Commercial banking

Jen Cressman is the chief commercial officer at Form Health, the national leader in science-based obesity care. 

Jen is a veteran of the healthcare industry, building and leading exceptional sales teams at dynamic, innovative companies. Jen has been leading Form Health through rapid commercial growth since May 2023, focusing on leveraging the physician-led, science-based obesity care model to guide clients through the challenges and opportunities of GLP-1s. 

Nishaad Ruparel is the president of Ascend, a Top 50 Firm formed in 2023 with capital from Alpine Investors, a private equity firm based in San Francisco. Prior to joining Ascend, he was recruited by Alpine Investors to help launch a new investment strategy; prior to joining Alpine, he spent time at AEA, an upper middle market PE firm based in New York, and at JP Morgan, where he serviced private equity clients out of the firm's investment banking division. He holds an MBA from Stanford University and a BS in Finance from New York University's Stern School of Business.

When Chicago barred media from its investor conference, it told journalists the policy aligned with peer municipalities' practices. The facts are less clear.

Supply has weighed on munis to some extent over the past few weeks, as week after week issuance tops $10 billion, said Jeremy Holtz, a portfolio manager at Income Research + Management.

Controller Chris Hollins raised several concerns about the mayor's $7 billion budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1, including its use of reserves.

Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser submitted her balanced 2026 budget to City Council that includes a double down move on building an NFL football stadium while cutting city programs and putting a freeze on hiring.

Denise Canada, appointed by Brad Briner to head state and local government finance, has experience working for the state's local and state governments.

Eileen Connor is the president and executive director of the Project on Predatory Student Lending.

Reyes Florez is the CEO of Platform Accounting Group, a collective of more than 40 local accounting firms across the United States.

Photos from The Bond Buyer's Southeast Public Finance conference.

Two Midwest schools in the municipal bond market this month illustrate the range of funding challenges facing higher education under the Trump administration.

Daily report for May 28, 2025

Muni yields were bumped up to eight basis points, depending on the curve, on Tuesday, but for most of last week, U.S. rates sold off on the heels of passed legislation, said Barclays strategists Mikhail Foux and Grace Cen.

The bill attacks Gov. Gavin Newsom's executive order requiring state regulations phasing out the sale of new gasoline-powered cars and trucks by 2035.

This episode takes us inside The Bond Buyer's recent Southeast Public Finance Conference, where airport finance leaders from Orlando and Tampa discussed shifting passenger trends, modular capital planning, federal grant concerns, and why long-term growth still looks strong.

The judge ruled the administration cannot freeze New York's federal funds in its bid to halt the controversial tolling program.