Raymond James has added four senior public finance professionals in Illinois — two to its Chicago office, and two to a new office it is opening 28 miles west in Naperville.
Managing Director Stephan Roberts and Director Amy Young will be based in the firm's downtown Chicago office. Managing Director Dalena Welkomer and Vice President Adam Holstine will be based out of the new office in Naperville.
"The thought behind opening a Naperville office is… to really give us a presence so we can easily get to a lot of our clients, which are west of 294 and south of I-80, without getting tied up in traffic," said Managing Director Elizabeth Hennessy, who leads the firm's Illinois practice. "We really wanted a convenient outpost there."
Hennessy said those clients include a lot of municipal issuers and school districts.
The new hires have experience in that area, as well as with park districts, airports, counties, libraries and fire protection districts.
"They also have a very good Michigan presence, which is additive to our practice there, which currently really kind of exclusively covers K 12 with, again, some municipal issuers sprinkled in," she said.
All four new hires come from Baird.
Welkomer and Roberts were at that firm for 21 and 27 years, respectively, and will focus on serving cities, villages, counties, transportation issuers and park, library and fire protection districts. Roberts will also expand the firm's services to local governments in Iowa and Michigan.
"I'm honored to join Raymond James' accomplished public finance team and help grow the firm's footprint across Illinois," Welkomer said in a statement.
"We are steadfast in our continued dedication to the client, whose needs always come first," Roberts said in a statement.
Hennessy said the new hires' proven dedication to client needs made them each a good cultural fit for the firm.
"One of the things that really impressed me about this group is their integrity, their reputation in the market, and (their history of) putting the client first, which is 100% consistent with the Raymond James philosophy and culture, which is really important to us," she said.
Young spent 27 years at Baird, working with state and municipal governments, and on economic development, education, healthcare, housing, nonprofit, transportation, water and utility issues. She has focused more recently on Midwest higher education and nonprofits.
Holstine spent the past decade at Baird, supporting that firm's clients with analytical and banking services.
"This is a first-class team with deep expertise in public finance and a proven track record of success delivering strategic financing solutions to clients," Gavin Murrey, executive vice president and head of public finance/debt investment banking, said in a statement. "The addition of this highly regarded group is the perfect complement to our Illinois practice."
Hennessy said the firm is looking forward to continued issuance growth in the year ahead.
"It's been a record year of issuance here in 2025, and I think that's only going to continue with interest rates coming down; some of those refunding opportunities will come back," she said. "And depending on revenue pressures for districts from state or federal levels, in this environment, we see another robust year ahead."
Raymond James ranked eighth among municipal underwriters in the first half of 2025,
