Editor in Chief
Monitor
Welcome To The July/Aug Issue of Monitor, Which Focuses on The 2025 Monitor 101+ Companies And Technology. This year’s issue lands at a time of ongoing transformation for our industry. The Monitor 101+ report reflects contraction in terms of participants — just 25 companies submitted data this year, down from 35 in 2024 — but expansion in clarity of purpose. Amid macroeconomic headwinds and competitive shifts, Monitor 101+ companies are embracing a more focused approach, prioritizing efficiency, technology investment and strategic growth. While total net assets held steady at $3.5 billion, projections for 2025 suggest a healthy 23.6% increase, indicating confidence in what lies ahead.
The 2025 Monitor 101+ data also tells a story of divergent strategies. Some companies are scaling aggressively, while others are pulling back or consolidating. As we explore in this issue, a tightening focus on core markets, portfolio quality and tech-enabled processes is helping these organizations weather volatility while preparing for future opportunities and responding to market shifts.
Technology is at the heart of this evolution. Private credit continues to move in on traditional bank territory, as Emily Hammond notes, with its speed, flexibility and hunger for yield forcing established players to modernize their models. Meanwhile, Scott Nelson and Bob Rinaldi explore how data visualization — paired with AI — is streamlining operations like syndication and transforming decision-making at the ground level.
Sales professionals are also being challenged to evolve. Scott Kiley reminds us that it’s time to move beyond bidding and start building consultative, tax-smart relationships that drive real value. And Ken Greene provides a sobering look at what brokers are up against in 2025, from increasing regulatory pressure to rising concerns around licensing, AI and data privacy.
Many of this issue’s contributors underscore the same theme: that technology is no longer a back-office function — it’s a growth strategy. Whether it’s AI tools predicting delinquencies with stunning accuracy, or CRM integrations slashing turnaround times by 98%, the industry is embracing the fact that automation, when applied intelligently, unlocks capacity.
But transformation isn’t only about technology. As John Sullivan points out, the industry’s business models themselves are evolving — especially with the growing shift toward usage-based financing. Pricing consumption risk, he argues, will become as important as pricing equipment, as lessors adapt to a world where asset ownership is no longer the default.
Amid this innovation, regulatory vigilance remains critical. Ty Schwamberger continues his Collectors’ Chronicles series, covering federal and state compliance and offering practical, high-stakes insight into what it takes to stay protected in a landscape where one misstep can carry real consequences.
As we close out this issue, our team is already hard at work on our upcoming Sept/Oct issue, which will introduce Monitor’s inaugural Most Influential People in Equipment Finance and spotlight the Top 20 Market Leaders across several key asset classes. It’s going to be a powerful showcase of leadership and expertise — and we can’t wait to share it with you!
