Wells Fargo exec’s LLC buys NFL player’s $9 million Charlotte mansion, records show
Editor’s Note: This story was updated on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, with comments by Captal One executive Neal Blinde.
A Wells Fargo executive’s limited liability corporation bought the south Charlotte mansion of former Carolina Panthers star linebacker Shaq Thompson, public records show.
The $9 million sale of the 11,000-square-foot, custom-built estate on Nov. 7 set a record in the Carmel Park neighborhood, on Carmel Park Drive off Fairview Road, according to Florida-based Premier Sotheby’s International Realty. Agent Ben Bowen of the firm’s Lake Norman office in Cornelius sold the home.
On Sunday, Neal Blinde, Capital One president of commercial banking and former Wells Fargo treasurer, said he bought the property.
“I’m the 100% owner of the LLC,” Blinde told The Charlotte Observer, referring to Merced Real Estate Holdings LLC. Merced is listed as the new owner of the mansion, Mecklenburg County property tax records show.
The sale was the third-highest ever of a home in Charlotte, Premier Sotheby’s officials said in a statement, citing the national Multiple Listing Service database of real estate transactions.
Thompson listed his gated estate about a month after signing a one-year free-agent contract with the Buffalo Bills.
He played 10 years with the Panthers before the team released a goodbye statement on social media in February.
Exec also worked at Bank of America
Merced Real Estate Holdings LLC is listed as the new owner of the mansion, Mecklenburg County property tax records show.
Bryant Holloway Owens of Charlotte is listed as the manager of the LLC in its articles of incorporation filing with the North Carolina Secretary of State’s office in Raleigh.
“I don’t have any financial interest in the house,” Owens told The Charlotte Observer on Saturday, adding that he doesn’t intend to move into the home.
He declined to specify why he’s involved in the LLC, which was incorporated three days before the sale of the home, according to its filing. The LLC’s address in county property tax records is the same as Owens’ home address in south Charlotte.
Owens is a senior vice president and the head of global funding and collateral management at Wells Fargo in Charlotte, his LinkedIn bio shows. He has worked at the bank for nearly 22 years.
He previously worked at Bank of America, including nearly four years as principal of its European syndicate, based in London, England. He formerly worked as a high grade trader for six years at BofA, trading investment grade products in Charlotte, according to his bio.
Owens obtained his MBA in finance at the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business, where he is an alumni board member.
Owens and his wife, Maria, still own their south Charlotte home, which they bought for $1.5 million in 2013, public records show.
Owens also volunteers as chairperson of the board at Charlotte-based Alexander Youth Network, which treats children who have emotional and behavioral issues.
‘Elevated the standard for luxury’
Known as Three Little Birds, Thompson’s former estate is in the 5500 block of Carmel Park Drive.
The home includes a two-story great room with dual chandeliers resembling those in a grand European hotel lobby, according to its listing.
Other features include a main-level primary suite, two offices, a home theater, entertainment area with a billiards lounge with full bar; spacious kitchen; formal and informal living areas and a playroom. Its wellness center has a gym, sauna and steam shower, according to the listing.
The 1.7-acre fenced property also includes a resort-style pool, a covered cabana, a four-car garage and a full-size sports court.
Charlotte-based Arcadia Homes built the light-stucco home in 2020, and Charlotte-based Christopher Phelps Design Group was the architect.
The home has six bedrooms and eight bathrooms.
“Shaq crafted a home that elevated the standard for luxury, design and lifestyle in Carmel Park, and buyers felt that from the moment they walked in,” Bowen said in a statement at the time of the sale.
This story was originally published December 6, 2025 at 9:19 AM with the headline "Wells Fargo exec’s LLC buys NFL player’s $9 million Charlotte mansion, records show."