GENNADY BARSKY

Visionary Entrepreneur

Even as a kid, Gennady Barsky knew how to turn adversity into strength. His American success story began in 1996, when the faculty of his Northern California high school awarded him their highest honor.

A Soviet refugee from Moldova, he had been in the United States for just 7 years. In that time, he learned English and mastered technology, leading a team of students building four fiber optic labs for the high school.

“If you take the trajectory of what he did, the evidence of his maturity, his acumen, his character, how stellar he was as an all-around human being in high school, he was wired to be great,” recalled his former high school principal, Maurice Ghysels.

Flash forward to 2024. Barsky today is a successful husband, father of three, entrepreneur and global investor. A lover of art and a wine collector, he became a founder of global startup JetSmarter, has the “Midas Touch” when it comes to real estate, and has continued his decades-long interest in developing cutting-edge technological tools.

$ 1.6B
ENTERPRISE VALUE
1996
START OF ALL

Timeline

1996

Graduated high school with top honors, Bank of American Achievement Award presented by David A. Coulter, President and Chief Executive Officer.

[1996]

1997

Cybersecurity Consultant

[1996-1997]

1998

Founder and Chief Technology Officer

[1997-2000]

1999

Founder and Managing Partner of boutique Venture Capital Firm

[1999-2013]

2000

Founder and EVP, Corporate Affairs

[2000-2012]

2003

Worked as a private cyber security consultant for Nevada Pacific Consulting LLC, a private company owned by Workday founder David Duffield, who would later describe himself as a friend and investor when asked about Barsky.

[2003-2011]

2006

Co-managed a Real Estate Investment Fund

[2006-2012]

2011

Redeveloping affluent Los Angeles properties

[2011-2013]

2013

Piloted start-up JetSmarter into a true unicorn.

[2013-2019]

2014

As executive chairman of the Verzasca Group, Gennady Barsky played a critical financial and management role in developing South Florida luxury real estate.

[2014-2016]

2016

In early 2016, Gennady Barsky and his wife found a new construction parcel in Bal Harbour, one of the most upscale villages in the greater Miami area.

[2016-2021]

2019

Gennady Barsky first came to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2014, establishing important business partnerships, attracting investors, and making lifelong friends.

[2019]

1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2003
2006
2011
2013
2014
2016
2019

Real Estate Projects

Gennady Barsky understood the value of the internet in its early days. As a teenager, he watched his parents buy their first home and realized the internet could be combined with real estate to make home buying simpler and faster.

He created a database of MLS listings, inventing the first fintech platform, though no one called it that. Its name was California Home Search and it was an online real estate portal. He next created one of the first online mortgage portal, which eventually became Rates.com in 1999. The project was funded by top VC firms for $4.5 million, and Barsky raised another $12 million within six months. The company was acquired by Norwest Venture Partners, a division of Wells Fargo Bank, in 2000.

Beyond technology, Barsky discovered he had the “Midas touch” when it came to spotting luxury properties that could be developed and resold for far more than the original investment.

Success Stories

65 Camden Ct., Bal Harbour, FL 33154

November 2017

ACQUIRED

8741 St. Ives Dr., West Hollywood, CA 90069

August 2012

ACQUIRED

1054 Shadow Hill Way, Beverly Hills, CA 90210

June 2012

ACQUIRED

1387 N. Doheny Dr., West Hollywood, CA 90069

March 2012

ACQUIRED

11960 Crest Place, Beverly Hills, CA 90210

June 2011

ACQUIRED