in branding FIBREE
throughout the State of Florida. She organizes initiatives and events to create
more public and private sector awareness and understanding of the
transformative technology blockchain brings to the Real Estate Industry. She is
also a member of GBA (Government Blockchain Association – gbaglobal.org), and FBBA’s
Real Estate Committee (Florida Blockchain Business Association – fbba.io). She organizes
initiatives and events to create more public and private sector awareness and
understanding of the transformative technology blockchain brings to the Real
Estate Industry.
With
a passion for decentralizing the human identity and returning the value of
buying decisions back to the individual, she believes blockchain technology is
the 4th industrial revolution. The goal to redistribute wealth across
developed, undeveloped, and underdeveloped nations drives her forward every
day.
On a
personal note, Laura finds solace in yoga, surfing and hiking. Her passion
project creates a safer world for children. She is the Founder of No More
Johns, a nationwide coalition combating human trafficking and the demand for
child sex by targeting and ending the buyer cycle. She also hopes to utilize
blockchain technology to create a platform to support this cause.
Chip Ridge
Real Estate Member
Chip is a graduate of Washington & Lee and received
his MBA from the Owen School at Vanderbilt University. He is married to Carrie and they have four
children. Outside of work, his hobbies include golf and horse racing when not
watching kids’ sports.
Jason Bennick
Real Estate Member
Jason Bennick is a 25-year technologist and startup veteran in building and innovating technology at both Fortune 500 and small enterprise level. He currently leads emerging technology solution development as President of the Digital Innovation Group under GA Telesis™, one of the world’s largest aerospace and aviation secondary market providers with over a billion in assets under management.
He is also CEO of Blockrails, an enterprise FinTech in the US real estate market focused on using emerging technologies and blockchain in the fight against payment fraud.
Quube Exchange (Quantum Warriors OU)
Quube Exchange is a secure token fabric & marketplace for the venture capital market and the first & only quantum resistant ecosystem for the crypto industry, where Mr. Bennick is Chairman of the Board of Directors.
Mr. Bennick is also a public speaker on blockchain and startups and the use of emerging technologies and has authored a number of articles on the impact of blockchain and new technology across business. He is also a Certified Blockchain Professional.
Mr. Bennick has a BBA with Honors from AIU in International Business, and graduated the MIT Sloane entrepreneur boot camp, MIT’s blockchain innovation program, and the INSEAD Business School Blue Ocean Strategy program.
Mr. Bennick is always open to new collaborations and can be reached at [email protected] and welcomes everyone to visit www.dig.tech.
Joe Bettag
Real Estate Member
Joe Bettag, the Broker/Owner of Coastal Properties has been an investor within the Crypto/Blockchain for several years and is involved heavily within the growing Blockchain industry in Florida. He has over 35 years of experience that includes private equity and managing large real estate holdings for a NYSE listed organization for five years. He serves on the Miami-JTHS Association of Realtors Board of Directors which is the largest Realtor association within the U.S. with over 50,000 members.
Coastal Properties was founded in 1991 serving the south Florida market and offers services that include residential and commercial brokerage and management as well as real estate development opportunities. Our established network of real estate brokers can provide similar services through-out the U.S. In 2021, a new division was dedicated to address the growing need for the use of crypto/blockchain technology when buying real estate – Coastal Properties Blockchain Division. One of the priorities for this Division will be the creation of a training program for real estate agents to learn more about using cryptocurrency to buy real estate and a knowledge base on the blockchain technology.
The Committee
Mission Statement
The FBBA Real Estate Blockchain Committee (“Committee”) provides blockchain technology education, awareness and understanding to all sectors of the State of Florida’s real estate industry.
Goals
The committee strives to connect with all segments of the real estate industry on both a private and public level to 1) educate, 2) recommend and 3) assist with the implementation of blockchain solutions and bridge the gap to state, county and municipal recognition and support of blockchain adoption.
The ultimate goal serves to form a more perfect union between and among Florida government and the citizens they serve in the State of Florida.
Committee Objectives
To staff and structure the Committee with interested and qualified volunteers to assist with the development of a communication outreach platform and execute agreed upon milestones;
To develop promotional, marketing and educational materials for use with outreach messaging to public and private individuals and organizations which fall within the overall sphere of influence of the State of Florida’s real estate industry;
To lead and assist with blockchain pilot programs and subsequent implementation and adoption;
To unite real estate regulators, government leaders, representatives, and industry leaders to create a technologically innovative business environment which benefits all Floridians.
Committee Roles and Responsibilities
Chair: John Dean Markunas
Committee membership by invitation only
Other leadership roles to be defined
Potential Committee Initiatives to include but not be limited to the following:
Development of educational webinars and related events
Creation of a standard blockchain and real estate educational slide deck
Development of a list of real estate representative organizations or associations
Creation of public-private outreach channels to communicate with industry organizations and government entities
Blockchain awareness survey for county recorder’s offices
Development of a blockchain manual or guide book specific to land registry
Creation of a FBBA real estate/blockchain news and article channel
Research of possible new legislation needed in relation to the use of blockchain in different real estate sectors i.e. recorder’s office implementation, legal and regulatory aspects of tokenization and crypto use
Florida’s Real Estate Industry Sectors
