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Peer Fund / Dealmaker·Specialty Finance

Andrew Murstein

Chief Executive Officer at Medallion Financial Corp

New York, NY

AM
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Why they matter

Third-gen operator who rebuilt a taxi-medallion lender into a diversified $2.8B specialty finance platform and just took the CEO seat outright.

Background

Andrew Murstein is the third-generation leader of Medallion Financial Corp (NASDAQ: MFIN), the specialty finance company his grandfather founded in 1937 as a taxi medallion lender. A Tufts and NYU MBA graduate who joined the family business in 1990 and took it public in 1996, he spent three decades as President/COO diversifying the balance sheet from taxi medallions (now under 1% of assets) into consumer, RV/marine, and fintech lending through subsidiaries like Medallion Bank and Medallion Capital. He was named CEO effective January 31, 2026, as his father Alvin transitions to Executive Chairman ahead of a planned 2027 retirement.

Notable deals

  • 2004
    Sold Medallion Taxi Media, the taxi rooftop/in-cab advertising subsidiary he built from a $1M investment, to Clear Channel Communications
  • 2021
    Sold Medallion Financial's majority stake in Richard Petty Motorsports to GMS Racing owner Maury Gallagher for $19.1 million
  • 2026
    Appointed Chief Executive Officer of Medallion Financial Corp, completing a planned succession from his father Alvin Murstein

Call-prep brief

Andrew Murstein — CEO, Medallion Financial Corp

Background: Grandson of Medallion's 1937 founder; joined full-time in 1990, took the company public in 1996 (ticker TAXI, now MFIN). Spent 30+ years as President/COO before being named CEO effective January 31, 2026, as father Alvin becomes Executive Chairman through 2027.

Current focus: Completing the pivot away from taxi medallion lending (now <1% of assets) into consumer installment loans, RV/marine/trailer financing (via Medallion Bank), and small-business lending (via Medallion Capital). Company reports record earnings and ~$2.8B in assets.

What he cares about: Diversified, disciplined underwriting; capital allocation and shareholder value; his personal investment style is notably slow ('I meet someone at least five times before deciding whether to invest').

Recent moves: CEO appointment (Jan 2026); exited non-core ventures (Richard Petty Motorsports, 2021; taxi media, 2004) to focus capital on core lending.

Potential sensitivities: In May 2025, Murstein personally settled SEC fraud charges (paid a $1M penalty; Medallion paid $3M) over allegedly touting Medallion stock via undisclosed paid promoters and pressuring an appraiser to inflate Medallion Bank's valuation in 2016-2017. He did not admit wrongdoing but is now under a permanent injunction against false/misleading investor statements — expect this to color how he discusses disclosure and governance.

Questions to ask:

  1. How has the SEC consent judgment changed governance, disclosure controls, or the board's oversight of Medallion Bank's valuation process?
  2. With taxi medallions nearly fully wound down, where is incremental capital being deployed next — fintech partnerships, RV/marine, or M&A?
  3. Now that he holds CEO, President, and COO titles concurrently, is the board planning to separate any of these roles?

Outreach draft

Subject
Congrats on the CEO role, Medallion
Andrew, Congratulations on stepping into the CEO seat at Medallion Financial — a fitting next chapter given how much you've reshaped the lending book away from taxi medallions toward consumer and small-business finance. I'm reaching out from [Firm Name]; we're doing work in the specialty finance and consumer lending space and would value your perspective on where diversified lenders like Medallion see the most durable growth right now — fintech partnerships, RV/marine, or elsewhere. Would you have 20 minutes in the next couple of weeks for a call? Happy to work around your schedule. Best, [Your Name]

Linked companies

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