The Rising Stars of past classes are making good on their potential to become the new generation of municipal market leaders, climbing through the ranks to become important leaders as investors, issuer officials, analysts, and more.
From 2016 through 2020, The Bond Buyer has selected 136 Rising Stars from all parts of the municipal finance community. It has recognized top under-40 professionals at leading broker-dealers, bond counsel firms, rating agencies, asset management firms, municipal advisory businesses, bond insurers, and those working in the public sector. Though only a few years have passed since the inaugural class, the Rising Stars have already started to leave a lasting mark on the public finance business.
“It’s something that I make sure to mention,” said Fitch Ratings’ Eric Kim of his selection as a member of the first Rising Stars class in 2016. “It was an honor to be put forward by my company as an honoree.”
Since being named a Rising Star, Kim has been promoted to head of Fitch’s states group. He has three analysts who report directly to him regularly, and a number of others who cover state credit for Fitch whom he manages in that aspect of their work. A total of nine analysts work in the group, including Kim.
“Things are going great,” he said. “It’s been very busy. There is a lot of interest, rightfully so, in the credit quality of states. It’s been a very interesting time.”
Alex Obregon, a Rising Star in 2018, is still with the Houston Controller’s office. But he has since taken on the role of chief operating officer for that office, in addition to his title as Deputy City Controller. With 10 years of experience serving the city now under his belt, Obregon is now set to play an important role as Houston rebounds from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It was necessary for cities to receive the federal stimulus dollars,” Obregon told The Bond Buyer. “There’s no shortage of challenges that municipalities face,” he said. “We’re going to continue to work on these financial issues.”
David Hammer, another 2016 Rising Star, has had a good few years himself. He earned a promotion to managing director and relocated to California from New York. Since that time PIMCO acquired Gurtin Municipal Bond Management, greatly increasing the size of the company’s muni portfolio.
Prior to the Gurtin acquisition, PIMCO’s total combined assets under management in dedicated muni funds was about $23 billion. Today, it is about $56 billion. Hammer leads 10 portfolio managers and 14 analysts on the muni-dedicated team.
“It’s been a good four or five years,” Hammer said.
Another Rising Star from the inaugural class, Megan Kilgore, has come full circle since her selection five years ago. At that time, the former Columbus, Ohio, assistant city auditor had recently left her post to join H.J. Umbaugh and Associates, the city's financial advisor. In 2017, she sought and won election to become the Columbus Auditor. She began her four-year term in 2018.
Kilgore said her time in the private sector gave her a new perspective.
“I knew how to financially manage a triple-A city,” she said, explaining that as a municipal advisor she worked with issuers in diverse circumstances. “That gave me a lot of different experiences.”
In Columbus, the auditor represents the revenue side of the government, while the mayor is the expenditure side. Revenue is about $1 billion a year, Kilgore said.
While Columbus fared better than many localities during the pandemic, it was far from unscathed, announcing losses exceeding $41 million as of late 2020.
“No economic model can ever prepare you for a pandemic,” Kilgore said.
But prepared or not, municipal market professionals are navigating the COVID landscape with the Rising Stars right out in front in every aspect of the market. And as more Rising Stars join them to lead the muni market, the future can only be bright.
