Guided by experience

Ted Brombach

Co-CEO

Ted Brombach is Co-CEO of XA Investments and a founding partner of XMS Capital Partners. Ted has over 30 years of investment banking experience working with global corporate clients in Chicago, New York and London. Prior to founding XMS Capital Partners, Ted was the former Co-Head of Midwest Investment Banking at Morgan Stanley. While in New York, Ted worked in the firm's M&A Group, its Restructuring Group, and was a founding member of the Financial Sponsors Group.

Ted has been involved in a number of landmark transactions. At XMS, he led a transaction nominated as the middle-market healthcare deal of the year for Third Wave Technologies. While at Morgan Stanley, he worked on the global IPO of Wellcome plc in London (the largest global share offering in the world at the time) and the breakup of Sears, Roebuck and Co. into Sears, Allstate, Dean Witter and Coldwell Banker. He also led the first contested takeover battle on mainland China on behalf of Anheuser-Busch (cited as the Asian M&A Deal of the Year) and the U.S. Equity Deal of the Year in 2005 on behalf of General Mills.

Ted has been cited as one of the top industrial bankers in the country. He is on the board of directors of RiverWood Bank and is a former member of the board of directors of the Lyric Opera of Chicago. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Notre Dame and received his MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University.

John "Yogi" Spence

Co-CEO

John "Yogi" Spence is Co-CEO of XA Investments and a founding partner of XMS Capital Partners. Yogi co-founded XMS in 2006 with his long-time friend and colleague, Ted Brombach. Before founding the firm, Yogi spent 17 years at Morgan Stanley where he rose to Managing Director. Yogi also had a brief stint at ABN AMRO before being recruited to run the Midwestern investment banking operations of Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, based in Chicago. Yogi and Ted formed XMS with the goal of creating a different kind of investment banking boutique - one that harkened back to what investment banking used to be in the days of John Weinberg of Goldman Sachs and Richard Fisher of Morgan Stanley. They wanted to create a place where relationships are more important than transactional velocity and where advice is rendered to clients over a long period of time and across all of their critical strategic and financing issues. From the outset, it was determined that XMS would remain independent and offer unbiased advice free from the internal conflicts so common within the larger investment banks. From its humble beginnings, XMS has grown into an organization filled with talented and driven investment bankers that work collaboratively to achieve client objectives. Yogi maintains responsibility for many of XMS's longest-standing relationships and is actively involved in new business development, both in the U.S. and Europe, ongoing deal execution and firm management.

During his time at Morgan Stanley, he had many roles, including leading the corporate finance execution practice in the Midwest from 1997-2002. This involved executing tens of billions of dollars of equity offerings, converts and high yield financings for companies as diverse as Embraer, Celestica, Sears, Allstate, Timken, Amway, Eaton, Teletech and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Yogi graduated magna cum laude from the University of Notre Dame with a BA in Economics and earned his MBA at The Anderson Graduate School of Management at the University of California - Los Angeles.

Kimberly Ann Flynn

President

Kimberly Ann Flynn is a President at XA Investments. She is a partner in the firm and responsible for all product and business development activities. Kim is responsible for the firm's proprietary fund platform and consulting practice. Kim has developed an expertise in closed-end fund product development and is a frequent contributor to media and industry events on topics including interval funds, alternative investments and London-listed investment companies. Kim has earned the CFA designation and is a member of the CFA Institute and CFA Society Chicago. She is also Series 7, 63 and 24 licensed.

Previously, Kim was Senior Vice President and Head of Product Development for Nuveen Investments' Global Structured Products Group. In her 11 years at Nuveen, she helped develop over 40 closed-end funds, raising approximately $13 billion in capital. In her leadership role at Nuveen, Kim was responsible for asset-raising activities through the development of new, traditional and alternative investment funds, including CEFs, ETFs, UITs and commodity pools.

Kim received her MBA degree from Harvard University, where she was a William J. Carey scholar and President of the HBS Volunteers. Before attending Harvard Business School, Kim spent three years working in Morgan Stanley's Investment Banking Division (1999-2002) in their Chicago office. She earned her BBA in Finance and Business Economics, summa cum laude, from the University of Notre Dame in 1999 where she was a valedictorian candidate, Rhodes Scholar finalist and the first recipient of the Paul F. Conway Award, given to a senior in the Department of Finance who embodies Notre Dame's tradition of excellence and who enriches the ideals of the university.

Kim was recently selected to serve on the Notre Dame Wall Street leadership committee. She also serves on the board of the Women in ETFs Chicago chapter as Head of the Mentorship Committee and on the advisory board of Youth Guidance's Becoming A Man program. She is an active member of the University Club of Chicago and the Harvard Club of New York City, where she conducts regular business. Kim and her family - husband, Leo; son, Teddy; and daughter, Rose - live in Lincoln Park.

Benjamin D. McCulloch

Managing Director, General Counsel

Benjamin D. McCulloch is General Counsel and Managing Director at XA Investments. Prior to joining XA Investments, Ben was an attorney in the investment management practice group at Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, where he counseled clients regarding issues related to the federal securities laws applicable to U.S. registered funds, their investment advisers, their boards of directors/trustees and service providers.

Prior to Drinker Biddle, Ben was an in-house lawyer at First Trust Advisers, where he counseled the new product development, operational and trading, fund accounting and compliance departments on investment advisory and investment company matters. He also served as the chief compliance officer of the complex's Canadian affiliate mutual funds.

Ben received his law degree from the University of Miami. He received his MBA from Dominican University, and he earned his BS in Marketing from the University of Phoenix while serving active duty in the US Navy. Prior to attending law school, Ben worked in the financial services industry as a financial advisor and later as a fixed income securities trader.

Kevin Davis

Managing Director, Head of Sales & Distribution

Kevin Davis is a Managing Director and Head of Sales & Distribution at XA Investments. He is responsible for all aspects of fund sales and distribution and leads the XA Investments team efforts for the RIA, Broker Dealer and Family Office channels. He has more than 25 years of experience in financial services focusing on the RIA, MFO and SFO marketplace in areas including investment management, custody, trading, and technology.

Prior to joining XA Investments, Kevin was a Senior Vice President, Client Strategist for BNY Mellon. There he led a team of specialists assisting family offices and the advisors that support them to identify, analyze and execute investment management mandates, wealth planning, philanthropic initiatives, and special financing engagements. Prior to joining BNY Mellon, he was Vice President, Business Development at Fidelity Family Office Services. Kevin also served as a Divisional Director, Head of RIA and Bank Trust Division for Salient Partners. He led a national team of sales professionals distributing real asset, alternative income, and uncorrelated return strategies within mutual fund, SMA, private fund and hedge fund formats to the SFO, MFO and RIA marketplace.

Kevin possesses a broad knowledge of investment products including traditional and alternative investment strategies. Throughout his career, Kevin has worked with various 1940 Act fund structures including closed-end funds, private funds, unit investment trusts (UITs), and managed futures investments.

Kevin earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Trinity University and holds various industry specific certifications including the CFP® designation. He also holds FINRA Series 7 and 63 licenses. Kevin resides with his wife and two children in Houston, TX.

Lisa Woo

Director of Fund Finance and Operations

Lisa Woo is a Director of Fund Finance and Operations at XA Investments and is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day financial operations of XA Investments and its' funds. She has 20 years of experience in GAAP accounting for financial institutions.

Previously, Lisa was an Accounting Manager at Madison Dearborn Partners (MDP), a large private equity firm in Chicago. She was responsible for the everyday accounting for various funds as well as creating GAAP basis financials in addition to having oversight over staff accountants. She was also responsible for external reporting to investors and internal reporting to managing partners.

Prior to MDP, Lisa worked in the big 5 public accounting firms auditing various financial services organizations with a concentration in investment management. Clients included firms from one of the 3 largest US banks, several private equity/venture capital firms, broker dealers and a variety of benefit plans. She graduated from the University of Illinois-Chicago with a BS in Chemistry and earned a MS in Accountancy from DePaul University.

Jared Hagen

Vice President

Jared Hagen is a Vice President at XA Investments. Prior to joining XAI, Jared worked at Thrivent as a Senior Investment Product Specialist. At Thrivent, he focused on product development and management of various investment vehicles, including Mutual Funds, ETFs, Interval Funds, and Model Portfolios. Jared was also involved in manager research and due diligence supporting their sub-advised funds, model portfolio, and variable annuity product offerings.

Jared received his BA in Economics from the University of Minnesota-Duluth with a minor in Financial Markets. During college, he was involved in Student Government and served as Chair of Congress. He holds FINRA Series 7 and 66 licenses.

Luke Gaskill

Analyst

Luke Gaskill is an Analyst at XA Investments focused on product development and product management. Prior to joining XAI, Luke was a legal assistant for Bransfield & Bransfield, a law firm specializing in estate planning and administration. During his time at Bransfield & Bransfield, Luke worked on a variety of projects ranging from drafting letters, court documents, and other forms to preparing tax returns for individuals, estates, and trusts.

Luke received his B.B.A. in Finance with a supplementary major in Information Systems and Analytics from Loyola University Chicago. Throughout college, Luke was an active member of Rambler Investment Fund, a student led investment club that manages a portion of Loyola’s endowment.

Luke Becker

Analyst

Luke Becker is an Analyst at XA Investments focused on product development and management. Prior to joining XAI, Luke was a capital markets intern for CBRE, a global leader in commercial real estate services and investments. During his time at CBRE, Luke worked on a variety of projects ranging from financial modeling, underwriting corporate real estate portfolios, and analyzing semi-structured data sets.

Luke received his B.S. in Finance and BALAS in Philosophy from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Throughout his college career, Luke was an active member of the Illini Chess Club, Flipping Illini (gymnastics club), and Dancing Illini.

Lauren Hering

Analyst

Lauren Hering is an Analyst focused on product management and product development at XA Investments. Before joining XAI, Lauren was a Product Management intern at Publicis Sapient working on a financial services project. During her time as an intern, Lauren worked on a variety of projects, including research and analysis of financial data, and assisted in creation of client driven product solutions.

Lauren graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a B.B.A. in Business Analytics and a minor in History. Throughout college, Lauren was a Division I student-athlete on the Notre Dame Women’s Rowing Team.

Samantha Bailey

Research Analyst

Samantha Bailey is a research analyst at XMS Capital Partners and XA Investments, responsible for daily administrative and analytic tasks. Prior to XMS and XAI, she worked as a store manager for a retail boutique in Chicago. Samantha graduated from Eastern Illinois University with a bachelor's degree in family and consumer sciences.

David Adler

Senior Advisor to XA Investments on Economics

David Adler is a Senior Advisor to XA Investments on Economics. As an economic analyst and author, he focuses on illiquidity and behavioral economics. David is the author of the monograph, "The New Economics of Liquidity and Financial Frictions," published by the CFA Institute Research Foundation. Previously, he wrote the liquidity and asset-pricing literature review for the CFA Institute Research Foundation and was co-investigator of a research study of tax-aware practices among investment professionals. David is also the author of "Snap Judgment" (FT Press), which is about behavioral economics, and he is the co-editor of the anthology, "Understanding American Economic Decline" (Cambridge University Press).

David is a producer of the PBS NOVA documentary, "Mind Over Money," which is about behavioral economics, as well as the documentary "America's Crisis in Healthcare and Retirement," which was also shown on PBS. He also participated in related educational and outreach efforts.

He is the moderator of the Bloomberg LiveINSIGHTs conference series and author of related white papers. David has an MA and BA in Economics from Columbia where he received a graduate scholarship, graduated summa cum laude and was awarded Phi Beta Kappa in his junior year as one of the 10 highest-ranked undergraduates and highest-ranked economics major. David also studied graduate economics at New College, Oxford, on a scholarship sponsored by Columbia. He attended the Behavioral Economics Summer Institute ("behavioral summer camp") in Trento, Italy. David lives in New York.

Paul C. Williams

Senior Advisor to XA Investments on Product Development

Paul Williams is a Senior Advisor to XA Investments on Product Development. He serves as a consultant, providing independent advice to asset managers and investment product distributors focused on the individual investor market. Paul established his advisory practice in 2016 following a distinguished career at Nuveen Investments, first as a municipal finance investment banker and then as a Managing Director, Head of New Product Development for closed-end funds. At various intervals during his tenure at Nuveen, he managed the firm's Public Finance and Municipal Credit Research departments, and he served on the Management Committee.

Paul played a key role over 25 years, building and diversifying Nuveen's complex of over 90 exchange-listed closed-end funds. Beginning with the Premium Income Municipal Fund, the industry's first leveraged municipal fund, in 1988, and concluding with launch of the High Income Target Term Fund in July 2015, he helped Nuveen become the industry leader. His contributions ranged from new product design and development to enlisting underwriter participation, wholesaler training, road show presentations, collaborating with in-house portfolio teams and initiating new joint ventures with unaffiliated asset managers to diversify Nuveen's product offerings.

Recognized as an innovator, problem solver and thought leader, Paul is credited with several major product design innovations and first-time offerings in the closed-end fund market and the municipal market. He has published articles in industry journals and conducted numerous conference and seminar presentations regarding '40 Act investment product design and new municipal financing techniques.

Paul received his BA from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School and, midcareer, completed the Advanced Management Program at the Harvard Business School. For more than 20 years, he has served Penn, his alma mater, in multiple board and leadership roles.

Paul Dunn

Senior Advisor to XA Investments on Sales and Distribution

Paul Dunn is a Senior Advisor to XA Investments on Sales and Distribution. Paul has four decades of leadership experience with several industry trailblazing firms. Most recently he served as Executive Vice President of Bluerock Capital Markets and was part of the leadership team that introduced two interval funds to the marketplace: the Bluerock Total Income+ Real Estate Fund and the Bluerock High Income Institutional Credit Fund focusing on CLO debt. While at Bluerock, Paul led the wholesaling team and managed key business functions including compliance, operations, third-party wholesaling relationships, and capital planning. Mr. Dunn also has RIA, family office, and wirehouse sales experience.

Prior to joining Bluerock, Paul served in various leadership roles at asset management firms including First Allied Wealth, SEI Investments and NTS Corporation, as well as being President of Southland Trust Company, a Dallas based bank.

At SEI Investments, he spent seven years planning and implementing the launch of one of the industry’s first TAMP offering, resulting in $76 billion in capital commitments. Paul helped shift SEI’s reputation as one of the nation’s two largest pension consultants into a credible sponsor of investment products for the public.

In the early part of his career, Paul was a law enforcement executive in Boston, MA and Tucson, AZ. He earned his B.A. from Brown University and his J.D. from Suffolk University School of Law. He is based in Orange County, CA.