Shadow banking has been growing in importance over the past few years. It is a sometimes faster and more flexible way for borrowers to have access to capital. Shadow banking companies are non bank entities that are providing services similar to those traditionally provided by banks. However shadow institutions generally do not carry banking licenses and do not take depository funds and therefore not held to the same regulations as banks. They typically tend to act as intermediaries between investors and borrowers. For example, an institutional investor such as an insurance company may be looking to lend money and a builder may be searching for monies to borrow. A shadow banker will assist the builder in obtaining the desired investment funds from the insurance company and in turn will profit from the difference in the interest rates between what it pays the investor and receives from the borrower. Because of its greater flexibility, shadow banking plays an important role in providing credit across the commercial real estate markets