During the last three years, the world changed immeasurably. Individuals and businesses alike were forced to pivot, get creative and reinvent their business plans and financial protocols in a myriad of ways.

Confidence Has Improved From 2022’S Lows, But Still Signals Caution

WTW Expects Dealmaking To Remain Active Despite Ongoing Uncertainty And Major Headwinds; Recession Fears Triggering A ‘Small Item Effect’ As Larger Deals Fall Out Of Favor

Top Finance Execs Are Targeting Resources At Functions That Can Drive Top-Line Growth

Financial Services, Tech And All-Equity Deals Are Anticipated To Grow In 2023

A New Survey Sheds Light on How ESG and Stakeholder Interest Shape Baseline Business Decisions

Enterprise IT Continues to Demonstrate Value and Resilience Despite Economic Conditions

Survey Also Reveals “Effectiveness Gap” Between Core Provider Solutions and Bank Expectations.

New Funding is Part of a Historic Period of State Investment in Transit and Passenger Rail

Less-Than-Optimistic Projections, Rising Interest Rates, and Occupancy Issues Abound; Retail Remains Bullish

Continued Staffing Challenges, Regulation for Digital Assets are Among Expectations for 2023.

Global conflicts persist, inflation is climbing, and interest rate increases appear imminent. By many measures, we are enduring a prolonged bear market.

Executives Are Navigating Significant Economic Uncertainty With Confidence In Their Ability To Survive – And Thrive

A midst the passionate, oftentimes heated debate going on today around Artificial Intelligence-driven chatbots, one might be reminded of Robert Oppenheimer’s ominous quote referencing Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita.

Despite Recent Government Actions, Many Still Fall Victim to Digital Currency Fraud

As vice chairman of JD Merit & Company, Tracy Albert is recognized as one of the preeminent investment bankers on the West Coast, having advised hundreds of middle-market companies and entrepreneurs over a span of several decades.

The right commercial banker or trusted financial advisor does more than provide services and advice. These individuals – and the institutions they represent – can genuinely prepare your organization (with the right resources, capital and guidance) for the next level of growth and beyond.

Prior to joining JD Merit, Barnes was head of corporate development at Lumio, Inc. where he created, built, and financed the fourth-largest photovoltaic solar sales and installation company in the country.

At KAR, Darnel Bentz focuses on the integration of alternative investment strategies and the customization of client financial plans. His strength is in developing new client relationships, which he believes ultimately leads to a higher quality and stronger bond.

Jonathan Bluth recently joined BGL as a managing director in the Healthcare & Life Sciences Investment Banking practice, one of the country's largest healthcare M&A teams, to lead its West Coast office.

Kara Boccella has successfully advised and managed her client’s portfolios and affairs for over a 30-year career. She currently manages approximately $600 million and continues growing organically through a robust referral base.

Sherry Cefali is a managing director in the Duff & Phelps Opinions Practice of Kroll, LLC. In addition, she is a member of the firm’s Fairness and Solvency Opinion Senior Review Committee and the firm’s Fairness and Solvency Opinion Acceptance Committee.

Anthony Consoli is managing partner of Massumi + Consoli LLP headquartered in Los Angeles, where he represents private funds and other financial institutions, along with their portfolio companies, in structuring and negotiating complex private equity and M&A transactions in the middle market.

Jim Davidson has more than 35 years of experience in business and corporate management, public accounting, management consulting, and corporate financial advisory.

DuVon Davis' personal passion and commitment to lead both financial relationships and DEIA within his employer, Wells Fargo, as well as through his other affiliations is extensive and vast.

Jonathan Fhima is CEO and managing principal of F2, a private equity firm focused on debt investment strategies.

Mark Demos began his career in public accounting almost 20 years ago with Crowe LLP in Michigan after graduating from Michigan State University.

Steve Fried is a principal at Mesa West Capital. He is the co-head of the firm’s West Coast Originations team alongside principal Ronnie Gul, managing a portfolio totaling $11 billion.

Robert Fox is a trailblazer in the corporate and M&A legal field. He is a new breed of private equity professionals who leveraged his private equity business development experience and extensive finance background to create a niche role driving growth as the front face of large international corporate law firms.

Ronnie Gul is a principal at Mesa West Capital. He is the co-head of the firm’s West Coast Originations team alongside principal Steve Fried, managing a portfolio totaling $11 billion. He also oversees the firm’s regional offices in Chicago and San Francisco.

Griffith has continued to show her significant influence in the industry, leading deal teams in sophisticated representations for a wide variety of clients.

Jeremy Holland is managing partner at The Riverside Company, leading the Origination team across various funds/strategies in North America. He has been a private equity investor in Los Angeles for 24 years.

Shadi Jahangir is a firm partner whose practice focuses on commercial lending and corporate finance. She represents large and well-known financial institutions, leading private equity sponsors, and corporate borrowers in significant middle-market debt financings and investment-grade credits.

John Joliet has spent nearly 30 years as an investment banker, private equity investor, board member, and corporate finance consultant.

Yukiko Kojima offers clients unique experiences with highly innovative, alternative delivery strategies for large-scale infrastructure projects in the U.S. thanks to her deep knowledge of national best practices as well as Canada’s mature public-private projects market.

Jennifer Kim is a senior managing partner at Signature Estate & Investment Advisors (SEIA). Eager to learn, she earned multiple certifications early on, including Certified Financial Planner, Chartered Mutual Fund Counselor, Chartered Financial Consultant, and Chartered Life Underwriter.

In May 2019, Bonnie Lee became the first female CEO in Hanmi Bank’s 40-year history and one of only 10 female CEOs in the public banking industry.

Jason Lawit is president of Northern Trust's Southern California Region. In this role, he leads an integrated team of specialists who deliver investment management, trust and estate planning, private and business banking, and financial consulting for clients across the region.

Neil Malik is the founder and CEO of K1 Investment Management. He is responsible for managing the firm’s strategy, governance and investment activities.

U.S. Bank Southern California Market President Rudy Medina is the senior vice president who leads the commercial banking team within Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Inland Empire, Orange, and San Diego counties. He co-leads the U.S.

Abel Montañez is a seasoned financial services leader with more than 20 years of experience in the wealth management industry. He currently serves as executive vice president and head of City National Bank’s Private Banking division.

Steve Moon has been with Kroll Securities (formerly known as Duff & Phelps Securities) for 23 years. He is a managing director and deputy head of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) for the Americas.

John Murillo continues to build on an already remarkably distinguished career in financial services, currently serving as SVP, market president for Enterprise Bank & Trust in Los Angeles.

Bruce Munster is a principal of the Munster Freeman Group, an M&A-focused wealth advisory practice within Merrill Private Wealth Management. Located in Century City and Denver, the Munster Freeman Group manages more than $3.5 billion as of October 31, 2022.

Nassiri has counseled Chapter 11 debtors, lenders, special servicers, property owners, asset purchasers, insiders, and Chapter 11 trustees, including liquidating trustees in a broad spectrum of complex issues in bankruptcy.

Kevin O’Malley joined Blank Rome directly from law school in 2006, relocating to the firm’s Los Angeles office in 2009 to service the firm’s West Coast clients and help establish the office’s Finance practice. He was elevated to a partner of the firm in January 2021.

As CEO and founder of Parkview Financial, Paul Rahimian manages a national debt fund that provides construction financing to ground-up real estate development projects.

Vanessa Roman is a recognized leader who has established herself as an impactful player on Akin Gump’s renowned entertainment team and throughout the corporate entertainment world.

With more than a decade of complex commercial litigation experience focused in the financial services sector, Arjun Rao has distinguished himself as a go-to litigator for some of the industry’s highest profile banking and financial services companies.

Mark Sampson is the co-founder and managing partner of Torrance-based private equity firm Pacific Growth Investors, LLC (PGI) and was the founder in 2003 of its predecessor fund, Vintage Capital Partners.

David Russell is a managing director and the head of Family Office Services at MGO Private Wealth. His focus is building out the firm’s multifamily office practice and investment platform, as well as growing the firm’s scope on entertainment, sports, and media professionals.

Dan Shea is a managing director of Objective, a leading investment banking and valuation firm serving the middle market.

Jonathan Shenson was the managing principal of his own law firm for nearly a decade. Before that, he was a partner at a nationally recognized bankruptcy boutique and also practiced in the bankruptcy and finance departments at a prominent Am Law 100 firm.

A partner at iBorrow, a private real estate debt fund for commercial real estate, Andrew Smith is the ultimate financing visionary.

As a regional executive for U.S. Bank Private Wealth Management, John Sinnema is responsible for growing and managing all aspects of private wealth management in California.

In 2017, Steven A. Sugarman founded The Change Company, which is a Community Development Financial Institution certified by the United States Department of Treasury and the State of California to expand access to lending and banking to Black, Latino and low-income borrowers and communities.

For more than three decades, Julia Strickland has been at the forefront of counseling, advocating, and dispute resolution within the financial services sector, having litigated a myriad of individual, class action, and bet-the-company cases.

Mark Udis is a partner of Camden Capital who focuses on individuals and families of significant financial resources, and is actively involved in the family office practice.

Growthink’s co-founder and CEO, Jay Turo, has led the organization’s emergence as one of the nation’s largest strategic advisory and investment banking firms focused on the entrepreneurial marketplace.

Thomas Webster is co-founder and managing partner of Pacific Growth Investors. Previously, he was a managing director of Vintage Capital Partners, having joined the firm in 2007.

Michael A. Waxberg is a private wealth advisor and founder and CEO of Fortify Capital Wealth Management & Insurance Services. He is a certified financial planner and has spent over two and half decades building a nationally recognized investment and financial planning practice.

Maz Yafeh is a managing director in the Investment Banking Group and leads BofA Securities’ Los Angeles Investment Banking office and BofA’s West Coast Emerging Growth & Regional Coverage (EGRC) group.

Guy Zaczepinski has been with Century Park Capital Partners since 2005. He is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, and structuring buyout transactions, as well as monitoring portfolio company investments.

AN IN-DEPTH LOOK AT MBA SCHOOLS AND THEIR PROGRAMS

A people-focused and purposedriven degree that transforms students and prepares them to impact the world. We proudly continue the legacy of Peter F. Drucker, embracing four core principles to support student success.

The MBA program at CSUN’s David Nazarian College of Business and Economics takes pride in our students and alumni. Nazarian College MBA students are accomplished professionals representing incredibly diverse backgrounds in a variety of industries in the San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles County and Ventura County regions.

By making a positive impact on students, Pepperdine Graziadio equips them to go out into the world and do the same – turning small ripples into significant waves.

The University of West Los Angeles began as a private educational institution with just six students in 1966, when a visionary group of local educators resolved to address the need for educational programs geared toward the working adult.

Loyola Marymount University’s graduate business programs develop agile, innovative and impactful leaders for a changing world. Small, intimate classes are led by faculty who are invested in their students’ success.

Our students and alumni play leading roles in industries that have built and continue to drive L.A. forward – from real estate and accounting to marketing and finance to entertainment and tech.

UWest helps business leaders awaken their professional purpose by asking questions that matter most.