St. Louis Business 500: Banking and Finance
The St. Louis Business 500 highlights some of the metro area’s most impactful, innovative, and inspirational leaders, from C-suite executives to under-the-radar entrepreneurs across an array of industries.
Beyond the brief bios below, we created a questionnaire to shed light on some of these leaders’ achievements, aspirations, and interests beyond the office. Click the names highlighted in blue for more interesting insights from some of St. Louis’ top business leaders.
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Ron Kruszewski
Chairman and CEO, Stifel
Since Kruszewski took the helm in 1997, Stifel has boosted revenue from $100 million to $5 billion, while increasing its market cap from $40 million to $8 billion. Yet Kruszewski feels that Stifel is only at the beginning of its growth trajectory. His goals for the coming years are to double annual revenue and manage $1 trillion in client assets. “Clients look at us differently,” he says. “We have become so much more relevant, given all the capabilities that we can provide: wealth management, a bank, institutional advice, capital raising, and M&A.”
Jim Lally
CEO and Chairman, Enterprise Bank & Trust
Like many kids, Lally grew up in St. Louis hoping to become a pro athlete. “But by the time I was a teenager, I knew I’d need to change my aspirations,” he says. Lally has built an impactful career in the financial services industry, leading one of the largest commercial banks in St. Louis. Through Lally’s leadership, Enterprise Bank & Trust continues to build its consultative banking relationships with clients across the region. If he could change one thing about his industry, Lally would provide full FDIC insurance coverage for all business operating accounts to level the playing field for small and midsize banks.
Derek Martin
Missouri & Arkansas Institutional Client Group Market Leader, US Bank
Martin has worked for the Minneapolis-based bank for 24 years and moved into the St. Louis market president role in 2021, before expanding across Missouri and Arkansas. In his time with US Bank, Martin has managed a diverse portfolio of middle-market companies, including manufacturing, distribution, and retail. He’s an active member of the St. Louis community, having sat on boards of The Muny and the St. Louis Sports Commission, as well as being involved with Greater St. Louis, Inc. He’s also a U.S. Soccer–licensed coach, who has volunteered with the St. Louis Scott Gallagher Soccer Club.
Glenn Barks
President, First Community Credit Union
Barks has worked in his current role for nearly 40 years. Under his tenure, the company has grown to more than $4 billion in assets, and the credit union has expanded to 40 locations across Missouri and Illinois. Established in 1934, First Community is the largest credit union in St. Louis and among the 100 largest credit unions in the nation.
David Kemper
Executive Chairman, Commerce Bancshares, Inc.
When he joined Commerce Bank in 1978 as vice president of commercial lending, Kemper represented the fourth generation of his family to hold a role at the financial institution. Over the ensuing years, Kemper served as chairman and CEO, before passing the latter title to his son, John, in 2018. Kemper has been actively involved in the community, serving as vice chairman of Washington University’s board of trustees, and a director of Post Holdings Inc., Enterprise Mobility, and Tower Properties Co. He has degrees from Harvard, Oxford, and Stanford.
Marilyn Bush
St. Louis Market President, Bank of America
When she’s not overseeing regional operations and strategy for one of the world’s leading financial institutions, Bush’s eyes are on the sky. A dedicated aviation enthusiast, Bush has a private pilot license and enjoys flying a Cirrus SR20. She also works to help kids appreciate the world of aviation, volunteering with the Young Eagles, a program that gives kids ages 8–17 their first flight for free. Bush is a passionate advocate for women, and she founded Bank of America’s St. Louis LEAD for Women Chapter.
Eric Kittner
CEO and Chairman, Moneta
Growing up in the Philadelphia suburbs, Kittner embraced the entrepreneurial spirit of his father, who worked in the telemarketing industry. Kittner, however, took a slightly different path. He enrolled at The Catholic University of America to pursue a degree in accounting. To Kittner, accounting provided the ideal foundation for running a company. After working at Arthur Andersen and RubinBrown, Kittner joined Moneta as an adviser in 2003. He climbed the ladder and became the firm’s managing partner in 2018.
Mikel Williamson
President and CEO, First Bank
It was a busy first year on the job for Williamson, who took over for the retiring Shelley Seifert in November 2023, ahead of the company’s move to a new $40 million headquarters in Creve Coeur last spring. Prior to First Bank, Williamson was the president and CEO of Happy State Bank & Trust and previously held senior roles at Capital One, J.P. Morgan, and Bank of America. First Bank has $6.5 billion in assets and 80 locations spanning Missouri, California, and Illinois.
Howard Smith
Principal and Co-founder, Smith NMTC Associates
Smith brings more than three decades of experience in real estate law, finance, and development to new market tax credits (NMTC). While working alongside Habitat for Humanity of St. Louis, Smith pioneered the NMTC housing model, while unlocking federal NMTCs to fund affordable housing for families in the region. Last year, Smith’s company provided NMTC services to Operation Food Search in the nonprofit’s quest to renovate its Overland headquarters with an $11 million loan from the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership.
Orvin T. Kimbrough
Chairman and CEO, Midwest BankCentre
He calls himself an “accidental banker”—and for good reason. As Kimbrough details in his recently released book, Twice Over a Man, he was born to a drug-addicted mother who died when he was 8 and then aged out of the Missouri foster care system. He earned advanced degrees in social work, theology, and business, eventually serving as president and CEO of the United Way of Greater St. Louis. In 2019, he became CEO of Midwest BankCentre, one of the largest privately owned banks in the region, and added chairman of the board to his resume in 2020.
Peggy “Pepe” Finn
Chairman and CEO, Stern Brothers
As the longtime leader of Stern Brothers, a woman-owned business enterprise, Finn brings decades of experience in the securities industry to her company’s approach to satisfying clients’ needs. And as a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s diversity advisory committee, her influence reaches far beyond St. Louis. Locally, Finn is an active leader in the community, having served on numerous boards, including the Nine Network of Public Media and Operation Food Search.
Stephen Westbrooks
Executive Director–Southern Region, IFF
These are fruitful times for IFF, which set an organizational record over the past year by lending $234 million of non-appraisal-based capital to nonprofits. Looking ahead, Westbrooks believes there will be even more opportunities to make an impact in the St. Louis area and beyond. “There is unprecedented levels of investment in community development that has the potential to drive significant impacts in disinvested communities in the St. Louis region,” he says.
Penny Pennington
Managing Partner, Edward Jones
Many days, Pennington goes to work wearing a pin of a chair. It’s a reminder of the 8 million clients who trust Edward Jones to help them manage their futures. “No matter where I am, no matter what I’m doing, I think about them in that chair,” she says. Through Pennington’s guidance, Edward Jones is focused on reaching more people in new ways. By the end of the year, the company is striving to teach financial wellness to 1 million people through its Financial Fitness program.
Scott Hartwig
St. Louis Market Executive, Regions Bank
Hartwig, who has been with Regions Bank for more than a decade, succeeded Mike Hart as market executive in St. Louis in 2020. He’s the bank’s leading executive for the Midwest, overseeing teams and assisting clients in Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, and western Kentucky. Hartwig also plays a role in Regions Bank’s community outreach efforts. In 2023, he was proud to serve as the United Way of Greater St. Louis’ annual community campaign co-chair.
Tad Edwards
Chairman, CEO, and President; Benjamin F. Edwards
It may not be long before Edwards’ locally based financial services firm opens its 100th location in the United States. Today, the company, a successor to the former A.G. Edwards brokerage firm founded in 1887, has 97 locations spanning 33 states and more than $44 billion in assets under management. Edwards’ son, Ben, recently joined the firm’s executive committee. Ben represents the sixth generation of the Edwards family to work for the company.
Robert McKay
President and CEO, Together Credit Union
As the name implies, Together Credit Union puts an emphasis on building relationships and boasts more than 130,000 member owners. McKay has held his current role at the credit union since 2015. Five years later, the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis appointed him to serve on its Community Depository Institutions Eighth District, composed of a dozen financial executives across the region.
Michael Scully
Regional President, PNC
Community is important to Michael Scully, whose company sponsors the annual Great Forest Park Balloon Race. Scully, who has served in his role at PNC since 2013, also serves on the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center’s leadership council, and the boards for the Regional Business Council and the United Way of Greater St. Louis. Scully will retire in April. He will be succeeded by Matt Corcoran, the company’s head of corporate banking for the local region.
Tony Cheng
President and CEO, Reinsurance Group of America
Cheng believes that RGA is uniquely positioned at the intersection of biometric and asset risks, which allows the company to effectively manage both sides of the balance sheet. That sort of strategic planning gives RGA the flexibility to capitalize on industry shifts, such as demographic evolutions, medical advancements, and regulatory changes. If Cheng could change one thing about his industry, it would be to close the insurance protection gap. “Millions of people around the world lack adequate coverage, which poses not only industry growth potential but also a broad social and economic challenge,” he says.
Adam Birenbaum
Chairman and CEO, Buckingham Strategic Wealth–The Colony Group
The past year brought big news for Birenbaum. His company, Buckingham Strategic Wealth, merged with The Colony Group. The combined firm includes more than 1,000 employees, 90 offices, and tens of thousands of clients. “Adam is as likable a person as you could meet,” says Robert Minkler Jr., managing partner of Anders CPAs + Advisors. “He accepted the CEO job at Buckingham at a very young age and led people much more senior to him. He has a practical way of looking at business and just makes the right, confident decisions.”
Chris Kerckhoff
President and CEO, Plancorp
When he was hired at Plancorp in 1997, Kerckhoff was one of merely five employees. He rose from a fresh college graduate to company president in 2010. Under his leadership, Plancorp’s assets grew from $1 billion to more than $6 billion in a little more than a decade. In the community, Kerckhoff serves on BrightPlan’s board and chairs the investment committee for Variety the Children’s Charity of St. Louis.
David Eichhorn
CEO and Head of Investment Strategies, NISA Investment Advisors
For more than 30 years, NISA has driven strategic growth and guided custom investment strategies for thousands of clients. Eichhorn has been with the firm since 1999, leading its investment strategies group and overseeing product development. Prior to NISA, Eichhorn worked with J.P. Morgan, advising clients on asset allocation and investment policy. NISA has approximately 375 employees and manages more than $446 billion in combined assets.
David Erickson
Chief Investment Officer, Ascension Investment Management
Erickson’s firm traces its roots to the Treasury Services and Investment Group of Ascension Health, a Catholic nonprofit health care system. AIM offers a suite of 16 investment strategies, allowing it to operate as a comprehensive outsourced CIO. Erickson has been with AIM since 2009, joining the company after stints at the University of Wisconsin Foundation, Strong Capital Management, PNC Bank, Chemical Bank, and Firstar Bank.
Donald Cobin
Chairman, President, and CEO; Kennedy Capital Management
Occupying his executive role since 2018, Cobin oversees a company that serves nearly 100 institutional clients and manages assets for large pension funds, endowments, foundations, Taft-Hartley plans, and other high-net-worth clients. Prior to joining Kennedy Capital Management, Cobin was a senior investment professional at Matador Capital Management and the director of research at Delaware Investments. After earning his bachelor’s degree at Emory University, Cobin received his MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Gregory Shoemaker
Principal and Co-founder, Cornerstone Wealth Management
Before he launched Cornerstone in 2005, Shoemaker worked for a national brokerage firm for more than a decade. The experience was instrumental in shaping his understanding of how a client-focused investment outfit should operate. Shoemaker and his team consider a range of factors when advising clients about their financial future, including insurance needs, saving for college, retirement and estate planning, and budgeting. In his free time, Shoemaker is an avid boater and tennis player.
Katherine Lintz
Partner, Managing Member, Matter Family Office
As an up-and-comer in New York City, Lintz played a role in developing one of the country’s first financial education and planning programs at The Chase Exchange. In 1990, alongside just two employees, Lintz founded what would become Matter Family Office. Today, she works closely with the firm’s client teams while participating as a senior leader on Matter’s investment and culture and learning committees. Last October, direct-investment firm BW Forsyth Partners made a strategic investment in Matter Family Office. “Forsyth’s long-term, perpetual investment model strongly aligns with our multi-generational client base,” Lintz said in a release. “The focus on business-building and increased resources from Forsyth will serve our clients into the future with confidence.”
Matt Badler
Principal, Twain Financial Partners
Badler oversees operations at a firm that manages more than $4 billion in assets, while championing public-private partnership investments. Twain also specializes in tax credits, structured debt, and real estate transactions. Prior to co-founding Twain, Badler was the vice president of US Bancorp Community Development Corp., where his work on the business development team led to the idea to launch Twain.
Mark Keller
CEO and CIO, Confluence Investment Management
Keller brings decades of experience and institutional knowledge to his team, specializing in value-oriented equity analysis and management. Before Confluence, Keller was the senior vice president of A.G. Edwards and Sons and Gallatin Asset Management. In those roles, he was responsible for managing more than $10 billion of assets across equity, asset allocation, and fixed income strategies. Today, Confluence has more than $12 billion in total assets, including more than $7 billion in assets under management and more than $5 billion in assets under advisement.
Nicholas Tompras
CEO, Chief Investment Officer, Alpine Capital Research
Alpine’s roots stretch back to 1999, when Tompras founded it as a firm focused on fundamental investment principles. Today, Alpine is 100 percent employee owned. As CIO, Tompras shapes Alpine’s core investment philosophy, guides the investment team, and oversees research. He also serves as the lead portfolio manager for Alpine’s flagship equity quality return strategy and co-manages the company’s opportunity strategy.
Paul Larson
CEO, Larson Financial Holdings
When it comes to serial entrepreneurs, Larson is as accomplished as seemingly anyone in the St. Louis region. He’s helped launch more than 40 companies throughout six countries, while employing more than 300 people at Larson Financial Holdings and the Larson Financial Foundation, which works to uplift communities in Iraq, Kenya, India, Gambia, Sudan, Zambia, and elsewhere. At his eponymous firm, Larson works with more than 200 advisers to manage more than $4.6 billion in assets.
Tom Tesar
Partner-in-Charge, RubinBrown Advisors
Tesar has extensive experience in wealth management and advisory services. In addition to being the partner-in-charge, Tesar is RubinBrown’s service leader and manages strategic development of the group. In his current role, he provides investment advisory and financial planning. “Always do what is right for the client, no matter what,” he says.
Brian Matthews
Co-founder and General Partner, Cultivation Capital
When he’s not orchestrating investments in the coolest new startups or mentoring the next generation of founders, Matthews stays busy with an array of hobbies. He’s a collector who owns a complete set of books autographed by Tom Clancy, and he enjoys amassing a diverse and impressive selection of wine. Recently, Matthews crossed off a significant item from his bucket list: a cruise through the Panama Canal. Closer to home, his favorite restaurant is Annie Gunn’s.
Bill Willhite
Managing Partner, WILSquare Capital
Since 1993, Willhite has been a mainstay in the private equity industry in St. Louis and beyond. During his career, Willhite has been involved in more than 100 mergers and acquisitions transactions totaling more than $5 billion, while also serving as a director of 33 lower-middle-market companies. Prior to founding WILSquare Capital, he worked with Thompson Street Capital Partners, where he helped the company navigate its $307 million second fund.
Dr. Tara Butler
Co-founder and Partner, Iyengar Capital Partners
For more than two decades, Butler led medical device investing at Ascension Ventures. In 2022, she co-founded Iyengar Capital, which works with industry partners to bring cutting-edge medical devices to the market. She completed a residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in 2002, and she worked in business development at Medtronic and finance at Honeywell. Butler sits on the boards of Instylla, Sora Neuroscience, and CSA Medical, in addition to being an advisor to StataDx and Cultivation Capital.
Tom Hough
CEO, Carrolllton Bank
Hough has spent his entire career at Carrollton Bank. He’s the fifth generation of his family to lead the organization, which was founded in 1877 by his great-great grandfather. Hough has received numerous accolades, including the 2019 Banker of the Year award from the Illinois Bankers Association. He is also a board member of the Regional Business Council, the Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital, the Jefferson National Parks Association, the University of Illinois College of Business Dean’s Business Council, and the Lewis & Clark Community College Foundation.
Jim Cooper
Managing Partner, Thompson Street Capital Partners
Cooper’s investment in St. Louis stretches far beyond private equity. He’s also a minority owner of the St. Louis Blues: After playing ice hockey into his early adulthood, he bought a stake of the team. At work, Cooper leads a 25-year-old firm that boasts $4.5 billion in assets under management. TSCP’s investment strategy is focused on three areas: life sciences and health care, software and technology, and business and consumer services and products.
John Huhn
Managing Partner, Compass Group Equity Partners
Huhn has played a part in more than 75 major transactions representing approximately $3 billion in enterprise value at Compass Group, which invests in lower middle market companies with EBITA between $2 million and $15 million. Before launching Compass, Huhn founded and led HBM Holdings, and served as senior vice president of strategy and corporate development at Aegion, where he oversaw corporate strategy and M&A transactions, among other areas.
John Lemkemeier
Managing Partner, Sage Capital
Long before co-founding Sage Capital with Wesley Jones in 2004, Lemkemeier launched his career as a mergers and acquisitions attorney at Bryan Cave. With Sage Capital, Lemkemeier helps guide long-term investments in the manufacturing and distribution industries nationwide. Locally, he’s active with several causes and attractions. He recently served a two-year term as board chair for The Muny, and he sits on the board of trustees for Barnes-Jewish Hospital, the Missouri Botanical Garden, and the Opportunity Trust.
Ryan Schuler
Chief Investment Officer and Senior Managing Director, Ascension Ventures
Schuler has dedicated his career to venture, growth, and late-stage private equity investing. For Ascension Ventures, Schuler has led notable deals with Academic Partnerships, Bind, Help at Home, Mindpath Health, Sevita, and The OB Hospitalist Group. Before joining AV, Schuler worked in the M&A investment banking group at A.G. Edwards, and in the transaction support and audit practices at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Sandra M. Moore
Managing Director and Chief Impact Officer, Advantage Capital
Among her accomplishments with Advantage Capital, Moore built the firm’s impact team, which tracks data-driven initiatives to boost portfolio growth. She also leads the communications and branding team, and functions as the company’s public-facing representative. Before joining the firm in 2017, Moore was president of Urban Strategies, working with for-profit housing developers to revitalize urban communities. Previously, she was a member of former Gov. Mel Carnahan’s cabinet, working as director of the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations.
Tom Hillman
Founding General Partner, Lewis & Clark Partners
You’ll find Hillman’s mark all over the St. Louis region. Throughout his career, Hillman has owned more than 60 businesses. He’s the managing partner of the Lewis & Clark family of companies, including Lewis & Clark Holdings, Lewis & Clark Capital, and Lewis & Clark AgriFood. He also serves on the Barnes-Jewish Hospital board of directors, the BJC HealthCare board of directors, and the Washington University board of trustees. Hillman is a lifetime board member at the Center of Creative Arts.
Jay Schmelter
Co-founder and Managing Director, RiverVest
RiverVest focuses on helping life sciences companies address the unmet needs of patients, while helping investors see clear results. Schmelter’s experience with investment banking, early stage venture capital investing, and medical device product marketing inspired him to launch the firm 25 years ago. Today, Schmelter oversees RiverVest’s investment strategy and operations, while sharing his industry expertise with medical device company CEOs who are seeking insights on strategy and operating plans.
Mitch Baden
President and CEO, Royal Banks
For more than four decades, this lifelong St. Louisan and industry veteran has worked to make banking accessible to clients of all backgrounds. Baden has been with Royal Banks since 2002, joining as executive vice president and chief operating officer. After his brother, Steve, retired in 2020, Baden assumed the dual roles of president and CEO. Outside of work, he’s a big supporter of Saint Louis University men’s basketball and the University of Missouri football team.
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