# Steve Burke

> Steve Burke is the co-founder and CEO of Agora Data, an Arlington, Texas auto-finance technology company launched in 2017. A former dealership owner and auto-finance executive, he has focused on giving smaller loan originators access to analytics and capital markets. He also co-founded the National Automotive Finance Association.

- **Role:** Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer at Agora Data
- **Organizations:** Agora Data, National Automotive Finance Association, Center Street Finance, SFG Finance, BB&T / Regional Acceptance, FSB Financial, One Hour Acceptance
- **Education:** Executive education in artificial intelligence; not a degree, MIT Sloan School of Management, Cryptocurrency certificate; not a degree, MIT Media Lab
- **Known for:** Co-founded Agora Data in 2017., Co-founded the National Automotive Finance Association., Led Agora during its 2020 crowdsourced auto securitization and 2025 first rated securitization.

## Career timeline

- **Early career** — Owned and operated a Texas buy-here-pay-here dealership before moving into auto finance.
- **Early 1990s** — Worked in point-of-sale subprime finance and early auto-loan securitization.
- **Before Agora** — Led FSB Financial, which was sold to BB&T / Regional Acceptance; subsequently managed acquisitions there, led SFG Finance and co-founded Center Street Finance.
- **1996** — Co-founded the National Automotive Finance Association; its 30th anniversary was discussed in a June 2026 podcast.
- **2017** — Co-founded Agora Data; its loan exchange launched in April.
- **2020** — Agora completed its first crowdsourced auto securitization on December 29.
- **2024** — Named an EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Southwest regional finalist.
- **2025** — Agora announced its first rated asset-backed securitization, a $112 million transaction.
- **2026** — Agora partnered with Figure on tokenized auto loans through ALTRUVO.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Agora Data in 2017.
- Co-founded the National Automotive Finance Association.
- Led Agora during its 2020 crowdsourced auto securitization and 2025 first rated securitization.
- EY Entrepreneur Of The Year 2024 Southwest finalist.

## Latest updates

- **2026-06** — His son Matt Burke became president of the National Automotive Finance Association, which Steve helped establish.
- **2026-03** — Burke reported that Agora tokenized auto loans on March 9 using Figure infrastructure and received US dollars.
- **2026-02** — Agora and Figure announced their auto-finance partnership and ALTRUVO platform; the announcement also disclosed a Figure equity investment in Agora.
- **2025-06** — Agora announced a $112 million first rated securitization.

## Links

- Website: https://agoradata.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-burke-01

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/steve-burke
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-27