Zaneta Koplewicz
About Zaneta Koplewicz
Zaneta Koplewicz is Head of Shareholder Relations at Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust (BREIT) and a Senior Managing Director with Blackstone Real Estate. She joined Blackstone in 2021 and has led BREIT’s interface with clients and key stakeholders; previously, she spent 14 years at BlackRock, including as Managing Director and Global Head of Product Strategy for the Event Driven business. She holds a BA in Politics with a certificate in African American Studies from Princeton University and is 41 years old as of March 11, 2025 . BREIT has delivered a 10% annualized net return on Class I shares since inception over ~7.5 years and is ~85% concentrated in data centers, industrial and rental housing, providing context for performance alignment expectations tied to client outcomes .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blackstone Real Estate | Senior Managing Director | Since 2021 | Leads BREIT’s client and stakeholder interface; senior leadership role within Blackstone Real Estate |
| Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust (BREIT) | Head of Shareholder Relations | Since Dec 2023 | Manages investor relations and distribution partner engagement for BREIT |
| BlackRock | Managing Director; Global Head of Product Strategy (Event Driven) | 14 years | Built and grew strategic client relationships in North America; led product strategy and client engagement across institutional and private wealth |
External Roles
No external public company directorships or committee roles disclosed for Koplewicz .
Fixed Compensation
- BREIT does not pay compensation to executive officers; all compensation is paid by Blackstone. BREIT does not reimburse the Adviser for compensation paid to executive officers, and cannot identify portions of Blackstone compensation attributable to BREIT service .
- No BREIT employment agreements, pension/retirement benefits, perquisites, nonqualified deferred compensation, termination payments, or change-of-control payments exist for executive officers .
Performance Compensation
- BREIT does not grant options or equity awards to executive officers; policies on equity award timing are not applicable. Restricted stock grants are paid to non-employee directors and generally vest one year from grant, not applicable to executives .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Metric | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Individual ownership (Koplewicz) | Not disclosed | Koplewicz is not listed among individually-disclosed beneficial owners |
| Shares outstanding | 3,651,641,363 | As of March 28, 2025 |
| Blackstone ownership | ~$3.4 billion (shares and OP units) | Aggregate holdings across BREIT stock and OP units |
| Blackstone employees (incl. executive officers) ownership | ~$1.3 billion (shares and OP units) | Aggregate employee holdings |
| Non-employee director stock ownership guidelines | 5x annual cash retainer within 5 years | All non-employee directors are in compliance |
| Hedging policy | No company hedging policy | Insider trading policy exists; pre-clearance required for covered persons affiliated with Adviser/Blackstone |
Implications:
- Absence of a formal hedging policy is a governance gap; however, Blackstone pre-clearance requirements mitigate unauthorized trading risk .
- Lack of individual ownership disclosure for Koplewicz reduces visibility into personal alignment; aggregate insider holdings are sizable via Blackstone employees .
Employment Terms
| Term | Status/Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Employment agreement with BREIT | None | |
| Severance provisions (salary+bonus multiples) | None from BREIT | |
| Change-of-control provisions (single/double trigger, accelerated vesting) | None from BREIT | |
| Clawbacks | Not disclosed | |
| Indemnification agreements | BREIT maintains indemnification agreements with directors and officers | |
| Advisory Agreement (Adviser term) | Renewed Mar 6, 2025; expires Mar 31, 2026; subject to annual renewal |
Retention risk context:
- Executive roles and compensation are tied to Blackstone, not BREIT; continuity hinges on Advisory Agreement renewal and Blackstone employment status .
Board Service & Governance
- BREIT’s 2025 proxy lists nine directors; Koplewicz is an executive officer (Head of Shareholder Relations) and is not a director. Accordingly, she holds no board committee memberships and no board independence designation at BREIT .
- BREIT maintains separate Chair and CEO roles (Chair: Frank Cohen; CEO: Wesley LePatner as of Jan 1, 2025) and has no Lead Independent Director. A majority of directors are independent; all committees are fully independent .
Company board committee summary:
| Committee | Members | Chair | Independence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audit | Beier, Gilchrist, Lewis, Carras | Beier | All independent; Beier is audit committee financial expert |
| Compensation | Beier, Griffith, Lewis | Griffith | All independent; uses external consultant (Ferguson Partners; $30,000 fee) |
| Nominating & Corporate Governance | Gilchrist, Griffith, Lewis, Carras | Lewis | All independent |
| Affiliate Transaction | Beier, Gilchrist, Griffith, Lewis, Carras | Gilchrist | All independent; reviews related-party transactions |
Dual-role implications:
- No CEO/Chair dual role at BREIT; independence and committee-only composition mitigate conflicts. Koplewicz’s executive role is with Blackstone/Adviser, reinforcing the external management model and alignment via Blackstone rather than direct BREIT pay .
Director Compensation (Company context; not applicable to Koplewicz)
| Name | Fees Earned or Paid in Cash ($) | Stock Awards ($) | Total ($) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raymond J. Beier | 105,000 | 200,000 | 305,000 |
| Richard I. Gilchrist | 97,500 | 200,000 | 297,500 |
| Field Griffith | 97,500 | 200,000 | 297,500 |
| Edward Lewis | 97,500 | 200,000 | 297,500 |
| Susan Carras | 85,000 | 200,000 | 285,000 |
Notes:
- Annual retainer $290,000 (cash $90,000 + restricted stock $200,000); committee chair adders: Audit $25,000; other committees $15,000; Chairman add’l $100,000. Restricted stock grants based on Class I NAV at grant; vest one year from grant .
Performance & Track Record
- BREIT performance since inception: ~10% annualized net return on Class I; portfolio ~85% concentrated in data centers, industrial, and rental housing, benefiting from secular tailwinds .
- Koplewicz’s disclosed achievements center on institutional client relationship leadership and product strategy expertise from her BlackRock tenure and current role aligning investor communications with BREIT’s strategy .
Related Party Transactions (Context for alignment and governance)
- Management fee: 1.25% of monthly NAV for most share classes; $713.6 million incurred in 2024; paid partly in OP units .
- Performance participation: 12.5% of Total Return subject to 5% hurdle and high-water mark; details on quarterly shortfalls and accruals in 2024 .
- Insider trading policy: pre-clearance required; no company-level hedging policy .
Investment Implications
- Compensation alignment: Koplewicz’s pay is from Blackstone, not BREIT; direct pay-for-performance linkages at the BREIT level are not disclosed. Alignment is inferred through Blackstone’s ownership and governance but lacks visibility into her personal BREIT holdings .
- Selling pressure and vesting: No BREIT equity grants or options to executives; thus, limited direct vesting-driven selling pressure tied to BREIT awards. Restricted stock vesting applies only to non-employee directors, not to executives .
- Retention risk: Executive continuity is primarily tied to Blackstone employment and the Advisory Agreement term/renewals rather than BREIT contracts; current Advisory Agreement runs through March 31, 2026, mitigating near-term transition risk .
- Governance: Independent committees and separation of Chair/CEO support oversight; lack of a formal hedging policy is a governance gap partially offset by Blackstone pre-clearance protocols .
- Trading signals: Without Form 4-level disclosures for Koplewicz and without BREIT-granted equity, insider selling cues are limited. Monitoring Blackstone employee aggregate holdings and Advisory Agreement developments remains more informative near term .