# Episode 3 - The Co-Founder: Part 1

Each episode of the WealthForge podcast _Forge in Focus_ is designed to help you learn more about the members of our team, and for Episode 3 we shine the spotlight on WealthForge Co-Founder Mat Dellorso.

In Part One, “Expanding Opportunity through Technology,” Mat shares how he got started in finance and the alternative investment industry and explains how WealthForge first came to be. In conversation with Client Success Associate Alex Pauliukonis, Mat explains how the economic downturn in 2008 exposed gaps in opportunities for recession-resilient industries and how he believed technology could close those gaps—the seed of an idea that would eventually grow into WealthForge.

“We believe alternative investments are exactly those things we were looking for in 2008,” Mat said. “The 60/40 portfolio isn’t resilient as it once was or as it should be, and it could be a whole lot more resilient if you sprinkle in 5, 10, [or] 20 percent alternatives.”

Listen to the six-minute first part of _Forge in Focus_ Episode 3 to learn more, and be sure to check back soon for Part Two!

Matt Interview-pt1 | HubSpot Video

#### [QOZ 2.0: How the One Big Beautiful Bill Act Transforms Opportunity Zone Management](https://www.wealthforge.com/wealthforge-insights/qoz-2.0-how-the-one-big-beautiful-bill-act-transforms-opportunity-zone-management)

[Alex Pauliukonis](https://www.wealthforge.com/wealthforge-insights/author/alex-pauliukonis): Sep 18, 2025 9:58:29 AM

The "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" has fundamentally changed the Qualified Opportunity Zone program structure. Here's what sponsors need to understand...