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Banking | Finance 2025: SPROWLS, RYAN C.

In April, after 25 years with Wells Fargo Advisors, Sprowls founded 114 Private Wealth, which has 11 team members managing $2.5 billion in assets. The firm is affiliated with Wells Fargo Financial Network, an independent broker channel.

Ranked third among Virginia’s top wealth advisers, according to Florida’s SHOOK Research, Sprowls is also included on Barron’s 2025 list of the Top 1,200 U.S. Financial Advisors and Forbes’ 2025 list of the 250 Top Wealth Advisors in America. His group was ranked as the best team in the state by Forbes this year.

Sprowls earned an economics and degree at Missouri Southern State University, where he ran track. He also has a certified financial planner certification from the College for Financial Planning.

INTERESTING PLACES I’VE TRAVELED: Abu Dhabi and Dubai

FIRST JOB: I started a lawn mowing business at the age of 12 and built it up to over 30 lawns and had to bring in my best friend to help me.

PERSONAL MOTTO: “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” — Ben Franklin

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Banking | Finance 2025: RANSOM, THOMAS

Ransom has spent a quarter century in the industry. He started as a commerial going on to become market president for the greater Washington, D.C., region. After the that formed , Ransom moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, as an executive vice p commonwealth in 2021 to become president of the bank’s Virginia region.

The eighth largest bank in the nation, Truist had $544 billion in total assets as of Ju 38,000 employees, operating over 1,900 branches across 17 states and Washington, D.C.

Ransom serves on the Governor’s Advisory Council on Revenue Estimates, which the general economic climate of the commonwealth, and on the board of the Virginia Association. He also sits on the board of trustees for his alma mater, Hampden-Sydney College.

This spring, Ransom was a keynote speaker at the commencement ceremony for Commonwealth University’s School of Business.

Ransom earned an MBA from the University of Baltimore and was a public policy fellow at Princeton University.

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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 in 2021, Wakefield twice served as interim president and CEO for the regional organization representing 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 Greater Richmond Partnership 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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