Ran Eliasaf’s Northwind Group sees big lending opportunities in commercial buildings that need a short-term lifeline. : Ran Eliasaf’s Northwind Group sees big lending opportunities this year in commercial buildings that need a short-term lifeline. The Manhattan-based, real-estate private-equity firm and debt-fund manager has already originated about $300 million in commercial-property loans through the first month of the new year — roughly twice the volume it did over the same stretch of 2023, according to Eliasef.