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Banking | Finance 2025: GRINSPOON, JEFF

In a 2022 nomination for the Savvy Ladies’ Male Ally award — which recognizes men in the financial field who value equality — VWG CEO Elana Fine talked about how Grinspoon created a culture at the firm that attracts, retains and promotes women. “Jeff gave me the room to lead and placed his trust in me so that our employees would trust me,” she wrote. Grinspoon won the award, and he noted that the women he works with display a great deal of empathy, an important quality for financial advisers.

Listed among Forbes’ 250 Top Wealth Advisors in the country, Grinspoon previously was a senior vice president at Morgan Stanley. He founded VWG in 2011, and the firm partners with aggregator Hightower. VWG manages $2 billion in assets.

A University of Maryland alumnus with a bachelor’s degree and an MBA, Grinspoon started his career at Legg Mason. He sits on the board of advisors for the Dingman-Lamone Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Maryland.

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Economic Development 2025: TOUHILL, RYAN

Since joining Arlington County in 2022, Touhill’s efforts have included helping launch the Arlington Innovation Fund, which helps support local tech startups. Recipients have included SportAI, which provides analytics for fantasy sports and sports betting, and GenLogs, an AI company specializing in ground freight supply chains.

Amid the Trump administration’s cuts to the federal workforce and federal contracting spending, Touhill lately has been working to help spread the word about assistance and resources for those who have been laid off.

He previously served as senior vice president and chief of staff at the Alexandria Partnership, where he helped with the successful campaign to land Amazon.com’s HQ2 East Coast headquarters.

Touhill earned a degree in government and international politics from George Mason University and a Master of Public Administration from George Washington University.

INTERESTING PLACE I’VE TRAVELED: New Zealand

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Economic Development 2025: SMITH, DOUG

Since 2019, Smith has led the Alliance, a regional organization representing 15 municipalities and numerous private sector investors. Before that, he served as city manager for Norfolk and as deputy city manager in both Virginia Beach and Portsmouth and is also a past president and CEO of Kaufman & Canoles Consulting.

The region has seen some big wins lately. LS GreenLink USA broke ground in Chesapeake in April on its $700 million cable manufacturing facility. And Texas-based financial services company USAA announced in June it’s expanding in Chesapeake and plans to add more than 500 employees over the next two years. Smith called it “a win for the entire Hampton Roads region.”

A University of Virginia alum, Smith serves on several regional boards, including the Hampton Roads Chamber, Hampton Roads Workforce Council and Hampton Roads Executive Roundtable.

ON INTEGRATING AI: AI is not a replacement for the relationships and political acumen that drive economic development. However, it is absolutely a force multiplier that is making our team more efficient and competitive.

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Banking | Finance 2025: KARP, DAVID W.

In 2011, Karp and Paul Pagnato left Merrill Lynch to launch their own firm: PagnatoKarp. Initially, the outfit was part of Hightower Advisors, but PagnatoKarp dropped the affiliation in 2016. Four years later, Illinois-based investment firm Cresset Asset Management announced it had acquired PagnatoKarp, which then had $2.3 billion in assets under management.

At Cresset, Karp works with family office clients as well as business owners. He ranked No. 3 in Northern Virginia on the 2025 Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Advisors list, which noted his team manages assets of $5.5 billion. Karp also made Barron’s 2025 list of Top U.S. Financial Advisors.

In Tony Robbins’ 2016 book “MONEY Master the Game: 7 Simple Steps to Financial Freedom,” Karp is quoted in a discussion about the fiduciary standard. “It doesn’t matter who benefits more, the client or advisor,” Karp explains. “As long as an investment is suitable … at the time it was placed for the client, the advisor is held free of liability.”

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Economic Development 2025: ROMANELLO, ANTHONY J.

Romanello announced in August that he plans to leave his post as Henrico’s leader, a position he’s held since 2019, after working as a deputy county manager. He previously was county administrator for Stafford County and worked in local government for and West Point.

In April, the Henrico EDA filed a lawsuit against the former developers of the proposed $2.3 billion GreenCity mixed-used project, for defaulting on more than $5 million and not conveying the 93-acre site back to the county.

While GreenCity may take a while to get untangled, other projects are moving forward. For fiscal 2025, Henrico saw more than $8 billion in private investment, expected to generate 1,445 new jobs. That includes Iron Mountain’s planned data center complex in Henrico’s White Oak Technology Park.

Romanello earned his bachelor’s degree in American government and history from the University of Virginia and his master’s degree in public administration from Virginia Commonwealth University.

INTERESTING PLACE I’VE TRAVELED: Milan. The cathedral “il duomo” is the most beautiful structure I’ve seen with my own eyes, and the chicken cutlets tasted just like my grandmother made.

WHAT PEOPLE WOULD BE SURPRISED TO LEARN ABOUT ME: I’m actually 6’3” tall and 160 pounds.

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Banking | Finance 2025: KUHLMANN, DIETRICH

Last year, Kuhlmann took the helm of the world’s largest credit union, with $180.8 billion in assets and more than 14 million members, succeeding former leader Mary McDuffie.

After retiring from the U.S. Navy as a rear admiral, Kuhlmann joined Navy Federal in 2019 as head of branch operations. He later worked as chief real estate lending officer before being promoted to chief operating officer in 2022.

He came to Navy Federal after more than three decades with the Navy and the Department of Defense. A former commander of Submarine Group Nine, he oversaw all submarine matters in the Pacific Northwest. Kuhlmann graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and earned a master’s degree in engineering management from Catholic University of America.

In 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ordered to pay more than $80 million to consumers and $15 million in penalties over overdraft fees. After President Donald Trump returned to the White House, however, he installed new CFPB leadership, who terminated that order in June.

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Banking | Finance 2025: HODGES, CECILIA A.

Hodges has worked in for nearly four decades. Leading Bank’s greater Washington, D.C., and Virginia regions since 2018, she manages teams across more than 55 branches.

A Virginia Tech graduate, Hodges grew up in Rocky Mount, where her parents ran a construction supplies store. In 2009, M&T Bank acquired Provident Bank, where Hodges was managing director. She later rose to market president for Central and Southern Virginia for New York-based M&T, which operates in 13 states and had assets of $208.3 billion as of April.

Hodges’ term on the board for the Federal Reserve Bank of ‘s Baltimore branch ends this year. She also serves on the Greater Washington Board of Trade’s executive committee and on the boards for the United Way of Virginia and the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce.

ADVICE FOR NEW COLLEGE GRADS: Build your network early, stay curious, and never underestimate the value of listening. Relationships and adaptability will shape your career more than titles.

HOW I DEFINE SUCCESS: Success is measured by your impact — on people, communities, and future generations — not just profits.

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Economic Development 2025: WAKEFIELD, JENNIFER

Before assuming her current role leading the Greater Partnership in 2021, Wakefield twice served as interim president and CEO for the regional organization representing Richmond and the counties of Chesterfield, Hanover and Henrico. She has also been its chief operating officer and senior vice president of marketing.

Wakefield previously served as Orlando Economic Development Commission’s (now Orlando Economic Partnership) marketing and communications vice president for 11 years.

In March, the  celebrated the launch of its 5-year strategic plan. It’s built on four pillars: advancing business recruitment and cluster development; delivering research and market intelligence; elevating regional competitiveness; and shaping perception of the region.

“There just isn’t much of a perception outside of Richmond of Richmond,” Wakefield said recently on a podcast. Too many cities are named Richmond, she noted. Another problem is that Virginia doesn’t spend as much on marketing itself as other states. “So,” she said, “we have some work to do.”

A self-proclaimed “Star Wars” nerd, Wakefield is an International Economic Development Council board member and sits on several regional boards.

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Banking | Finance 2025: FRANTZ, MARK A.

Co-founded by Frantz in 2009, Blue Delta is a venture capital firm that backs growth-stage companies providing services to the federal government.

In September 2024, Arlington-based ITC Federal, an IT services provider for federal government agencies focused on law enforcement and national security, announced it had received an investment from Blue Delta to help it pursue acquisitions and expand. News reports placed the investment at $25 million.

In addition to his work at Blue Delta, Frantz sits on the board of ASGN, the Henrico County Fortune 1000 IT and professional services provider.

Previously, Frantz was a partner at RedShift Ventures and a principal with Carlyle Group, the private equity firm where Gov. Glenn Youngkin served as co-CEO. Early in his career, Frantz served as associate director of the White House’s Office of Intergovernmental Affairs under President George H.W. Bush. He also worked as economic and technology policy adviser to former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge.

Frantz earned his law degree and an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh.

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Banking | Finance 2025: GRIMM, ANDREW ‘ANDY’

When Grimm assumed leadership of Apple Federal Credit Union in 2017, it had 190,000 members and nearly $2.4 billion in assets. Today, it has nearly 270,000 members, 25 branches and $5.3 billion in assets.

A sliver of that growth stems from a merger with Fairfax’s NextMark Credit Union, which was completed in January. Prior to the deal, NextMark had $519 million in assets and about 17,000 members. “These are exciting times,” Grimm wrote on his LinkedIn page when the merger was announced.

Founded in 1956 as a credit union for educators, Apple welcomes as members anyone who lives, works, worships, volunteers or attends school in Fairfax, Frederick and Prince William counties or the cities of Fairfax, Manassas, Manassas Park or Winchester.

Grimm has worked at Apple FCU since 1995, when he came aboard as a strategic planning manager. By 1999, he had been named vice president of . In 2004, Grimm was named Apple’s executive vice president and chief operating officer.

In addition to a marketing degree from Fordham University, Grimm has a master’s degree in business from Johns Hopkins University.

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