Opendoor taps longtime finance exec as interim CFO
The leadership shifts continue as Christy Schwartz, who has also served as the iBuyer’s chief accounting officer, steps into a role she held from 2022-2024.
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Opendoor names replacement for departing CFO
The shakeup in Opendoor's C-suite continues, this time with the company announcing a new chief financial officer. According to an SEC filing posted Sept. 19, Opendoor's current CFO, Selim Freiha, is leaving the role effective immediately. Christy Schwartz will step in as interim CFO starting September 30.
Schwartz had previously served a lengthy stint as interim CFO with Opendoor, occupying the role from December 2022 to November 2024. Other roles that Schwartz had filled at Opendoor include VP/corporate controller between August 2016 and March 2021, as well as chief accounting officer from March 2021 to May 2025.
Schwartz's compensation plan includes an annual base salary of $1.2 million and 400,641 restricted stock units.
The news comes as Opendoor has witnessed dramatic change in its leadership and major interest from investors in recent weeks. On Sept. 10, Opendoor announced the appointment of former Shopify COO Kaz Nejatian as its new CEO, replacing Carrie Wheeler who had resigned on Aug. 15 following pressure from activist investors. Opendoor co-founders Keith Rabois and Eric Wu have also recently returned to the company as members on the board of directors.
Opendoor also announced this week that it would be expanding its service area to the "entire continental United States" at some point "in the coming weeks."
Schwartz's tenure — and diversity of roles — at Opendoor suggest that she may be a trusted insider and stabilizer during periods of transition. The executive has been with the company through most of its milestones, including Opendoor's IPO in December 2020, the market downturn that followed it and ongoing leadership shuffles. She will resume the role as interim CFO at the end of this month.
Blackstone announces new leader following shooting
The global real estate firm and asset manager Blackstone announced two leadership changes on Sept. 19 as the company continues to recover from the July 28 shooting that resulted in the loss of a key executive.
Katie Keenan was appointed CEO and director of Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust, Inc. as well as Global Head of the Core+ Real Estate business. She succeeds Wesley M. LePatner, who served in both roles until she was killed in a shooting that took place in the lobby of Blackstone's headquarters in New York City.
The gunman, who was apparently targeting another tenant in the building — the National Football League — killed four people before killing himself.
Keenan has served in a variety of leadership positions at Blackstone since 2012. She is currently the CEO of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, a subsidiary of Blackstone. That role will be filled by Tim Johnson, who has been with Blackstone since 2011.