Private equity investor Garland Wayne Benton Jr. is the director of business development at Direct Equity Source in Austin, Texas. The company is a premier real estate private equity firm focused on acquiring and managing investments in climate-controlled storage and light office/industrial flex space business parks. The company raises capital from accredited investors and then partners with established developers to capitalize on high-potential opportunities in Texas, Florida, and North Carolina. Garland Wayne Benton Jr. has been with the company since January 2024.
Before, Mr. Benton was a business development executive at Inveniam Healthcare in McKinney, Texas. He supported the investment firm which provided growth capital to companies serving the addiction treatment subsector of the healthcare industry. Earlier in his career, he served as a senior vice president of business development at Fig Tree Capital Ventures LLC, where he developed hard asset portfolios for high-net-worth investors in real estate, technology, and energy.
Mr. Benton has over 20 years of experience in private equity. He has been involved in over $500 million of investor capital raises and deployments in energy and real estate projects. He holds a BA in business from Northeastern State University and previously held FINRA Series 22 and 63 securities licenses.