This year’s US Leaders Special Report reflects the new realities of American public affairs. As one Catholic left the White House after Joe Biden decided, at last, to withdraw from seeking a second term of office, Donald Trump returned to power with another Catholic – JD Vance – as his vice president, and a cabinet packed with conservatives who wear their faith on their sleeves.
In this second section of the report, we look at those who have made a significant impact in finance. Capital is a moral instrument. We’re spotlighting those Catholic leaders in finance who pair prudence with purpose, funding affordable housing, tuition access, religious liberty, poverty relief and mentoring the next generation.
Stephen Auth
CIO, Federated Global Equities
Stephen Auth is a member of the Regnum Christi movement and sits on the national board of the Lumen Institute, which he helped found, in New York. Professionally, Auth serves as chief investment officer of Federated Global Equities, as well as executive vice president of Federated Investors. He leads a team of more than 100 portfolio managers, analysts and traders who manage Federated’s $60+ billion in domestic and international equity investment products. Auth is a frequent guest and guest anchor on CNBC, Fox Business News and Bloomberg TV. In his 2019 book, The Missionary of Wall Street, he describes how he is a missionary on the streets of New York, where he strives to bring lapsed Catholics back to the Church.
Christopher F Brown
Founder and Director, GEM Group
Christopher Brown is the founder of GEM Group. Today, through its US affiliate, Gem Investments America LLC, he oversees a portfolio of dozens of global companies at GEM’s New York office. He began his finance career with Drexel Burnham Lambert in the 1980s, later joined Smith Barney as an investment adviser and worked for Shearson Lehman Brothers from 1988 to 1993. He served on the board of directors of the Global Leadership Foundation and is the co-Chairman of L’Officiel, the iconic French lifestyle magazine. As President and Chairman of The Catholic Herald, he supports many Catholic foundations and events in the US and UK.
John K Castle
CEO, Castle Harlan
John K Castle is chairman and CEO of Castle Harlan, chairman of Branford Castle Inc and co-founder of Castle Connolly Medical. A former CEO of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, he is a graduate of MIT and Harvard Business School.
Daniel Catone
CEO, Arimathea
Daniel Catone is the CEO of Arimathea, which he leads as a Catholic-values investing firm following a successful career in wealth management. He is a member of the board of trustees of Catholic Answers and is a graduate of Whittier College, from where he joined the United Nations in Geneva before pivoting to Edward Jones Investments and, later, Redwood Investments. As a practicing Catholic, Catone often speaks about how his faith guides his decision-making and inspires him to contribute positively to society.
Glenn Creamer
Senior MD, Providence Equity Partners
Glenn Creamer is a senior managing director of Providence Equity Partners, a global private equity firm based in Rhode Island which manages funds of around $27 billion in commitments. He currently serves as a director of Catholic Relief Services, the international humanitarian agency, and is vice chairman and treasurer of the Catholic Relief Services Foundation. Creamer is also the president of the Thomas Becket Foundation at Brown University, his alma mater, whose mission is to provide financial support for the Catholic ministry at Brown and Rhode Island School of Design. Creamer is a financial adviser to Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence, and a member of the Papal Foundation.
Gerard Cuddy
President and CEO, Beneficial Bank
Gerard Cuddy joined Beneficial Bank in 2006 and was named president and CEO in 2007. Under his leadership, Beneficial has focused on providing the bank’s customers with the tools and knowledge to help them do the right thing financially. Cuddy is a board member of the Foreign Policy Research Institute, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, the Philadelphia Orchestra, Philadelphia Hospitality, and the Board of Education for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. His awards include the Distinguished Catholic Graduate Award and the American Catholic Historical Society’s Barry Award.
William P Curtis
Principal, Porter & Curtis
William P Curtis is a principal in Porter & Curtis, an insurance and risk management firm. It is a division of Heffernan Insurance Brokers and is especially active in Pennsylvania. He is a graduate of St Joseph’s University and Temple University School of Law.
Robert Del Genio
Senior MD, FTI Consulting
Robert Del Genio is a leader in restructuring and mergers and acquisitions with over 35 years of experience. Within FTI Consulting, Del Genio is co-leader of the corporate finance and restructuring segment’s New York metro region; he specialises in advising companies, lenders, creditors, corporate boards and equity sponsors across a diverse range of industries. Del Genio currently serves on the board of directors of Panavision and on the University of Notre Dame Undergraduate Experience Advisory Council. He served as chairman of St Agnes Finance Council in Greenwich, Connecticut for 24 years. He has also served as a sponsor in the Student Sponsor Partners programme at Cardinal Hayes High School. Del Genio is a recipient of the St Augustine Medal of Service from the St Agnes Parish (Diocese of Bridgeport). He was awarded the 2022 St Francis Service Award from Catholic Renewal in association with Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York.
J Christopher Donahue
CEO, Federated Hermes
Christopher Donahue serves as president and CEO of Federated Hermes inc, one of the US’s largest investment management and financial services companies with over $50 billion in assets. Across his extensive career, he has been the head of 22 different companies. Donahue graduated from Phillips Academy in 1967, Princeton University in 1971, and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1974. He is chairman of the boards of St Vincent College, Lumen Institute and the Extra Mile Education Foundation, and serves on the boards of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and the World Affairs Council.
Louis T Donatelli
Founder and chairman emeritus, Donatelli Development
Louis Donatelli is chairman emeritus of Donatelli Development. Donatelli started his professional career in the stock-brokerage and investment banking business. In 1969 he formed Donatelli, Rudolph & Schoen, a DC-based stock brokerage firm, and in 1973 he formed Donatelli & Klein Inc to invest in and develop real estate. Donatelli serves on the board and has received the President’s Medal from his alma mater, St John’s College High School. He is an alumnus of Villanova University, where for nine years he served on its board of trustees, was a member of the executive committee and received the President’s Medal. He is a member of the Order of Malta and is affiliated with Associated Catholic Charities, which benefits needy families in the Washington area. In 2009, he received the Catholic Business Man of the Year Award.
Mary Callahan Erdoes
CEO, JPMorgan Asset & Wealth Management
Mary Callahan Erdoes is CEO of JPMorgan’s Asset & Wealth Management line of business with $2.4 trillion in assets. A practising Catholic, Erdoes is an alumna of the all-girls Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart and also a graduate of Georgetown University and Harvard Business School. She is a board member of the Robin Hood Foundation and the US Fund for UNICEF.
David Fischer
President, St Joseph GP
David Fischer has been president of management consultants St Joseph GP since 2011. He is on the board of directors for Catholics Come Home, the Augustine Institute, the Papal Foundation and St Michael’s Abbey Foundation. He is also on the advisory board for the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture at the University of Notre Dame. He is a member of Legatus, and of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. He received a BBA degree from the University of Notre Dame in 1989.
Mario Gabelli
Founder, Gabelli Asset Management Company Investors
Mario Gabelli is a successful stock investor and financial analyst. He is the founder, chairman and CEO of Gabelli Asset Management Company Investors, an investment firm headquartered in New York. In 1965, Gabelli won a scholarship and graduated from Fordham University summa cum laude. In both September 2010 and December 2020, Fordham University announced that Gabelli, through the Gabelli Foundation, had made the largest gifts in the university’s history, with donations of $25 million and $35 million. He also helped create the Boston College Presidential Scholars Program, which in 2014 was renamed the Gabelli Presidential Scholars Program, in recognition of his continued support.
John Galvin
Founder, Triskelion Consulting
John Galvin, a resident of San Francisco, founded Triskelion Consulting with a primary focus on leadership coaching and business consulting. Galvin has a proven track record of guiding organisations through significant transformations. Although his parents were originally from County Kerry, they met and married in New York. After a long and successful career in tech, Galvin is now a leadership coach who helps others pursue their dreams.
Niall J Gannon
Financial adviser
Niall Gannon has been recognised as one of the US’s top 100 financial advisers by Barron’s and Registered Rep (now WealthManagement). He has appeared on CNBC and NPR and been quoted in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and Barron’s. He has written a number of investment books and is affiliated with the Institute for Private Investors, CFA Institute Committee for Investment Policy and the Papal Foundation, the Roman Catholic Foundation, and Cor Jesu Academy. In the village of Boyo in Kenya, he helped to found the Rev James Kisero Children’s clinic. He has also received the Silver Congressional Award, the President’s Volunteer Service Award, and is a member of the Order of St Louis the King in the Archdiocese of St Louis.
David Glidden
CEO, Liberty Bank
David Glidden is president and CEO of Liberty Bank of Middletown, Connecticut, and a member of the board of directors and president of the Liberty Bank Foundation. With $7.4 billion in assets, Liberty is one of the oldest and largest mutual banks in the country and was named the 2021 best-in-state bank in Connecticut by Forbes. Glidden has also been a long-time active philanthropist with numerous charitable organisations including the Archdiocese of Hartford, Connecticut and the Diocese of Springfield, Massachusetts.
John R Greed
President, Mutual of America Life Insurance Company
John R Greed is president, chairman and CEO of Mutual of America Life Insurance Company. Previously, he was Mutual of America’s senior executive vice president and chief financial officer. Greed joined Mutual of America in 1996 after 14 years at Arthur Andersen, where he had risen to partner. He ensures the company remains active in philanthropy and has stated that it is dedicated to “making a positive impact in the communities where we all live and work”. He currently serves on the board and executive committee of the Greater New York Councils of the Boy Scouts of America, the board of the Life Insurance Council of New York, and the board of trustees of La Salle University. Greed is also a member of the Archdiocese of New York’s finance council.
David Hanna
Co-founder, Atlanticus Holdings Corporation
David Hanna serves as the executive chairman of the board and co-founder of Atlanticus Holdings Corporation, a company that has been at the forefront of developing and implementing consumer credit solutions since its establishment in 1996. Beyond his business endeavours, Hanna actively engages in various philanthropic activities. He is a trustee and co-founder of Holy Spirit Preparatory School in Atlanta, Georgia, and is a member of the board of trustees for the Lumen Institute as well as the Knights of Malta. His past involvement includes serving on the boards of Catholic Charities of Atlanta and St Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.
Jacqueline Halbig von Schleppenbach
Founder, Sovereign Global Solutions
Jacqueline Halbig von Schleppenbach is the founder of Sovereign Global Solutions and a former staffer in the White House Office of Faith-based Initiatives. A graduate of the University of North Carolina, she is a board member of the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast.
James Hislop
Co-founder and MD, Penske Capital Partners and TRP Capital Partners
James Hislop is a co-founder and managing director of two private-equity investment firms, Penske Capital Partners and TRP Capital Partners. Since 1997, these firms have raised five investment funds, leading to over $1 billion primarily in control equity investments within the transportation industry. In addition to his contributions to the business sector, Hislop holds the position of vice chairman of the board of Lumen Institute and he is a co-founder of the Hislop Family Foundation, which focuses on causes related to children, cancer research, Christianity and organisations assisting individuals with cerebral palsy.
Sean Kelleher
President, Wall Street Access
Sean Kelleher joined Wall Street Access in 1992 and has helped guide the firm through successful ventures in online brokerage, institutional research and trading and asset management. He manages a team of traders and salespeople and is responsible for providing leadership and awareness of the firm’s execution and research offerings. A graduate of Wagner College, Kelleher serves on the college’s alumni board. He is actively involved in New World Preparatory Charter School, Camp Good Grief and Project Hospitality.
Peter Lynch
Investor and philanthropist
Peter Lynch is an investor, mutual fund manager and philanthropist. As the manager of the Magellan Fund at Fidelity Investments, Lynch helped make it the best-performing mutual fund in the world. The Lynch Foundation, valued at $125 million, has made $80 million in grants since its inception. The foundation supports education, religious organisations, cultural and historical organisations, hospitals and medical research. Lynch attended Boston College, to whom he gave $10 million and whose School of Education and Human Development carries his name. Lynch received the 1992 Seton Award from the National Catholic Education Association.
Scott Malpass
Co-founder, Catholic Investment Services
Catholic Investment Services co-founder and board chair Scott Malpass is a former chief investment officer at the University of Notre Dame, responsible for investment of the university’s endowment, working capital, pension and life-income assets of some $14 billion. He is a concurrent assistant professor of finance in the Mendoza College of Business at Notre Dame. Malpass is a director or advisory council member for several investment and charitable organisations. He has been advising the Holy See on banking reforms initiated by the late Pope Francis since the first months of his pontificate, and in 2016 was appointed to the board of the Vatican Bank.
Mark McCaffrey
CFO, GoDaddy
Mark McCaffrey, who lives in San Jose, California, is the chief financial officer of GoDaddy. His experience in the technology, media and telecommunications sector spans over two decades, during which he held various roles at PwC. A graduate of Pace University, McCaffrey has actively contributed to his community through board memberships. He served as a board member at the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose and holds the position of president of the board at Kristi Yamaguchi’s Always Dream Foundation.
Mary Mooney
Co-CPO, Virtu Financial
Mary Mooney is the co-chief people officer at Virtu Financial, a leading provider of financial services and products which leverages cutting-edge technology to deliver liquidity to the global markets and innovative trading solutions to its clients. In 2022, she was a finalist in Traders Magazine’s US Women in Finance Awards. Prior to her time at Virtu, Mooney worked in the securities division at Goldman Sachs and at the New York Stock Exchange. Mooney serves on the board of directors of the Alfred E Smith Memorial Foundation.
Brian Moynihan
Chairman and CEO, Bank of America
Brian Moynihan is chairman and CEO of Bank of America. He comes from an Irish Catholic family of nine children; his brother Patrick served as a missionary in Haiti. Their father was a research chemist with DuPont. After Brown, Moynihan graduated from Notre Dame Law School. He sits on the American Heart Association CEO Roundtable, the Business Council and the Federal Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Board. He supports the Prince of Wales’s Sustainable Markets Initiative, launched by the king in 2020. In 2020, Moynihan was named Chief Executive magazine’s CEO of the Year. Moynihan sits on the Vatican Council for Inclusive Capitalism.
Kathleen Murphy
Former president, Fidelity Investments
Kathleen Murphy is a former president of Fidelity Investments. She is a board member at Snyk Technologies and an advisory board member at Flipt RX. Murphy also holds positions on the board of directors of the Markle Foundation and is the vice chair of the board of directors of the National Football Foundation. She has been named among the 50 most powerful women in American business by Fortune and the 25 most powerful women in finance by American Banker.
Robert H Niehaus
Chairman and founder, Greenhill Capital Group
Robert H Niehaus is the chairman and founder of Greenhill Capital Group and has served in this role since 2000. A veteran in the field of private equity, he has over 35 years of experience and has previously held several senior positions at Morgan Stanley where he spent 17 years. Niehaus is a devout Catholic and contributes to various philanthropic and educational initiatives. He serves as the chair of the New York Catholic Foundation and the Finance Committee of the Archdiocese of New York, showcasing his commitment to supporting Catholic causes. Additionally, he is a board member of the Gilder-Lehrman Institute of American History and has endowed the Niehaus Center for Globalization and Governance at his alma mater, Princeton University.
Seán O’Dowd
Managing director, Silvercrest Asset Management
Seán O’Dowd, CFA is a well-known member of the Irish and Irish American community of New York City. As an Irish Business Organization executive board alum serving three terms as First Vice President, he has donated his time and skills to many organisations including the Irish American Writers and Artists and Graduate Gateway. He also serves on the Board of the Emerald Isle Immigration Center. He has been the recipient of several accolades such as The Significant Sig Award and, in 2023, Grand Marshal of the County Sligo Social & Benevolent Association St Patrick’s Day Parade march up Fifth Avenue, an honour close to his heart as the son of a Sligo immigrant. In 2020, he became the first North American Ambassador for the Glasgow-based Celtic FC Foundation and is also part of the Globalcelts network. With an MBA in Finance from the Yale School of Management, he is currently Managing Director of Silvercrest Asset Management, a position held since 2018 after over 12 years as Senior Vice President at Bessemer Trust. He resides in East Norwalk, CT, with his wife Kristan and their twin girls. He has been a committed adviser and supporter of St Patrick’s Maynooth for several years.
Edward O’Brien III
Chairman, Sophis Investments
Edward O’Brien is chairman of Sophis Investments in New York. He has held senior roles in the financial sector at companies such as Prudential Bache Securities, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and Guggenheim Securities. O’Brien is a practising Catholic and often assists at Mass with Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York. He is currently the chairman of Fordham University’s President’s Council and a board member of the Catholic Communal Fund. He is also chairman of the leadership committee of the Archdiocese of New York’s Cardinal’s Appeal.
Jim O’Donnell
Vice chair, Citi
Jim O’Donnell is the vice chair at Citi. A graduate of Princeton, where he studied comparative religion, his faith is integral to his life and he nearly became a priest. At the age of 36, when CEO of HSBC’s securities and global equities businesses, he resigned to join a seminary in Long Island. After 18 months wrestling over whether he had a vocation to the priesthood, O’Donnell decided he didn’t share fully the Church’s social teachings, so returned to his former life. This challenging formative experience made him determined to “do well for himself and do good in the world”. O’Donnell is one of New York’s most successful and respected Irish American bankers. In 2017, he was recognised at the Ireland Funds Gala dinner in New York for his “business acumen and philanthropic commitment”. This included his sponsorship of scholarships for underprivileged children to attend Catholic schools in the New York area.
Jim Perry
MD, Madison Dearborn Partners
Jim Perry is a managing director with the MDP Telecom, Media & Technology Services team. He previously worked with First Chicago Venture Capital and the First National Bank of Chicago. Perry serves on the boards of Asurion Corporation, Centennial Towers, The Topps Company and NexGen Capital Partners. A practising Catholic, he sits on the board of the Finance Council of the Archdiocese of Chicago and is a member of the Lumen Christi Institute. In addition, he is on the board of overseers of the University of Pennsylvania School of Arts and Sciences, serves on the Finance Council of the Archdiocese of Chicago and is the chairman of the board of Empower Illinois.
Christopher Poch
Founder and CEO, Promethium Advisors
Chris Poch is a private wealth specialist at Promethium Advisors. He is currently an adviser to several technology startups focusing on cybersecurity, fintech, and ag-tech. He began his career as a financial adviser in Washington, DC then moved to New York. Poch is on the board of councillors of the American Association of Order of Malta and in Rome, the communications board of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St John, of Jerusalem, Rhodes and of Malta, and the Human Services Foundation. He has also served on many boards and committees including the Society of the Sacred Heart. He and his wife Dee live in Bethesda, Maryland and have three daughters.
Juan Pujadas
Former principal, PwC
Juan Pujadas is the former principal and global chairman of PwC, a board member of Wells Fargo and adviser of early-stage companies to Blumberg Capital. He graduated from the Wharton School and has held many other board memberships.
Philip J Purcell
Former chairman and CEO, Morgan Stanley
Philip J Purcell is a former chairman and CEO of Morgan Stanley. He previously worked at McKinsey and Co and served as the chairman and CEO of Dean Witter. While there, he was the chief architect of the firm’s acquisition of Morgan Stanley. Purcell attended Judge Memorial Parochial Catholic High School and then the College of the Holy Cross and the University of Notre Dame. In October 2006, he contributed $12.5 million for the renovation of the Notre Dame basketball arena, which was renamed the Purcell Pavilion in his honour.
Leslie C Quick III
Founding partner, Simon Quick Advisors
Leslie C Quick is a founding partner of Simon Quick Advisors, having been with the company since 2004. A devout Catholic, he serves on the boards of Bishop’s Finance Council for the Diocese of Metuchen, the Finance Council for Our Lady of Perpetual Help, the Council for Economic Affairs of the Order of Friars Minor in Rome, the Sisters of St Francis of the Neumann Communities, and the board of trustees of Saint Patrick’s Cathedral. He is a trustee emeritus at St Bonaventure University.
Marcos A Rodriguez
CEO, Palladium Equity Partners
Marcos A Rodriguez is the chairman and CEO of Palladium Equity Partners in New York, which he founded in 1997. He also serves on the boards of Taco Bueno, Castro Cheese, the New York Presbyterian Hospital and the Robert Toigo Foundation. Prior to his career in private equity, Rodriguez worked in operations for General Electric Company in the US, Mexico and France.
Peter de Svastich
Managing director, GEM Group
Peter de Svastich is an Hungarian-born, Princeton-educated managing director of The GEM Group and various subsidiaries. A long-time squash and court tennis champion, his primary background is in finance and banking. While in grade school in Manhattan, he served as an altar boy at the Church of St Thomas More to the likes of Bishop Fulton J Sheen and Francis Cardinal Spellman. As managing director of The GEM Group, he is responsible for the overall operations of GEM in Latin America, Mexico, Central America, and Southern Europe. He received a BA cum laude from Princeton University, an LLB and JD from the Yale Law School, and a Latin American Teaching Fellowship from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
Anthony Tersigni
President, Ascension Health
Anthony Tersigni is the president and CEO of Ascension Health, a faith-based healthcare company and the world’s largest Catholic health system.A devout Catholic, Tersigni has emphasised the importance of Catholic values in healthcare leadership, advocating for ethical decisions rooted in the Church’s social teachings. His faith has shaped his commitment to providing holistic, person-centred care that respects human dignity and the sanctity of life.
Paul Tramontano
Executive managing director, Cresset Capital
Paul Tramontano is the executive managing director at Cresset Capital. Previously he was senior managing director at First Republic Investment Management and CEO at Constellation Wealth Advisors. He graduated from Villanova and the Wharton School of Business.
Vincent Viola
Founder, Virtu Financial
New Yorker Vincent Viola is the founder of Virtu Financial and has served as the executive chairman since November 2013. He graduated from West Point Military Academy in 1977 and served in the 101st Airborne Division. After military service, Viola joined the New York Mercantile Exchange and served as its chairman. In 2008 he founded Virtu Financial and took the company public in 2015. He owns the Florida Panthers Hockey Club and co-owns Always Dreaming, the 2017 Kentucky Derby winner.
RELATED: US leaders special report: business and philanthropy
Photo: graphic by Arcadia
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