Stratford Shields
Chairman
Stratford has served as an investment banker and advisor to Governors, Mayors, CFOs, Treasurers and two Speakers of the US House of Representatives in his 30 year career.
Stratford’s primary focus is to help his clients achieve their financial objectives in both the near and long-term. He has worked on significant transactions crafting complex financial strategies in the transportation, general government, higher education, water and sewer, transportation and utilities sector for financings totaling in excess of $40 billion.
He has served in senior roles in several major firms including as head of public finance at two Wall Street firms as well as an advisory board member of a major infrastructure fund.
He has also served as advisor to some of the more innovative public private partnership (“P3”) transactions, including serving as advisor to The Ohio State University for its $483 million 50 year parking concession to QIC-LAZ, advisor to Ohio State Energy Partners (Engie/Axium) on its $1.15 billion 50 year concession of the Ohio State University’s energy system, and to the Illinois Student Assistance Commission on its restructuring and sale of $4 billion of its student loan portfolio.
Stratford is a former Chair of the SIFMA Municipal Division - the securities industry association. Prior to his public finance career, he worked for the Ohio Office of Budget and Management as a Deputy Director and President of the State Controlling Board as well as a senior staff member for the Governor of Ohio. He has a BA in History from The Ohio State University, an MA in Political Science and an MBA from Columbia University.