Anne F. Ackerley is a Senior Advisor to the Retirement business at BlackRock. She was previously the Head of BlackRock’s Retirement Group, overseeing the defined contribution and retirement insurance businesses. Under Anne’s leadership, these businesses grew to $1.6t in AUM– reaching over 80,000 plans and more than 40 million Americans. Anne developed and brought to market LifePath Paycheck™ – an innovative new lifetime income solution that is now available in defined contribution plans.

Anne joined BlackRock in 2000 and has held numerous leadership positions, including COO for the Global Client Group, Chief Marketing Officer for the firm and Head of the mutual fund business. Anne started her career in investment banking at Merrill Lynch.

Anne has written and spoken extensively on retirement readiness and women's leadership – and has won awards for her leadership in the industry and her work advancing gender equity. In 2024, she was named to Barron’s “100 Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance” for the fifth year in a row. Anne was also named to P&I’s inaugural list of “Influential Women in Institutional Investing.” In 2022, she made Forbes’ 50 over 50 list and Yahoo Finance’s list of “HERoes Women Role Model Executives” in 2019. In 2018, she was honored for her outstanding leadership in financial services with the Women's Bond Club Merit Award.

Anne currently sits on the Board of Trustees for Northwestern Mutual. She is on the Leadership Advisory for the Collaborative for Equitable Retirement Savings, the Aspen Institute Forum on Retirement Savings Advisory Council, and the World Economic Forum’s Longevity Economy Steering group. She was a board observer for Human Interest. Outside the industry, Anne is a trustee of the Mosaic Mental Health Association.

Anne has an MBA and a BA from Harvard University and resides in New York.

Omar Aguilar is the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Schwab Asset Management, and President and CEO of Charles Schwab Investment Advisory, responsible for leading, developing, and overseeing the firm’s investment strategies. He is also responsible for the Schwab Center for Financial Research, which provides quality research and education, timely market insights, and practical guidance to help millions of investors make informed financial decisions.

Omar has more than 25 years of broad investment management experience in the equity markets, including managing index, quantitative equity, asset allocation, and multi-manager strategies. Before joining Schwab Asset Management in 2011, Omar worked at Financial Engines where he was responsible for managing more than $40 billion in assets from leading retirement plan sponsors in the defined contribution market. Before that, he served as head of quantitative equity for ING Investment Management (now known as Voya Investment Management), building and developing the group and managing more than $20 billion in assets with 15 global active, index and enhanced index strategies for pension funds, variable annuities, and mutual funds. Omar also served as head of quantitative research for Lehman Brothers’ alternative investment management business and as a director of quantitative research and a portfolio manager with both Merrill Lynch Investment Management and Bankers Trust.

Investing In Integrity

Peter Akwaboah is Morgan Stanley’s Chief Operating Officer for Technology, Operations & Firm Resilience and a member of the Federal Reserve Bank’s (FRB) Payments Risk Committee. In the COO role, Peter is responsible for driving the strategic agendas of Operations, Technology and Firm Resilience, with a focus on transitioning the way Morgan Stanley delivers products and services on a global scale. As COO, Peter partners with all areas of the organization to support the firm’s PACE initiatives, and ultimately deliver the end-state operating model for Technology and Operations.

In addition, Peter serves as the co-head of the Morgan Stanley Black Employee Network Group (BENG). In this role, he supports and advocates for the development and advancement of our Black employees and communities. Prior to his role as COO, Peter was the Global Head of Shared Services and Banking Operations, as well as the COO for Global Operations.

Prior to joining the firm, he worked at Royal Bank of Scotland for 10 years with his most recent role in Asia Pacific as Chief Operating Officer for Operations, Technology and Corporate Service for the Asia Pacific region. Prior to RBS, Peter held a number of senior roles in both Operations and Technology at Deutsche Bank, KPMG and IBM.

Peter holds various degrees in Civil Engineering from The University of Birmingham, UK, and is on the Board of the Foundation of Orthopedics and Complex Spine (FOCOS). He has been a member of the Museum's Board of Trustees since 2021.

Christine Anderson is the Global Head of Corporate Affairs, overseeing Blackstone’s Public Affairs, Marketing, and ESG functions.

She leads Blackstone’s efforts related to Environmental, Social and Governance issues and she serves as the primary spokesperson for the firm, advising Blackstone’s senior leaders and business groups, as well as companies across Blackstone’s portfolio.

Before joining Blackstone in 2009, Ms. Anderson served as Communications Director and Director of Marketing to the former Governor of New York as well as Communications Director on the 2006 gubernatorial campaign. Before working in state government, Ms. Anderson was an Associate Director of Corporate Communications at UBS AG supporting U.S. media relations and serving as a spokesperson for the company’s Wealth Management division. During the 2004 U.S. Presidential election cycle, she served as a Deputy Press Secretary on the Kerry-Edwards campaign. Ms. Anderson also previously worked as an Account Director at the public relations firm Brunswick and as a Segment Producer for ABC News’ “Good Morning America” after starting her career in the Press Office of the Clinton White House.

Ms. Anderson received a BA from The College of the Holy Cross, and serves on the boards of the Blackstone Charitable Foundation, Bumble, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Diligent.

Sheila Bair has had a long and distinguished career in government, academia, and finance. Twice named by Forbes Magazine as the second most powerful woman in the world, she is perhaps best known as chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) from 2006 to 2011, when she steered the agency through the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.

A former finance professor and college president, Ms. Bair has been nationally recognized for her innovative initiatives to make college more accessible and affordable to all students. She is a frequent commentator and op-ed contributor on financial regulation and the student debt crisis, as well as author of the NY Times Best Seller, Bull by the Horns, her 2012 memoir of the financial crisis.

She is a founding director of the Volcker Alliance, established by Former Federal Reserve Board Chair Paul Volcker to build trust in government and is the founding chair of the Systemic Risk Council, which advocates for financial stability.

As the CFO of General Mills, I’m proud to lead a passionate team committed to supporting the business and our brands across the globe. I joined General Mills in 2009 and have held Finance leadership positions throughout my tenure. I received my MBA from the University of Michigan – Stephen M. Ross School of Business and completed my undergraduate studies at Stanford University.

Mandell Crawley joined Morgan Stanley in October 1992 as a High School Intern and now serves as Chief Marketing Officer for the Firm. Prior to this assignment, Mr. Crawley was Head of National Business Development and Talent Management for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management (MSWM) where he led an organization responsible for driving revenue and asset growth across the firm’s industry leading platform and improving the proficiency of our financial advisors, sales support, and field leadership talent.

Mandell held a succession of roles within the Business Development Organization as both a Regional and Divisional Business Development Manager for several key geographical markets across the wealth management unit. He was also Head of U.S. Fixed Income Sales and Distribution for MSWM’s Capital Markets Group, overseeing a large coverage team specializing in Interest Rates, Credit, Asset Back, Structured Products, and Municipal Bond Securities. In aggregate, Mr. Crawley spent 14 of his 22 years working within Fixed Income Capital Markets in various producing and managerial capacities.

He is a member of MSWM’s Management Committee, Field Management Operating Committee, Private Banking Advisory Board, Global Product Review Committee and the Multicultural Client Strategy Committee. Mr. Crawley received an MBA with honors from Fordham University and a B.A. in Economics from Northeastern Illinois University. He resides in Westchester County, NY with his wife Alison, and twin daughters, Jordyn and Jaedyn, and is a proud native of Chicago.

Mr. Richard K. Davis is a President & Chief Executive Officer at Make-A-Wish Foundation of America, an Independent Director at Mastercard, Inc., an Executive Chairman at U.S. Bank (Lawrence, Kansas) and an Independent Director at Dow, Inc. He is on the Board of Directors at Mastercard, Inc., Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education & Research, Dow, Inc., Minneapolis YMCA, International Monetary Conference, University of San Diego, Minneapolis Saint Paul Regional Economic Development Partners, The Itasca Project, University of Minnesota Foundation, YMCA Twin Cities and The American National Red Cross. Mr. Davis was previously employed as a Chairman by Minnesota Business Partnership, Inc., a Chairman by The Clearing House, a Trustee by The Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts, an Independent Director by Xcel Energy, Inc., a Chairman by Minnesota Orchestral Association, an Executive Vice President by Star Banc Corp., an Executive Chairman by U.S. Bancorp, an Executive Vice President by Bank of America, NA (USA), a Chairman by The Consumer Bankers Association, and a Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer by US Bank Trust, NA (St. Paul, Minnesota). He also served on the board at DowDuPont, Inc., The Mayo Clinic (Old), The Dow Chemical Co., Metropolitan Economic Development Association, Guthrie Theater Foundation, American Bankers Association, Inc., The Financial Services Roundtable, Greater Twin Cities United Way, National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Inc. and Visa International Service Association. He received his undergraduate degree from The California State University.

Britt Harris is a renowned investment leader and educator who has served as CIO or CEO for eight different investment firms, managing over $500 billion throughout his career. As the only executive to serve as CEO across all major asset categories - including Verizon (corporate), Texas Teachers (public), Bridgewater (hedge funds), and UTIMCO (university endowments) - Harris brings unique insight into leadership and financial stewardship. He founded the prestigious Titans of Investing program, which has trained over 1,000 graduates across 35 states and 14 countries, collectively creating 41 businesses valued at over $5 billion. His extensive experience includes serving on advisory boards for the New York Stock Exchange and Dallas Fed, advising five different countries on financial markets, and earning three lifetime achievement awards.

W. Bradford Hu is Executive Vice President and Chief Risk Officer for State Street Corporation, responsible for leading our risk management function globally. He is also a member of their Executive Committee, the company’s most senior strategy and policy-making team.
Before joining State Street Corporation, Brad was Chief Risk Officer and Executive Management Team member at Citigroup, where he led a global team of 4,000 professionals overseeing all major risk categories across the firm’s $2.3 trillion balance sheet. He significantly reduced the firm’s total portfolio stress losses by 30%, contributing to key credit rating upgrades. Previously, Brad was Chief Risk Officer for Asia Pacific, managing risk across 17 markets and a wide range of Citi’s business lines. Before Citi, he spent over 20 years at Morgan Stanley, serving as CEO of Morgan Stanley Taiwan and holding senior roles in Institutional Equity, Global Capital Markets, and Investment Banking. Brad brings over 15 years of on-the-ground experience in Asia, having lived and worked in Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Taipei.
Brad is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the Global Association of Risk Professionals and serves on the Board of Trustees for The Asia Society and The Museum of American Finance. He is a member of the Dean's Advisory Council for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s School of Science and the Advisory Board for the Amos Tuck School of Business.

Brad earned Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in electrical engineering and computer science with concentration in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1985 and a Master of Business Administration from the Amos Tuck School of Business Administration, Dartmouth College in 1989, where he was elected Edward Tuck Scholar.

Robin John is co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Eventide, a Boston-based investment advisor. Eventide strives to honor God and serve its clients by investing in companies that create compelling value for the global common good, which the company refers to as “investing that makes the world rejoice®.” He is responsible for the overall leadership of the organization, including strategy and growth, aligning team culture with mission and values, and the general operations of the company. Under his leadership, the firm has grown into a leader in values-based investing.

Prior to founding Eventide, Mr. John held leadership roles for Bank of New York Mellon. He also served as a business consultant for Grant Thornton. He has a degree in Economics from Tufts University.

Robin and his wife Jaunita co-founded Dil Se Foundation and, through the work of the foundation, founded Darsha Academy, a girl's school in Southern India. The school is committed to educating and empowering young women so that they can pursue career opportunities in the fields of science and fulfill their maximum potential.

Gunjan Kedia is Vice Chair of U.S. Bank Wealth Management and Investment Services, and a member of the U.S. Bank Managing Committee, its senior most leadership group. Prior to joining U.S. Bank in 2016, Gunjan held leadership positions at State Street Financial in Boston, where she served as executive vice president and led the investment servicing business in the Americas; BNY Mellon, where she was head of global product management; and McKinsey & Company, where she was a partner and a core leader of the financial services practice. She brings more than 27 years of financial services experience to her role.

Gunjan holds an MBA, with distinction, from Carnegie Mellon University and a bachelor’s degree in engineering, with distinction, from the Delhi School of Engineering. Gunjan was named to American Banker’s Most Powerful Women in Finance 2018, 2019 and 2020 lists as well as Barron’s 100 Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance list in 2021. She is also the recipient of the 2018 Carnegie Mellon University Alumni Achievement Award.

Gunjan is active in the community and serves on the boards of PBS, Business Advisors for Carnegie Mellon Business School, Junior Achievement USA, and CorStone.

Chris Larsen is Executive Chairman of Ripple’s board of directors and former CEO and co-founder of Ripple. Prior to Ripple, Chris cofounded and served as CEO of Prosper, a peer-to-peer lending marketplace, and E-LOAN, a publicly traded online lender. During his tenure at E-LOAN, he pioneered the open access to credit scores movement by making E-LOAN the first company to show consumers their FICO scores.

Howard Marks is a legend in the world of investing, known for his sharp insights and disciplined approach to risk. As the Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of Oaktree Capital Management, he has grown the firm to manage over $200 billion in assets, specializing in distressed debt and high-yield investments. With a career spanning Citicorp Investment Management and TCW Group, Howard has shaped modern investing through his expertise and widely followed memos. Beyond finance, he is dedicated to philanthropy, serving on the investment committee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and as an emeritus trustee at the University of Pennsylvania.

Joseph R. Martinetto is responsible for operations, infrastructure, and products for The Charles Schwab Corporation. This includes Charles Schwab Investment Management, Legal Services, Client Solutions, Community Services, Schwab's registered investment advisor affiliates and market strategists, and the Schwab Center for Financial Research. In addition, he leads Technology Services, Digital Services, Operational Services, and the Schwab Affiliated Banks.

Martinetto joined Schwab in 1997 as Senior Vice President and Treasurer. While he assumed the role of Senior Vice President of retail finance in 2001, Martinetto returned to the treasurer role in 2003, assuming incremental responsibility for financial planning and analysis and management information systems. He became the company's Chief Financial Officer in 2007 and held that position until May 2017.

Prior to joining Schwab, Martinetto was senior assistant treasurer at Transamerica Corporation, overseeing the asset/liability management function. Earlier, Martinetto worked at First Interstate Bancorp in a variety of positions, spanning treasury and financial management. At the time of First Interstate's acquisition by Wells Fargo, he was Senior Vice President and manager of the asset and liability management department.

Martinetto has a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics and economics from Claremont McKenna College and a Master of Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley.

Brian Moynihan leads a team of more than 210,000 employees dedicated to making financial lives better for people, companies of every size, and institutional investors across the United States and around the world.

Under his direction, Bank of America continues to be recognized as a leader in financial services. In 2024, the company was named one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential Companies and appeared on PEOPLE’S 2024 100 Companies that Care list. Bank of America also appears on Forbes magazine’s list for World’s Best Employers, as well as Fortune magazine’s list of World’s Most Admired Companies and Best Companies to Work For. The company has recently been named World’s Best Bank by Global Finance in 2023 and by Euromoney magazine in 2022, and has also been ranked four times on LinkedIn’s Top 50 Companies in the U.S. list.

Moynihan participates in several organizations that focus on economic and market trends, including the World Economic Forum’s International Business Council Stakeholder Capitalism Metrics Initiative (chair), the Financial Services Forum, the Bank Policy Institute, the Business Roundtable, The Clearing House Association (chair), the American Heart Association CEO Roundtable (co-chair), the Catalyst Board of Directors, the Council on Competitiveness Board and the Business Council. He also is chair of the Sustainable Markets Initiative, which was founded by His Majesty King Charles III, then The Prince of Wales, in 2020.

Moynihan serves as chair of the company’s Global Opportunity and Inclusion Council, as a member of the advisory council for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the Appeal of Conscience Board of Trustees. He also works with public officials, businesses and civic leaders at the local level through his participation on the Charlotte Executive Leadership Council, the Massachusetts Competitive Partnership and the Partnership for Rhode Island.

In addition, Moynihan is the chancellor of the Corporation of Brown University, a volunteer role that leads the 54-member Brown Corporation. Prior to that, he was a member of the Brown University Corporation's Board of Fellows for eight years after having served on the Board of Trustees from 2010 to 2016.

Jim O'Donnell is Head of Global Wealth Management. Previously, he was Managing Director and Global Head of Investor Sales and Relationship Management at Citi Markets and Securities Services. In this role, Jim was responsible for client distribution for equities, fixed income, currencies and commodities. Prior to that, he was Co-Head of Global Investor Sales, appointed in November 2007.

Previously, Jim served as Head of Equities, Americas at Citi. He joined the firm in July 1999 as Head of Equities, EMEA. Prior to joining Citi, Jim was President and Chief Executive Officer of HSBC Securities Inc. in New York. He was responsible for all equity, debt, futures and investment banking operations for HSBC in the U.S. and was CEO of HSBC James Capel, HSBC's global equity business.

Prior to HSBC, Jim was President and CEO of NatWest Securities in the United States. He held various roles at Drexel Burnham Lambert from 1986 to 1990, including Head of Sales and Trading for International Equities and Co-Head of Global Equity Trading. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in comparative religion from Princeton University.

Daniel Pietrzak (New York) joined KKR in 2016 and is a Partner of KKR. Mr. Pietrzak is a portfolio manager for KKR's private credit funds and portfolios and a member of the Global Private Credit Investment Committee, Europe Direct Lending Investment Committee and KKR Credit Portfolio Management Committee. Mr. Pietrzak is Chief Investment Officer of the KKR / FS Investments joint venture and Co-President and Chief Investment Officer for each of the business development companies managed by the joint venture, including FS KKR Capital Corp., which trades on the NYSE. He also serves of the board of directors of several KKR Credit portfolio companies, including Home Partners of America, Oodle Car Finance, Pepper and Toorak Capital Partners.

Prior to joining KKR, Mr. Pietrzak was a managing director and the co-head of Deutsche Bank’s structured finance business across the Americas and Europe. Previously, Mr. Pietrzak held various roles in the credit businesses of Societe Generale and CIBC World Markets. Mr. Pietrzak started his career at Price Waterhouse in New York and is a CPA. Mr. Pietrzak holds an M.B.A. in Finance from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. in Accounting from Lehigh University. Mr. Pietrzak serves on the Advisory Board for the Lehigh University Center of Financial Services.

Jack Pitts is a Senior Managing Director in the Legal & Compliance Group, where he serves as General Counsel of BAAM. Mr. Pitts is a Co-Chair of the Blackstone Diverse Professionals Network Task Force and a member of the Blackstone Charitable Foundation Leadership Council. Since joining Blackstone, Mr. Pitts has been involved in the legal structuring of BAAM’s customized multi-manager portfolios as well as the review, analysis and negotiation of investments by BAAM’s Special Situations investing group and other direct trading platforms and investment opportunities.

Before joining Blackstone in 2012, Mr. Pitts was an Associate at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP where he focused on advising sponsors of and institutional investors in private investment funds.

Mr. Pitts received a B.S. in Financial Management from Hillsdale College and a J.D. from Howard University School of Law, where he served as the Managing Editor of the Howard Law Journal.

Hester Maria Peirce is an American lawyer who serves as a Commissioner on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). She previously served as the director of the Financial Markets Working Group at George Mason University's Mercatus Center.

Peirce was confirmed by the United States Senate in December 2017 to fill a Republican vacancy on the SEC. She was sworn in on January 11, 2018, for a term ending in 2020, and her second term expires in 2025. Peirce is a former staff member of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and of the SEC. In 2016, she was nominated by President Barack Obama for Commissioner on the SEC, but the United States Senate did not act on her nomination.

Since 1992, Joel Peterson has taught courses in real estate, entrepreneurship, and leadership at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, with a focus on the effective management of growing companies and mentoring students as they navigate key life and business decisions. Outside of academia, he is Chairman of the Board of Overseers at the Hoover Institution and Chairman of the Board at JetBlue Airways. Over his 45-year career, Joel has served on more than three dozen boards, including The Dallas Market Center, Texas Commerce Bank, and Asurion, and currently sits on the boards of Franklin Covey and Packsize.

Joel is the Founding Partner and Chairman of Peterson Partners, an investment management firm with over $1 billion under management, having backed more than 200 companies across private equity, venture capital, real estate, and search funds. He previously served as CEO of Trammell Crow Company, then the world’s largest private commercial real estate developer. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and was valedictorian and student body president at BYU.

He has received multiple teaching awards at Stanford, including the 2005 Distinguished Teaching Award and the 2016 Robert K. Jaedicke Silver Apple Award. Joel and his wife, Diana, have been married for over 45 years and are the proud parents of 7 children and 25 grandchildren.

Since 1992, Joel Peterson has taught courses in real estate, entrepreneurship, and leadership at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, with a focus on the effective management of growing companies and mentoring students as they navigate key life and business decisions. Outside of academia, he is Chairman of the Board of Overseers at the Hoover Institution and Chairman of the Board at JetBlue Airways. Over his 45-year career, Joel has served on more than three dozen boards, including The Dallas Market Center, Texas Commerce Bank, and Asurion, and currently sits on the boards of Franklin Covey and Packsize.
Joel is the Founding Partner and Chairman of Peterson Partners, an investment management firm with over $1 billion under management, having backed more than 200 companies across private equity, venture capital, real estate, and search funds. He previously served as CEO of Trammell Crow Company, then the world’s largest private commercial real estate developer. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and was valedictorian and student body president at BYU.
He has received multiple teaching awards at Stanford, including the 2005 Distinguished Teaching Award and the 2016 Robert K. Jaedicke Silver Apple Award. Joel and his wife, Diana, have been married for over 45 years and are the proud parents of 7 children and 25 grandchildren.

John’s passion for investing began at age 12 when his father started buying him stocks as Christmas and birthday gifts. His interest in equities grew while in college and over the two-and-a-half years after graduation he worked as a stockbroker at William Blair & Company. In 1983, John founded Ariel to invest in undervalued small-and medium-sized companies. While our research capabilities have since expanded, his patient approach still anchors the firm today.

He received an AB in economics from Princeton University, where he was also captain of the varsity basketball team. John is active civically and professionally based on his belief that these engagements make him a better leader and a better investor. Beyond Ariel, he is a member of the board of directors of NIKE, The New York Times Company, Ryan Specialty Group Holdings and the Obama Foundation, and was a board member of McDonald’s for over 20 years. John also serves as Vice Chair of the board of trustees of The University of Chicago.

Yassaman is a partner in the Healthcare Investment Banking Group and runs the medical device coverage effort. She served as the group's business unit manager in 2008. Yassaman is co-head of the Georgetown University undergraduate and MBA recruiting efforts for the Investment Banking Division. She joined Goldman Sachs in 2005 as an associate and was named managing director in 2013 and partner in 2020.

Prior to joining the firm, Yassaman worked in the Investment Banking Division of Morgan Stanley and in the Corporate Development group at Avaya. Yassaman earned a BS in Foreign Service and an MBA, both from Georgetown University.

Greg Shell is a partner at Goldman Sachs. Previously, he worked at Bain Capital Double Impact as a managing director where he advocated for purposeful investment of capital to not only grow businesses but bring prosperity to people and communities.

Before joining Bain Capital, Shell served as a lead portfolio manager at GMO, senior equity analyst at Columbia Management Group, and as a consultant at Bain & Company in its strategy and private equity practice areas.

Greg earned his MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Michelle Seitz is a veteran CEO, investor and expert on global financial markets. She is the Founder and CEO of MeydenVest Partners, LLC., a private investment and strategic advisory firm.

Michelle served as Chair and CEO of Russell investments from 2017-2022. In 2022, Russell was one of the largest advisors in the world with over $300 billion in AUM and $1.2 trillion under advisement for clients in 31 countries. During her five year tenure as Chair and CEO, she reset the firm's vision and strategic direction, strengthened the executive team, modernized client offerings by adding leading-edge capabilities around private markets and ESG investing, and elevated diversity and inclusion programs. Michelle expanded the company around its purpose to improve people’s financial security.

Michelle is a frequent keynote speaker on global markets, financial security, inclusive capitalism, diversity and inclusion, leadership, and innovation. With over three decades of success as an investor and CEO, she consistently appears on Barron’s list of "The Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance," and American Banker’s list of the "Most Powerful Women in Finance." She was awarded an ‘Alumni Fellow’ by Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business in 2017.

Trae Stephens is a Partner at Founders Fund, where he focuses on startups operating in the government space.

Previously, Trae was an early employee at Palantir Technologies, where he led teams focused on growth in the intelligence/defense space as well as international expansion, helping large organizations solve their hardest data analysis problems. He was also an integral part of the product team, leading the design and strategy for new product offerings. While at Palantir, Trae also served as an adjunct faculty member at Georgetown University.

Prior to Palantir, Trae worked as a computational linguist building enterprise solutions to Arabic/Persian name matching and data enrichment within the United States Intelligence community. He began his career working in the office of then-Congressman Rob Portman and in the Political Affairs Office at the Embassy of Afghanistan in Washington, D.C. immediately following the installation of Hamid Karzai’s transitional government. Trae graduated from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.

Chris Varelas is a founding partner of Riverwood Capital, a private equity firm focused on high growth technology and technology-related companies in need of capital and expertise to scale on a global basis. Notable Firm investments include Alog, ForgeRock, Globant, GoPro and Vacasa. Notable personal seed and venture stage investments include FIGS, Berkeley Lights, Forge Global and Elemental Cognition.

Prior to establishing Riverwood, Chris worked at Salomon Brothers/Citi as Global Head of Technology, Media & Telecom Investment Banking, Head of Citi’s National Investment Bank, member of Citi’s Global Operating Committee and Culture Czar for all of Citi. As an investment banker, Chris’ primary focus was Mergers & Acquisitions, working on many of the landmark transactions that shaped the technology industry including Compaq/HP, Peoplesoft/Oracle and IBM/PWC. In addition, he was the lead team member for the Chapter Nine reorganization of the County of Orange, California. Chris was selected as one of the 100 most important deal makers by the New York Times and was named top “rainmaker’ in the technology sector by Dealmaker Magazine.

He serves on the Board of Trustees for the Aspen Institute for which he is a senior moderator and for which he co-founded the Aspen Finance Leaders Fellowship program, created to produce effective enlightened leaders in the financial services industry. He also sits on the boards of Nextdoor, for which he serves as Lead Director, and Insider.com, and the Advisory Boards for Braidwell, Elemental Cognition, Expansion Capital, Global Ventures, Streamlined Ventures and the RAND Corporation’s Center for Global Risk and Security.

Chris earned an MBA from the Wharton School of Business and a BA from Occidental College in Los Angeles, California. Chris was selected as the 2020 Occidental SEAL Award recipient for Professional Achievement.

Chris is the author of How Money Became Dangerous, the inside account of our turbulent relationship with modern finance.