FMI Team

FMI FOUNDING PARTNERS

Charles Seeger, Chairman & CEO, J.D., is a senior attorney specializing in capital markets development for both transitional and developed economies. Mr. Seeger has served as a senior advisor to securities commissions, securities and commodities exchanges, central banks, finance ministries, and pension agencies. Since 1990, Mr. Seeger has implemented assignments to develop capital markets in emerging markets through international best practices, legal and regulatory reform, and private law. Mr. Seeger was Senior Vice President and Counsel for the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, and participated in the major developments between the U.S. SEC, CFTC, and Federal Reserve Board on legal and regulatory issues. He has drafted commodities exchange laws and regulations for several nations seeking modern commodity futures regulatory regimes. In the private practice of law he served leading exchanges, broker-dealers, banks, insurance companies, and pension funds.

Robert Bond, President, Ph.D., is responsible for the supervision and management of FMI’s international capital markets development projects. He has directed the successful implementation of FMI's securities commission legal and regulatory drafting and development projects in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Romania, Bulgaria, and Ukraine. His project management responsibilities include strategy and work plan development, monitoring and reporting on the achievement of benchmarks, project finance, and client communications. Previously, Dr. Bond was a founder and principal of CARANA Corporation, an international trade and investment consulting firm, where he managed the highly successful Bolivia export and investment promotion project. He has also carried out numerous consulting assignments for the World Bank, USAID, and private clients throughout Latin America focusing on privatization, banking, development finance institutions, and stock exchanges. During the Latin American debt crisis, Dr. Bond was responsible for sovereign credit risk at First National Bank of Chicago. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

FMI PERSONNEL
Financial Markets International, Inc. is comprised of seasoned professionals with decades of practical experience in capital markets and institutional reform. FMI advisers have served as senior officers for the world's largest securities and financial futures exchanges, money-center banks, broker-dealers, financial corporations, SROs, pension funds, and insurance companies. Experts who have worked on FMI projects include senior regulators for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Federal Reserve Board, the Resolution Trust Corporation, FDIC, the U.S. Departments of Labor and Treasury, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, the U.S. Community Services Administration, and state cabinet level departments.

Ann Wallace, Senior Capital Markets Attorney,J.D., is a senior capital markets attorney and regulatory reform specialist with over 25 years experience in securities market regulation, corporate governance, legal drafting, customized training programs development, and advising nascent and developed financial sector regulatory institutions. She recently served as FMI’s Chief-of-Party for the USAID Capital Markets Development Project in Ukraine, working to establish a vibrant financial sector. Previously, Ms. Wallace served as FMI’s Chief-of-Party for the USAID Corporate Governance Project in Ukraine and the USAID Capital Markets Regulation Project in Bulgaria. Ms. Wallace spent almost 20 years as a successful securities regulator with the U.S. SEC, where she oversaw regulation of financial conglomerates, implemented hands-on training of regulators on enforcement policies, and designed disclosure systems, including the development of the innovative EDGAR electronic disclosure system, viewed as a model for transparency and efficiency around the world.

David Bardsley, Senior Capital Markets Attorney, J.D., is a senior non-bank financial institution (NBFI) and pension sector attorney with over 30 years direct experience in legal/regulatory reform, pension fund and insurance company operations/supervision, institutional strengthening and training. Mr. Bardsley’s career spans positions as Senior Legal Adviser on USAID funded projects in Romania, Central Asia, and Russia; Senior Counsel to a leading full-service Wall Street financial institution; and, stints as Counsel and Secretary to the New York City Retirement System for Savings Institutions and as a Pension Specialist with the IRS. Mr. Bardsley began his career by working at leading U.S. private and public sector institutions in capital markets, NBFI and pension sectors. As Senior Counsel for the MONY Group in New York City, he supervised the design and registration of new investment products, while also leading a successful effort to consolidate, update and register all existing variable annuities. He served as Counsel and Secretary to the Retirement System for Savings Institutions of New York City, managing all corporate governance activities for the system, including shareholder relations, compliance issues, and restructuring of the system’s mortgage portfolio resulting in a $1.2 million gain and doubling of the yield. In addition, Mr. Bardsley spent 5 years as a Pension Specialist for the I.R.S., providing advice to the White House, U.S. Congress and leading private practitioners on ERISA issues, drafting rulings, internal guidelines and procedures.

John Crowley, Senior Capital Markets Specialist, M.B.A., is a senior investment banking and finance expert with extensive experience in financial instrument design and complex financial transactions in emerging markets. Mr. Crowley served as FMI’s Senior Capital Markets Adviser on the USAID Capital Markets Development Project in Ukraine, where he has successfully implemented various short-term assignments on banking services, new product development, net asset valuation of pension funds, requirements of pension and insurance fund investors, mergers and acquisitions, and recommendations on financial sector legislation. Mr. Crowley’s career includes senior positions with Pricewaterhousecoopers where he directed a successful M&A business in the EU and U.S.; Banker Trust / Alex Brown where he originated $3 billion in transactions in Russia, Poland, and Yugoslavia; and with the EBRD where he led debt issuances in Romania and Russia.

Carlos Bravo, Economist, M.A., is a senior international consultant with over 20 years experience in the management and implementation of economic development, agriculture and trade projects throughout Central/South America and the Caribbean. Recently, he served as FMI’s Chief of Party for USAID’s Support for DR-CAFTA Implementation Project in Nicaragua (Procafta). Mr. Bravo has worked extensively on USAID funded programs throughout South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Mr. Bravo has a unique understanding of development issues, having held senior positions in the private, public and non-governmental sectors. This includes work with USAID, the United Nations Industrial Development Office (UNIDO), Ciba Geigy, and Ronco Consulting. Mr. Bravo’s agricultural experience has focused on marketing, new product development, and export/investment promotion in Central America and the Caribbean.

Ann Berg, Commodity Markets Specialist, B.A., is a leading expert in commodities and capital markets with over 30 years experience. Beginning her career as a grain exporter, she engaged in international contract negotiations, hedging, execution, shipping, arbitrage, cost/risk analysis, and physical swaps. In 1982, she became a member of the Chicago Board of Trade and operated as an independent futures trader for 18 years.  She was twice elected to the Board of Director of the CBOT and served on the Executive Committee of the National Grain Trade Council in Washington DC. She has advised foreign governments, the United Nations, Catalyst Institute, and multinational and foreign corporations on a variety market related issues. Since 2000, Ms. Berg has served as an arbiter for the North American Export Association. She has worked on commodity/capital markets projects in Turkey, Puerto Rico, United Arab Emirates, Canada and most recently India as a member of the FMI’s Commodity Futures Market Project team.

Robert Strahota, Senior Attorney, J.D., is a senior attorney and a recognized expert in providing capital markets training and assistance in developing market environments. He recently served as a technical expert on FMI's World Bank Capital Markets Project in Moldova. Previously, Mr. Strahota served as the Assistant Director in the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of International Affairs, where he managed the SEC’s technical assistance programs for emerging securities markets, on-site assessment missions, and analysis on the laws and regulations on developing capital markets. Before serving as Assistant Director, he worked for the SEC as Attorney-Fellow and Senior Adviser to the Office of General Counsel, Senior Advisor to the Polish Securities Commission, and as a financial analyst and branch chief. Over the course of his career, Mr. Strahota has provided capital markets training and assistance in over 35 countries.

Oonagh McDonald, Legal and Regulatory Reform Specialist, PhD., is a former Director of the UK Financial Services Agency (“FSA”; previously called the Securities and Investment Board) and is highly familiar with all aspects of financial markets regulation, including regulation of collective investment funds (pension and mutual funds, insurance companies), securities markets, and banks. She recently drafted securities regulations for FMI's World Bank Capital Markets Project in Moldova. As a Board member of the FSA, Dr. McDonald was highly involved in assessing and coping with the implications of establishing a single financial markets regulator. Currently, her directorships include member of the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission, and Complaints Commissioner at the London Metal Exchange (“LME”), International Petroleum Exchange (“IPE”), and Virt-x (electronic exchange). Dr. McDonald is extremely active in the UK financial services and regulatory community and also provides advisory services internationally. In previous years, she advised various governments on establishing a single financial markets regulator.

Nick Kennedy, Program Associate, M.A., is the Project Manager for FMI’s USAID and other international donor funded projects . Mr. Kennedy provides technical and management services for FMI’s other international projects and contracting vehicles. Mr. Kennedy researches financial and international development topics, assists in the identification of new project opportunities, participates in the drafting and preparation of proposals, and carries out marketing efforts directed at private and public sector clients in the U.S. and abroad. His management duties include the recruiting and fielding of international consultant teams, contract negotiation, and logistical support.

Adam Ebrahim, Research Counsel, J.D., advises on legal matters relating to FMI's international projects and business operations. In addition, he supports FMI’s business development efforts, assists in the fielding of consulting teams, drafts and manages contracts, and liaises with numerous international donor agencies.

FMI CONSULTANTS
In addition to its full-time staff, FMI has a cadre of over 200 experienced consultants, specializing in specific fields of international finance and investment, economic development, bank reform, securities and commodities markets, corporate governance, pension fund reform and development, information systems, employment restructuring, alternative dispute resolution, commercial law, bankruptcy, privatization, and regulatory reform.