Founders and Board

Eugene A. Ludwig - Chairman;
Co-Founder

Eugene A. Ludwig is Chairman of Promontory Interfinancial Network, and former U.S. Comptroller of the Currency. He also is the Chief Executive Officer of Promontory Group, a suite of companies offering products and services to assist banks and other financial businesses. He is the CEO of Promontory Financial Group and Chairman of Promontory Asset Finance Company.

Prior to co-founding Promontory, Mr. Ludwig served as Vice Chairman and Senior Control Officer of Bankers Trust/Deutsche Bank. In this role he was responsible for legal, credit, risk management, and compliance activities, as well as regulatory and legislative affairs. As the head of the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Mr. Ludwig oversaw the federal agency responsible for supervising federally chartered commercial banks and federal branches and agencies of foreign banks. In this role, Mr. Ludwig spearheaded efforts to modernize the banking industry.

Mr. Ludwig has written numerous articles on banking and finance for both scholarly journals and business publications and has served as a guest lecturer at Yale and Harvard law schools and Georgetown University’s International Law Institute. Mr. Ludwig holds an L.L.B. from Yale University and an M.A. and B.A. from Haverford College.

Alan S. Blinder - Vice Chairman;
Co-Founder

Dr. Alan S. Blinder is the Vice Chairman of Promontory Interfinancial Network. He is also the Gordon S. Rentschler Memorial Professor of Economics and Public Affairs at Princeton University and Co-Director of Princeton’s Center for Economic Policy Studies.

Formerly, he was the Vice Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Prior to that, Dr. Blinder served as a Member of President Clinton’s original Council of Economic Advisers. He was also an economic advisor to Al Gore and John Kerry.

Dr. Blinder is the author or co-author of 17 books, including the textbook, Economics: Principles and Policy (with William J. Baumol), now in its 11th edition. Dr. Blinder is regularly quoted in leading business publications, including The Wall Street Journal and Business Week, and his writings have appeared in journals and newspapers around the world. He has written scores of scholarly articles on such topics as fiscal policy, monetary policy, and the distribution of income. He is a columnist for The New York Times Sunday business section, and appears frequently on PBS, CNBC, CNN, Bloomberg TV, and elsewhere.

Dr. Blinder earned a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an A.B. from Princeton University, both in Economics.

Mark P. Jacobsen, President & CEO;
Co-Founder

Mark P. Jacobsen is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Promontory Interfinancial Network. Prior to co-founding Promontory Interfinancial Network, Mr. Jacobsen served as the Chief of Staff at both the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the OCC. He also served as a managing director for Bankers Trust/Deutsche Bank and as an associate at Covington & Burling.

Mr. Jacobsen received his J.D. from Harvard University Law School and his B.S. in Physics from Wheaton College of Illinois.

Alfred H. Moses - Vice Chairman - Law;
Co-Founder

Alfred H. Moses is Vice Chairman-Law of Promontory Interfinancial Network and a Senior Partner of Promontory Financial Group. After many years as a Partner at Covington & Burling, Mr. Moses now serves as Senior Counsel there. He brings experience in the areas of litigation, corporate and securities matters, and arbitration to the executive leadership team.

In September 1999, he was appointed by President Clinton as his Special Presidential Emissary for the Cyprus Problem. He served as U.S. Ambassador to Romania, 1994-97, and as Special Advisor and Special Counsel to President Jimmy Carter, 1980-81.

Mr. Moses received his law degree from Georgetown University in 1956, where he was editor of the Georgetown Law Review, and his bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College in 1951. He also attended Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School in 1951-52.

Art Certosimo - Vice Chairman

Art Certosimo is the Vice Chairman of Promontory Interfinancial Network. He is also the Executive Committee Member, and the CEO of Global Markets at the Bank of New York Mellon. He oversees all client services, product management, sales, operations and technology activities worldwide.

Before joining The Bank of New York Mellon in 1998, Mr. Certosimo was a principal of Morgan Stanley Asset Management (MSAM), where he managed customer information services worldwide. Earlier, he was a Vice President at the Chase Manhattan Bank's Global Investor Services group, where he established and managed the global customer service organization.

Mr. Certosimo also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation and Brooklyn Bureau of Community Service, and as a member of the Finance Advisory Board of Rutgers Business School.

Mr. Certosimo holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Rutgers College at Rutgers University, and an M.B.A. from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Ismail (Izzy) Dawood

Izzy Dawood is the head of Global Corporate Development of The Bank of New York Mellon. Mr. Dawood joined the company in November 2006.

In 1994, Mr. Dawood joined Wachovia Corporation as the Managing Director, Structured Treasury Activities, in Charlotte, NC. Earlier, he held various positions in corporate finance, and later played a key role in the Wachovia/First Union merger.

Mr. Dawood holds an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of Business and a B.S. in Finance from St. John’s University. He also holds a CFA designation.

Kenneth M. Duberstein

Kenneth M. Duberstein is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Duberstein Group, an independent strategic planning and consulting company in Washington, DC. Prior to forming his own company, he served as Chief of Staff to President Reagan.

During the Reagan Administration, Mr. Duberstein also held the position of White House Deputy Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs. Previously, he was Vice President and Director of Business-Government Relations at the Committee for Economic Development.

Mr. Duberstein also was Vice President of Timmons & Company Inc, a government relations firm. His earlier government service included serving as Deputy Under Secretary of Labor during the Ford Administration and as Director of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs at the U.S. General Services Administration. Mr. Duberstein holds an A.B. from Franklin and Marshall College and an M.A. from American University.

Edward W. Kelley, Jr.

Edward W. (Mike) Kelley, Jr., recently retired as a board member for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, where he was Chairman of the Payment System Policy Advisory Committee.

At the Federal Reserve, he also served as Chairman of the Strategic Planning Coordination Group, as well as the committees of Bank Affairs, Supervision and Regulation, and International Finance. Mr. Kelley has been a founding Director of three banks in the Houston area: Southern National Bank, Westwood Commerce Bank, and West Belt National Bank.

Before joining the Federal Reserve, Mr. Kelley served as Chairman of the Board for Investment Advisors Incorporated and President and Chief Executive Officer of Kelley Industries Inc., both in Houston. Mr. Kelley holds an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and a B.A. in history from Rice University.

Donald G. Ogilvie

Donald G. Ogilvie, formerly President and CEO of the American Banker Association (ABA), managed the association from 1985 to 2005. He is currently Chairman of American Bankers Association International. He is also the Director of TransUnion Corporation in Chicago, and MacDermid, Inc., in Waterbury, CT.

Mr. Ogilvie serves as a consultant to the Board of the International Monetary Conference, which includes the heads of approximately 80 of the largest international banks in the world. He holds a similar role with the International Financial Conference, a forum for the CEOs of the larger U.S. regional banks and non-U.S. financial services companies.

Mr. Ogilvie was Vice President of the Celanese Corporation and served as Founding Associate Dean at Yale University’s School of Organization and Management, where he currently teaches. A native of New York City, Mr. Ogilvie holds a B.A. in economics from Yale University and a M.B.A. from Stanford University’s School of Business.

Warren B. Rudman

Senator Warren B. Rudman became a Partner in the international law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison after serving two terms as a U.S. senator from New Hampshire.

During his 12 years in the Senate, Sen. Rudman served as Chairman of the Ethics Committee and as a member of the committees on Appropriations, Intelligence, Governmental Affairs and Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. He co-authored the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Deficit Reduction Act. In January 2001, President Clinton awarded him the Presidential Citizens Medal, recognizing his years of devoted public service. He is currently a member of the blue ribbon commission of The Conference Board called The Commission on Public Trust and Private Enterprise.

Sen. Rudman began his career practicing law in his hometown of Nashua, New Hampshire. He was later appointed Attorney General of New Hampshire and then elected President of the National Association of Attorneys General. After completing his public service, Sen. Rudman joined the Manchester, N.H.-based law firm of Sheehan, Phinney, Bass and Green. Sen. Rudman received a B.S. from Syracuse University and an LL.B. from Boston College Law School.

Jeffrey B. Schreier

Jeffrey B. Schreier is a financial company strategic and operating executive and advisor. Formerly Managing Director of The Bank of New York Mellon, Mr. Schreier led major corporate initiatives, including the planning and execution of the merger between The Bank of New York Company, Inc. and Mellon Financial Corporation, and the restructuring and consolidation of the banks, trust companies, and other operating subsidiaries comprising the new financial holding company. Before the merger, he was responsible for special projects, reporting to BNY’s Chairman and CEO, and served as Head of Mergers and Acquisitions, co-head of Corporate Development, and Head of Corporate Finance. Previously, in the Legal Division, Mr. Schreier served as Head of Litigation, Corporate and Real Estate Restructuring, Bankruptcy, Banking Operations and HR.

Before joining the Bank, Mr. Schreier was in private practice with Proskauer Rose. He holds a J.D. from Washington University in St. Louis, an M.A. from the University of Michigan, and a B.A. from Union College in Schenectady, New York.

J. Michael Shepherd

J. Michael Shepherd is President and Chief Executive Officer for Bank of the West. He joined the bank in 2004 as Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary for the bank and its holding company BancWest Corporation. He is also a member of the bank's Board of Directors, its Office of the Chairman, its Executive Management Committee and is a Director of BancWest Corporation.

Before joining Bank of the West and BancWest Corporation, Shepherd served in similar positions with The Bank of New York Mellon. and Shawmut National Corporation. He was a Partner in the law firm of Brobeck Phleger & Harrison LLP and special counsel in the law firm of Sullivan & Cromwell.

Mr. Shepherd also served as Senior Deputy Comptroller at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and associate counsel to the President of the United States and Deputy Assistant Attorney General. Mr. Shepherd is a graduate of Stanford University and the University of Michigan Law School.

O. Jay Tomson

O. Jay Tomson serves as Chairman of the Board of First Citizens National Bank in Mason City, Iowa, with branches in 10 North Iowa communities. Mr. Tomson is a past President of the Independent Community Bankers of America, and presently serves on the ICBA Tax Committee. He is also a former President of the Iowa Independent Bankers Association.

While at First Citizens, Mr. Tomson also served as a Director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. Previously, he was an Executive Vice President at Marquette National Bank in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Vice President of Operations at Bankers Trust Company in Des Moines, Iowa. Earlier in his career, Mr. Tomson served as a Bank Examiner, with the U.S. Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, principally in the state of Iowa.

Mr. Tomson holds graduate degrees from the Stonier Graduate School of Banking and Iowa Agricultural Credit School, and a B.A. in Economics from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota.

Frank G. Zarb

Frank G. Zarb currently serves as a Senior Advisor to Hellman & Friedman LLC, a non-Executive Chairman of The Promontory Financial Group, as well as an Executive-in-Residence at Columbia University.

Previously, Mr. Zarb served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Nasdaq and NASD. Before that, he was Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Alexander & Alexander Services, Inc., a global organization of professional advisors providing risk management, insurance brokerage, and human resource management consulting services.

In earlier years, he served as Vice Chairman and Group Chief Executive of The Travelers, Inc., and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Smith Barney, a Travelers subsidiary.

His former government service positions include – as Executive Director of the Cabinet-level Energy Resources Council, Administrator of the Federal Energy Administration, and Assistant to the President for Energy Affairs (the “Energy Czar”) during the first oil embargo. He was the Associate Director of the Office of Management and Budget as well as the Assistant Secretary of Labor. He has served in various assignments with the Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton administrations.

Mr. Zarb holds M.B.A. and B.S. degrees, respectively.