Jeff Monge
Jeff Monge is the managing partner of Monge Capital, a Latino-owned firm focused on providing advisory services and capital solutions for complex large scale business and real estate projects that provide investor market returns and community social impacts. Monge capital leverages its economic development and private equity experience with a strong knowledge of urban development and real estate finance to maximize results for clients. Monge Capital has many years of experience with direct equity investing and the usage of a variety of City, State and Federal financing programs including a niche focus on New Market Tax Credits, Historic Tax Credits, Opportunity Zones, and flexible financing options. While principally Monge Capital speaks to the needs of their clients including developers, operating businesses, nonprofits and municipalities, Monge Capital participates in direct investing as well.
Jeff is featured on The Intelligent Developers Podcast, Episode 7, August 16, 2021, entitled: Putting Structured Finance to Work for the Community. Check it out here.
Jeff graduated from SUNY Polytechnic Institute in Utica, NY with a Master in Business Management and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering Technology.
Gina Nisbeth
Gina D. Nisbeth serves as the President and Founder of 9th & Clinton, a prominent national firm specializing in strategic advisory and investment structuring for real estate developers, fund managers, and impact-focused organizations. With a rich background, Gina was previously a Director at Citi in the Structured Lending & Investments Group, culminating in her role as Citi’s inaugural Executive in Residence with Unity National Bank.
In a July 27th, 2021 interview on “Quicktake Charge” with Jennifer Zabasajja (Source: Bloomberg), Gina discussed a program enabling her firm’s bankers and traders to collaborate with Black-owned banks. Notably, she managed Citi’s $1 billion New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) investments and oversaw $800 million in community development-focused private equity investments.
In 2020, Gina played a key role in deploying $200 million of private equity capital with Black fund managers and $50 million in loan participation opportunities with minority-owned banks, contributing to Citi’s $1 billion commitment to racial equity. A Rutgers College graduate, she holds an M.B.A. from The Fox School of Business at Temple University, with a concentration in Finance, and has completed a graduate certificate in Creative Cities and Economic Development at New York University.
KERMIT BILLUPS
Kermit Billups is an Executive President of Greenline, and is involved in activities including transaction structuring, tax credit syndication, debt financing, origination, underwriting, and NMTC compliance.
Kermit began his career at Capmark in 1999 and has been a member of the NMTC platform since 2004. He has been in investment banking since 1992, with an emphasis on developing solutions for deficiencies in low-income communities nationwide, including complex and innovative financings to benefit low-income housing tax credit and New Markets Tax Credit transactions. He has participated in over $3.5 billion of project finance and affordable housing capital. He has successfully completed over 50 taxable and tax-exempt revenue bond programs to serve low and moderate-income individuals. Prior to joining Capmark, Kermit worked for Honeywell, IBM, Legg Mason, and Stephens Inc.
Kermit has a B.A. in Economics from Harvard College and an M.B.A. from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration.
Liliana Aide Monge
Liliana Aide Monge is the Co-Founder and CEO of Sabio, an innovative social enterprise working to increase the number of women, and people of color that become professional software engineers. Since its inception, 55% of its graduates are either Latino or African American, and 40% are women, which is 10% higher than the industry average. Sabio offers training to anyone that is highly motivated and no prior technical experience is needed. Sabio also works with hundreds of military veterans and helps them gain tech skills needed to thrive in today’s information economy.
Liliana was born in Northern Mexico, and came to the states when she was 5 years old. She lived in Los Angeles for most of her childhood with her mother and older Sister. She attended Wellesley College and graduated with a BA in Biology in 1999. She was a founding board member for DIY Girls, a nonprofit in the San Fernando Valley that helps young girls gain STEM skills early in their education. She is also an Advisory Board Member of the City of Los Angeles Development Fund, an organization tasked with allocating the City’s NMTCs. Since then she has made Los Angeles her home, alongside her Co-Founder, and husband, Gregorio Rojas, where they are currently raising their two boys.
Jose Villalobos
For over 30 years, Jose Villalobos served as TELACU’s Senior VP, driving community revitalization through job creation, financial services, and affordable housing. Under his leadership, TELACU developed $1B in real estate projects, creating 16,000+ jobs and lending $2.5B in low-income communities.
Villalobos secures government funds, with over $450M secured, including $365M in New Markets Tax Credit Allocations. He plays a vital role in TELACU’s collaboration with SBA, overseeing the faith-based initiative and holding leadership roles in key organizations.
With a finance background, he chairs Eastcoast Development Corporation and served on various boards, holding an MBA from UCLA. Villalobos’ extensive experience and contributions underscore his commitment to community development and financial empowerment. His work has left a lasting impact on TELACU’s mission to uplift underserved communities.
Lillian Plata
Lillian A. Plata is General Counsel for Conifer Realty, LLC, a nationally ranked, full-service real estate company specializing in the development, construction, management, and ownership of high-quality, affordable housing communities throughout the Northeast and MidAtlantic.
Prior to Conifer, she served as co-founding member of Nee Plata Law, LLC. in Roseland, NJ, where she provided tax and structuring advice to corporations, partnerships, developers, non-profits, and government entities on an array of complex multimillion-dollar transactions with a focus on syndicating Low Income Housing Tax Credits, New Markets Tax Credits, and Historic Tax Credits, as well as other federal and local tax credit and incentive programs including Opportunity Zones. Other previous roles include being a General Partner at McManimon, Scotland & Baumann, LLC., a Global Infrastructure/Public Finance/Tax Associate at Fulbright & Jaworski, LLP., and a Public Finance/Tax Associate at Wilentz. Goldman & Spitzer, P.A.
During her 20+ year career, Lillian has received more than a dozen awards and distinctions for her work, including Top Lawyers Under 40 from the Hispanic National Bar Association, the Social Justice Advocate Award from the Morris County Organization for Hispanic Affairs, the Legacy Award from the Association of Latin American Law Students, the Top 50 Women in Business Award from NJBiz. She is a frequent speaker for major organizations such as Novogradac & Company LLP, the National Association of Bond Lawyers, New York Law School, the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, among many others.
Lillian earned a B.A. in English from Drew University, a J.D. from the Rutgers School of Law, and an L.L.M. in Taxation from New York Law School and is an active member with many professional organizations focused on enhancing the Legal profession and developing the next generation of talent.
Ashley Wicks
As an attorney at Butler Snow LLP, I have over 15 years of experience in providing legal and tax advice to clients in various industries and sectors. I am also a Certified Public Accountant and a licensed lawyer in Mississippi, Texas, and Washington, D.C. My expertise includes public finance, new markets tax credits, corporate and business transactions, and federal, state, and local taxation. I have represented community development entities, leverage lenders, developers, owners, mass transit agencies, colleges, and other entities in complex and innovative financing projects that improve and revitalize communities.
I have also assisted clients with business formation, tax controversy, ad valorem exemption, and opportunity zone investments. My mission is to help my clients achieve their goals and overcome their challenges through effective and creative tax and finance solutions.
Robin Houston
Robin Houston is Assistant Vice President and Senior Asset Manager at U.S. Bancorp Impact Finance and is involved in NMTC Compliance and underwriting with a specialized focus on investments financed with Tax Credit Allocation from U.S. Bank’s Community Development Entity (USBCDE LLC). Robin has 29 years in the financial industry.
Throughout her career Robin has mentored more than 100 women internally at U.S. Bank, and many others through her community outreach efforts. Robin has a passion for working with the youth and has served as a Corporate Volunteer at Junior Achievement St. Louis for 20 years.
Robin earned her B.S. in Business Management from University of Phoenix and remains very active in the St. Louis community. She currently serves as a member of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA, Inc.), and the St. Louis United Way Allocations Committee. Formerly, she served on the board of directors for Lutheran Family and Children Services and The National Black NBA St. Louis Chapter where she led the scholarship committee.
With a vested interest in community development, Robin’s mission is to change lives and help communities grow and thrive through the impactful work she does at U.S. Bancorp’s Impact Finance.
DAVID G. CLOWER
David G. Clower is the President & Chief Executive Officer of the National Trust Community Investment Corporation (NTCIC) and NT Solar, which are Washington, DC-based subsidiaries of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. NTCIC operates as a national Community Development Entity (CDE) and tax credit syndicator preserving the country’s architectural heritage and promoting community and economic development through the adaptive re-use of historic properties and the provision of investment in federal and state tax credits. Similarly, NT Solar is focused on helping investors navigate solar investment tax credits to reach their Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) goals.
For 14 years, prior to joining NTCIC and NT Solar, Mr. Clower served as the Chief Credit Officer, Chief Investment Officer, and the Executive Vice President of Strategic Investments at the Raza Development Fund (RDF), a mission-driven community development financial institution (CDFI) based in Phoenix, Arizona, which invests capital and creates financial solutions to increase opportunities for low-income Latino families and children across the country. He has 30 years of commercial and investment banking experience across commercial real estate, venture-debt, private equity, alternative and socially responsible, impact investment platforms. Mr. Clower is also the Founder & Managing Member of Desert Cove Ventures, a private, family investment manager dedicated to positive social impact through alternative investment strategies.
He currently serves as the Chair of the CDFI Advisory Board for Quontic, a privately-held, New York-based adaptive digital bank; a member of the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Advisory Board of Directors for Petros Community Impact Fund, a Texas-based CDE; and as Chair of the Board of Directors for the Phoenix Conservatory of Music, a non-profit, creative youth development organization.
He is a former Executive Committee Member of the New Markets Tax Credit Coalition’s Board of Directors, the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Community Advisory Board, and the Association of Latino Professionals for America – Phoenix Chapter Corporate Advisory Board. He is a multi-national with dual citizenship in the United States and México. He studied Applied Economics at the University of San Francisco; Commercial Real Estate Finance at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and Strategic Business Leadership at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
