Sean Schneider has always wanted to be an investor.

That’s why he studied business, finance and economics in college. He was also pre-med.

“I wanted to make enough money so that I could invest money,” he said. “I know how to utilize money. I don’t really care about it for myself. I just want to be able to utilize it to build things that can create better scenarios for, say, a city. I wanted to invest in cities to make them better.”

Little did Sean know that a lawsuit settlement stemming from an injury would provide him with a shortcut to fulfilling his dream.

Another fortuitous event unfolded during a brewery tour in Sean’s hometown of Milwaukee. That’s where he met a gentleman named Scott Lurie, who would become Sean’s investment partner. The two embarked on a commercial real estate investment partnership that spans a wide range of projects, including 200,000-275,000-square-feet industrial properties and 200-unit apartment buildings.

But for all the success that Sean was having with real estate, he was frustrated by the fact that the minimum $25,000-$50,000 investment was keeping his friends out of the game. He mentioned this to his cousin, Matthew Schneider, and Matt got to thinking. He was inspired and began looking into how the blockchain and fractionalized shares could open the investment market to someone with as little as $500. 

“We just kind of continued on that and started plugging all these little pieces together,” Sean said. “Matt found a software development company to start programming it and we were off to the races.”

Added Matthew, “I took Sean’s ideas and I came back to him with a business model. I kind of put the pieces together and said, ‘O.K., we have something here. If we were to put capital into this and flesh out the idea, we would actually have a functioning business.’ And that’s what we did.”

And with that, the e-States online platform was launched to build communities while democratizing commercial real estate and unlocking it for the masses. Now, the startup is raising a Seed Round through the crowdfunding site ChainRaise; it is attracting international attention; and the e-States team is considering applying its technology to small business investment.

But for now, the focus is on commercial real estate. 

Using blockchain technology and AI, the startup tokenizes assets and streamlines administrative responsibilities. The end result is an easing of the managerial workload, thus encouraging property owners to bring on additional investors.  

With simple but effective smart-tech solutions, e-States establishes the groundwork for property owners and developers to onboard their assets to Web3. Following the legal process, tokens are distributed to investors through the e-States marketplace and capital is transferred to the real estate project. Each token represents a digital certificate of ownership and offers transparency, security, efficiency, automation and liquidity.

Matthew and Sean believe the financial entry barrier keeping enthusiastic investors from commercial real estate can be overcome through the empowerment of property sponsors. That empowerment can be found in tools that allow for better fundraising and project management. At the end of the day, e-States streamlines administrative duties; transforms overhead management; fractionalizes institutional-grade assets; and saves time and money for all involved. 

The great strides that e-States is making toward leveling the playing field for commercial real estate investment mark a new chapter for Matthew. An entrepreneur who authored and published a novel while a teenager, he also led small-cap and derivative trades in the stock market. Now, he is once again tapping his entrepreneurial spirit for an endeavor that began with talk of him managing properties. As the CEO of e-States, Matthew has firmly established himself as a Gen Z thought leader.

And e-States is garnering national acclaim.

The Wisconsin division of NAIOP, a commercial real estate association, welcomed Matthew and Sean to address the organization on the use of blockchain in real estate.

e-States was also named a finalist in an elevator pitch competition hosted by HKSTP, a business incubator for technology and innovation. Now, completing their Seed Round and relaunching their platform is next on the e-States list of milestones.

And all of this is unfolding in service to the mission driving all things e-States. 

“My entire premise is to help build a better city,” Sean said. “If there are more people that can invest in a project, there are more people who want that project to be successful, and they want the area to be successful. With real estate, potential investors can go and see a building; they can touch it — it’s a tangible thing. That’s important because it makes them care more about their community; that’s how lowering the barriers to commercial real estate investment can improve an area, a city, a community.”

Added Matthew, “If you want the citizens of a city to invest in their city, you actually have to make it possible.”

Visit e-states.com to learn more.