Huntington National Bank has brought on Citi's entire Midwest public finance banking group, with Samantha Costanzo being named head of public finance, the fourth woman to lead a municipal banking division in the industry. She will be based in Chicago.
Jurl Vinegar and Rupi Jain are also joining as director of public finance and associate of public finance, respectively.
"I really loved the idea of having the opportunity to bring this Midwest-focused bank to my clients and be able to offer best-in-class banking coverage and services; best-in-class execution on the underwriting desk; and also bring these great banking products, lending capabilities, and the full services of the bank to the table, as well," Costanzo told The Bond Buyer. "Having the ability to coordinate all of those resources and tell that story to my clients was really appealing to me."
Costanzo specializes in complex financings, tenders, high-yield and securitization. She has senior-managed more than $25 billion of tax-exempt and taxable bond financings in all sectors of public finance, including transportation, airports, water/sewer/state revolving funds, higher education, convention centers, hotels and pensions.
Costanzo started her career at Citi's New York office as an analyst 23 years ago. In 2009, she joined Jefferies as it launched its public finance department and led its Midwest region and senior-managed the firm's first state-level transactions and first transaction over $1 billion. In 2014, Citi brought her back as head of Midwest public finance.
Costanzo and her team offer Huntington a chance to extend its capabilities more deeply into public finance and to do what it already does with a greater degree of sophistication, said Matt Milcetich, executive managing director of Huntington Capital Markets.
"Through the process of getting to know Sam — and our clients' validation that she looks out for their best interest and fits that kind of culture of looking out for people that Huntington has — I think the two of us got aligned around that strategy," he said. "And I think her team embodies that same spirit."
Costanzo and her team are a natural fit at Huntington, said Scott Kleinman, president of Huntington Commercial Bank.
"One of the unique aspects of commercial banking at Huntington is our focus on culture," he said. "A key part of that is our purpose, which is to help businesses thrive and strengthen the communities we serve. This purpose guides everything we do. That's why it was important to us to find a like-minded expert and leader for our public finance team. I'm pleased we have found that in Sam, whose commitment to her clients shines in everything she does. We're fortunate to have her join our team."
Costanzo said she talked to "a number of firms" before deciding to join Huntington, which is "absolutely the best fit, both culturally and for my business." The regional bank is "putting their money where their mouth is here in this region," she said.
Looking ahead, she foresees an increase in municipal bond volume in 2024, particularly in general infrastructure, transportation and water and sewer projects. With pandemic-era stimulus funds starting to run out, there should be a significant uptick this year and next, she said.
"I think there's a lot of infrastructure needs out there, and as states and cities begin to run out of money, they're going to need to come to the bond market to access those funds," she added. "I think that this will be the year."
As an expert on tenders who did a number of such deals last year, she also hopes to see the tenders "stepping in to save the day" as refundings fall off.
Milcetich also noted while Huntington is rooted in the Midwest, it's "in expansion mode," growing its commercial banking presence nationally and augmenting its long-standing public finance presence in Texas and the Carolinas.
"And we're not done," he said. "While Sam and team are joining, they're not the last people that are going to be joining the public finance and sales and trading platform this year. The investments will continue."
For her part, Costanzo points to her first conversation with Huntington leadership. Cutting to the chase, she asked: "Is this a growth story, or are you stagnant?"
"And it really truly is a growth story," she said. "I'm excited about where we can take this platform because I think it has a tremendous amount to offer all of my clients. Whereas other banks are kind of pulling back and shrinking, we're doing the exact opposite."
