The SPAC Conference 2025 Speakers
Partner, Capital Markets
CFGI
Carla is a Partner in our Capital Markets Practice with over 15 years of experience providing financial reporting and advisory services to private and public companies. Carla has dedicated over a decade of relevant work experience in the Capital Markets advisory space where she has advised clients in a variety of industries such as e-commerce, publishing, oil and gas, software, biopharma, manufacturing, distribution, and production on traditional IPOs, Merger and Reverse Merger transactions, including Special Purpose Acquisition Company Mergers. Carla is a subject matter expert in SEC reporting focusing on IPO and Merger assistance and readiness assessments, restatements, carve-outs, business acquisitions and combinations, consolidations, period-end close and interim management services, variable interest entities, cash flows, and earnings-per-share.
Prior to joining the CFGI team, Carla worked for Ernst and Young in their Houston audit practice and in the private sector for a pre-IPO petrochemical manufacturing company. Carla holds a Master of Science in Marketing and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administrations, Accounting from Texas A&M University. She is a Certified Public Accountant in Texas.
Partner
Ogier
Cynthia is a partner in Ogier's Corporate team and a member of the firm's multi-disciplinary Private Equity team. Having advised on several landmark transactions in the Cayman Islands, she currently advises on a broad range of public and private M&A transactions, equity capital markets (with a focus on SPACs), private equity, venture capital, joint ventures, inbound and outbound investments, corporate advisory and corporate restructuring matters.
Cynthia brings fifteen years of experience from top tier law firms in Sydney, Melbourne and New York to her Cayman Islands practice, and she maintains multiple current admissions including in New York and Australia.
Co-chairman
Marcum Asia CPAs LLP
Drew Bernstein is the Co-Chairman of MarcumAsia, initially co-founder of Bernstein & Pinchuk, a PCAOB registered accounting firm which has been providing SEC audit and advisory services to Asian companies since 1983. The firm is a member of the Marcum Group and an affiliate of Marcum LLP, a leading U.S. accounting and advisory firm. The combined firm is one of the largest middle market accounting firms servicing Asia-based, US publicly traded companies.
Bernstein is a distinguished expert with deep knowledge of the Asia and U.S. financial ecosystem with experience extending across Asia, Europe and Africa. Industry experience encompasses technology, education, retail, manufacturing, hospitality, pharmaceutical and real estate. Bernstein directs a global team, featuring highly trained PCAOB and SEC accounting experts and financial consultants working in New York City as well several offices across China and Singapore.
Additionally, Bernstein is respected as a valuable industry thought leader and news commentator. He has published articles for Forbes.com, CFO.com and China Daily and is often a resource to prominent new media outlets such as Bloomberg TV, Reuters, The Financial Times, Barron’s, MarketWatch and more regarding Chinese IPOs, China’s economic growth, investment appetite, innovation trends, corporate governance, SEC regulations and more.
Bernstein graduated from the University of Maryland with a B.S. in Accounting. Currently, he resides in New York City with his wife and children.
Financial Practice Leader
NSI Group
Jason Bishara is Senior Vice President at NSI, Leading the Financial Lines Practice. Jason is responsible for advancing, managing, and fostering the growth of all Professional Lines. Jason continually seeks innovative solutions to challenges, aiming to elevate the overall working environment. Jason holds the designation of Management Liability Insurance Specialist (MLIS), reflecting his dedication to specialization and continuous professional development.
Founder
ABZ Law Office
Avraham Ben-Tzvi, is the founder of ABZ Law Office, a boutique law firm based in Israel specializing in corporate & securities laws, commercial law & contracts, and various civil law matters, as well as providing outsourced general counsel services for publicly traded as well as private companies and corporations, which he established in January 2017. Avraham served as Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel of Purple Biotech Ltd. (formerly Kitov Pharma Ltd.) (NASDAQ/TASE: PPBT), a clinical-stage company advancing first-in-class therapies to overcome tumor immune evasion and drug resistance, from November 2015 until April 2020. Prior to that, he served as General Counsel and Company Secretary at Medigus Ltd. (NASDAQ/TASE: MDGS), a minimally invasive endosurgical tools medical device and miniaturized imaging equipment company, from April 2014 until November 2015. Prior to that he served as an attorney at one of Israel’s leading international law firms where, amongst other corporate and commercial work, he advised companies and underwriters on various offerings by Israeli companies listing in the US and on various SEC related filings. Prior to becoming a lawyer, Avraham worked in several business development, corporate finance and banking roles at companies in the financial services, lithium battery manufacturing and software development industries. In connection with a number of listed company reorganizations, Avraham has served, and continues to serve, as a member of the Board of Directors, and various board committees, of a number of listed issuers, including Titan Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: TTNP) and Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: CYCC), pharmaceuticals development companies, LQR House, Inc. (NASDAQ: YHC), a company in the wine and spirits e-commerce sector, OpGen, Inc. (NASDAQ: OPGN), a precision medicine company, and Minim, Inc. (NASDAQ: MINM), a company which delivered smart software-driven communications products under the globally recognized Motorola brand and Minim® trademark,. Avraham received a B.A., magna cum laude, in Economics from Yeshiva University in New York and an LL.B., magna cum laude from Sha’arei Mishpat College of Law in Hod HaSharon, Israel. He is a licensed attorney and member of the Israel Bar Association and is also licensed as a Notary by the Israeli Ministry of Justice.
Founder & CEO
Calabrese Consulting LLC
Jenn Calabrese began her career at KPMG, LLP specializing in the Information, Communications and Entertainment industry, and amassing knowledge and experience that would guide her life's work.
Jenn also spent several years working for publicly traded companies, serving as Corporate Controller, Director of Accounting and SEC Reporting, Executive Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer.
She specializes in SEC financial reporting, compliance, and consulting services to facilitate the reporting between auditors and public companies on behalf of clients. Jenn founded Calabrese Consulting, LLC ("CCL") in 2012, a minority/woman-owned, full-service accounting and advisory firm which currently employs over 50 employees, serving more than 350 clients around the world. She applies a hands-on approach that stems from her tenure on both the client and audit sides, and exemplifies her dedication to her craft.
Partner
Sidley Austin LLP
Josh DuClos is a partner in Sidley’s office in Century City. He concentrates his practice on representing private equity sponsors, public and privately held companies, and their respective stakeholders and advisors in de-SPAC transactions, mergers, buyouts, investments and divestitures. Josh was named to the Daily Journal’s “Top 40 under 40” list, which celebrates the achievements of California-based lawyers under the age of 40 for 2020.
Senior Vice President & Partner
Woodruff Sawyer
Yelena is a Partner & SVP at Woodruff Sawyer, one of the largest independent insurance brokerage and consulting firms in the US. She advises clients on M&A- and IPO-related insurance solutions, including representations and warranties insurance (RWI) and D&O insurance for public companies and SPACs.
Yelena is a frequent speaker and author, featured in many publications including S&P Global, Yahoo Finance, Reuters, Investment News Today, Business Law Today, Law360, CFO.com, Business Journal and Bloomberg. She won the JD Supra top author award in M&A in 2023 and 2022. Yelena also serves as the M&A managing editor of the American Bar Association’s Business Law Today and is the executive editor of the SPAC Notebook, a blog series that covers SPACs and SPAC risks.
In 2022, Yelena was named in Insurance Business America's "Hot 100," which lists top professionals whose contributions have helped shape the insurance industry.
Prior to Woodruff Sawyer, Yelena practiced as a senior capital markets associate at Clifford Chance and a corporate associate at LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae (later Dewey & LeBoeuf) and earned her BS in Economics from Cornell University and her JD from Fordham University School of Law.
Partner
Ellenoff Grossman & Schole
Douglas S. Ellenoff, a member of Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP since its founding in 1992, is a corporate and securities attorney with a specialty in alternative financings including SPACs, M&A, PIPEs, RDs and Crowdfunding. In the last 10 years, he has been involved at various stages in numerous registered public offerings including more than 100 financings and hundreds of private placements into public companies. Since 2002, Mr. Ellenoff has been involved with over 250 SPAC IPOs and 60 business combinations.
Partner, CPA
Withum
Joe Fede is an audit partner in Withum’s Financial Services Group. Joe provides audit, accounting and advisory services to a diversified group of clients in both the private and public sectors, including SPACs, private equity and venture capital funds, broker dealers and other commercial businesses. Joe has extensive experience in SPAC IPOs, where his Companies, collectively, have raised over $10 billion.
Partner
BakerHostetler
Asim Grabowski-Shaikh guides public and private companies through complex capital markets and corporate transactions, with an emphasis on securities offerings (incl. SPACs), mergers and acquisitions (incl. deSPACs) and corporate governance matters. He offers clients practical, goal-oriented solutions, leveraging the skills developed and knowledge gained over nearly 20 years of representing issuers, underwriters, placement agents, buyers and sellers of businesses, boards of directors, activists, major financial institutions, funds and registered investment advisors in a variety of transactions across many sectors.
CEO
Graf Global
James Graf is CEO of Graf Global Corp., his eighth SPAC as CEO, CFO and/or active director since 2011. He also serves as Interim CFO of NKGen Biotech, his last SPAC target. Previous closed transactions include Global Eagle, Videocon d2h, Williams Scotsman, Target Hospitality, Velodyne Lidar, Crown LNG and NKGen.Prior to SPAC life, Jim was an investment banker for two decades, including roles as President of Deutsche Bank’s investment bank in Hong Kong and managing director at Merrill Lynch. He later founded enterprise software company Praedea Solutions and served as a financial consultant to MGM Studios.
Vice President Equity Research
Ladenburg Thalmann
Destiny Hance has a strong background in equity research, starting with an internship at Ladenburg Thalmann in March 2017. Destiny then progressed to the role of Associate in June 2017 and became a Senior Associate in August 2020. Currently, they hold the position of Vice President at Ladenburg Thalmann since September 2021. Prior to their work at Ladenburg Thalmann, Destiny worked as a Data Entry/Virtual Assistant at Zander Property Group from March 2016 to March 2017, where they created spreadsheets and managed schedules. Destiny also gained experience as a Marketing Intern at TMC Financing in November and December 2016, focusing on basic data analysis. Before that, Destiny worked as a Marketing Intern at the Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce from May to June 2016, where they developed a comprehensive marketing plan and designed marketing content for LinkedIn.
Destiny Hance completed their education with a Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurship from Lynn University in the years 2014 to 2017. During their time at Lynn University, they also obtained a minor in Digital Product Design from General Assembly in 2016. Later, in 2022 to 2023, they pursued a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Florida. Additionally, Destiny has a Series 7 certification from FINRA, obtained in 2017, and several certifications in various analytical and financial skills from S&P Global Market Intelligence, obtained in 2020.
Partner
Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP
Co-chair of the M&A and Securities Group, co-chair of the Global Shareholder Activism Group and
member of the firm’s Executive Committee. Advises on shareholder activism, mergers and
acquisitions, securities law and regulatory compliance.
Ele represents activists, investment banks and companies in matters ranging from corporate governance
and control to proxy contests and defensive strategies.
He works on numerous activist campaigns and related transactions every year for some of the largest
private investment groups and investment banks in the United States and abroad.
In addition, Ele advises on private investments in public equity (PIPEs), initial public offerings and
secondary offerings, venture capital financing, and indenture defaults and interpretation, and he counsels
clients in the regulatory areas of insider trading, short selling, Sections 13 and 16, Rule 144, insider
trading and Regulation M/Rule 105.
Ele is recognized as a 2022 American Lawyer “Dealmaker of the Year” for his work at Exxon Mobil
for Engine No. 1, the largest proxy fight in history, which resulted in the addition of three directors to the
ExxonMobil board of directors.
He is also ranked as a leading lawyer in Chambers USA, The Legal 500 US, New York Super Lawyers –
New York Metro Top 100 and Super Lawyers Business Edition.
Ele has served as a moderator and speaker at numerous conferences and events addressing
shareholder activism, regulatory and reporting issues, PIPEs, M&A deals, the capital markets and other
topics of interest to the alternative investment industry.
He is a regular contributor to the Shareholder Activism Insight report and The Activist Investing Annual
Review, produced annually by Activist Insight in association with Schulte.
Managing Director, Head of SPAC Capital Markets
BTIG
Edward Kovary Jr. is a Managing Director and Head of SPAC Capital Markets. With over 25 years of Wall Street experience, Mr. Kovary specializes in SPAC underwritings, originating and executing equity transactions across various sectors and geographies. Prior to joining BTIG, he was Co-Head of Capital Markets at EarlyBird Capital, where he was instrumental in building the platform into a boutique bank. He has brought 140 SPAC issuers to market and completed over 85 de-SPAC mergers. Previously, he was a Managing Director and Co-Head of Nasdaq Trading at ING Barings. Mr. Kovary began his career as a Financial Analyst at Goldman Sachs. He holds a BS from Cornell University.
Founder
SPAC Research
Benjamin Kwasnick has nearly two decades of experience as a principal investor in US public equity markets, with a focus on SPACs, special situations, and event-driven strategies. He is the founder of SPAC Research, an independent data service focused on US-listed Special Purpose Acquisition Companies. SPAC Research is a thought leader that provides custom research and analysis on the SPAC space, as well as a comprehensive data set and synopsis of all material events throughout each SPAC's life cycle.
Attorney
Appleby (Cayman) Ltd.
Ali has significant offshore experience in both debt and equity capital market transactions including
IPOs, SPAC IPOs, and deSPAC merger transactions, and has acted for leading U.S. investment managers,
sponsors, financial services companies, credit and infrastructure managers (both on the borrowing and
lending side) in connection with certain loan and credit facilities, general corporate matters and
investment funds.
Prior to moving to the Cayman Islands, Ali specialized in mergers and acquisitions and private equity
transactions at Goodmans LLP and Stikeman Elliott LLP, as well as in banking at Scotiabank and
economic policy at the Business Council of Canada.
Founder
SPACInsider
Kristi Marvin is the Founder and CEO of SPACInsider.com, a website devoted to providing real-time analysis and data focused exclusively on the Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) asset class for investors, SPAC teams, bankers, lawyers and other industry “insiders”. She is a former investment banker having been involved in excess of $2 billion in SPAC offerings from a book-runner position and nearly $4 billion in total as lead or co-manager.
Head of Equity Capital Markets
I-Bankers Securities
Matt has served as I-Bankers’ Head of Equity Capital Markets since 2021. During his time at IBS, the firm has acted as Bookrunner on twenty-two SPAC IPOs raising in excess of $2.5 billion, in addition to holding Co-Manager roles on another sixty-five. I-Bankers has also served as the primary sponsor for three SPACs, including Good Works Acquisition Corp. and, most recently, IB Acquisition Corp., which came public in March 2024.
Matt has 20+ years of experience in the Financial Services Industry holding Research, Institutional Sales and Asset Management roles at various firms including ABN Amro, CRT Capital and Bear Stearns. Prior to joining I-Bankers, Matt was a SPAC specialist for Macquarie Capital (USA), where he helped build the firm’s SPAC Sales, Trading and Underwriting capabilities. He graduated from Villanova University with a BS in Business Management and holds Series 7, 24, 63, 65 and 79 securities licenses.
Associate Portfolio Manager
Periscope Capital
Christine McNerney is an Associate Portfolio Manager at Periscope Capital, a multi-strategy alternative asset manager specializing in unique Canadian and U.S. investment opportunities. She has over 15 years of experience in financial services, focusing on SPAC and ECM strategies, and leads credit analysis for the firm’s convertible debenture holdings. Previously, she was a Senior Credit Analyst at Manulife Financial. Christine holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Distinction) from McGill University and is a CFA charterholder.
Founder & CEO
KN CPA Cross-Border Accounting Advisor
Katrina Nacci is a cross-border accounting expert with over a decade of experience in US-Europe transactions (fundraising, IPO, M&A). She began her career in audit at PwC Boston before moving to Frankfurt and later Dubai, advising on IPOs, M&A, and GAAP conversions. She also built the European finance function for a North American PE firm. Now an independent advisor, she helps companies navigate US GAAP, IFRS, and SPAC reporting complexities from Europe into the US.
President & Chairman
Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company
As President & Chairman of Continental, along with 40 years of industry experience, Steven plays a key role in the company's operations, client initiatives and strategic direction. A magna cum laude graduate of Brandeis and NYU Law Review honoree, he has practiced law at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and served as a Federal prosecutor. He chairs the Securities Transfer Association’s Legal Committee and serves on the Board of Directors as Vice President, driving meaningful industry change.
Co-Chair
Loeb & Loeb
Mitch Nussbaum is the vice chair of Loeb & Loeb and serves as co-chair of the firm’s Capital Markets and Corporate Department. His practice focuses on representing emerging growth companies and investment banks in initial public offerings, follow-on public offerings, shelf takedowns, registered direct placements, PIPEs and other private placements (144A, Reg D, Reg A, Reg S, etc.). Mr. Nussbaum also regularly represents public companies regarding their SEC and NYSE or Nasdaq listing compliance and has acted as outside general counsel, including corporate, securities, M&A litigation and business counseling, to hundreds of private and public companies as well as their officers and directors. He also negotiates and documents acquisitions, mergers, going-private transactions, reverse mergers, proxy contests, tender offers, control contests, fund formations and secured lending financings and has represented issuers and underwriters in more than 100 SPAC public offerings and business combinations. Mr. Nussbaum was responsible for developing the groundbreaking IPAC, which features many of the benefits of the SPAC, but offers increased flexibility on pricing and deal structure, along with a more rapid transaction cycle.
Managing Director
Jefferies
Tina Pappas is a Managing Director in Equity Capital Markets at Jefferies LLC and has over 30 years of investment banking experience. Ms. Pappas leads Jefferies’ SPAC practice and has completed over 140 SPAC transactions. Ms. Pappas joined Jefferies from FBR & Co., where she was a Managing Director and head of the SPAC practice. Previously, Ms. Pappas was a Managing Director and head of Equity Capital Markets at Morgan Joseph & Co. Inc., one the earliest and most active underwriters of SPACs, where she was a key architect of the revised SPAC structure that was introduced in 2010. Ms. Pappas received a B.S. in Finance from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University.
Partner
White & Case
Joel Rubinstein is a partner at White & Case, and a member of the Firm's Capital Markets Practice.
Joel represents issuers, investment banks and investors in IPOs, follow-on public offerings, at-the-market offerings (ATMs) and private placements (including PIPEs). He also represents public and private companies in mergers & acquisitions and joint ventures. He regularly advises public company boards and management on compliance with securities laws and other strategic matters. Joel has significant experience in advising on IPOs and business combination transactions involving special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), having advised on over 200 such transactions as a part of his practice since 2005.
Joel has advised on transactions in a variety of industries, including technology, media, online gaming, life sciences, energy, consumer, healthcare and industrial. He is a member of our Band 1 Chambers ranked Israel practice group, having worked on capital markets and other Israel-related matters for over 20 years.
Joel has been named a Star Individual (above Band 1) in Chambers Global 2024 and Chambers USA 2023 for SPACs.
Senior Investment Associate
Meteora Capital
Henry Rogano has a banking background and was part of ING’s Global Analyst Program where he obtained experience in structuring, advisory, capital markets and origination alongside ING’s top Managing Directors / Heads. Henry worked in several cities including New York, Sydney, Amsterdam and Sao Paulo and across several industries; real estate, oil & gas, infrastructure, power & renewables, mining and more. Prior to joining Meteora, Henry was part of Glazer Capital’s SPAC team where he focused primarily on SPAC IPOs and risk capital deployments.
Henry Rogano is a Senior Investment Associate at Meteora Capital, specializing in SPACs, deSPACs, and small/micro-cap equity financings. He leads an active investment strategy focused on sponsor risk capital investments, SPAC IPOs, and business combination financings. Prior to joining Meteora, Henry was an Investment Analyst at Glazer Capital, where he focused on similar SPAC-related strategies. He began his career in investment banking at ING, working across advisory and capital markets roles in New York, Sydney, Amsterdam, and São Paulo. Henry holds a B.S. in Finance and Global Business from NYU Stern School of Business.
Managing Director, Head of Capital Markets
EarlyBirdCapital
Joined EarlyBirdCapital in 2016 and is the Head of Capital Markets focusing on SPAC origination and business combinations. Prior to joining EarlyBirdCapital, Mr. Van Tricht was the Head of Event-Driven Strategy at CRT Capital. Earlier in his career, Mr. Van Tricht spent over 15 years on the buy-side at firms including Gracie Capital, Trafelet, and Eos Partners. Mr. Van Tricht graduated summa cum laude with a B.S. in Economics degree from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Executive Vice President, Corporate Development
Odyssey Trust
Ms. Van Valin is a principal member that leads the U.S. sales expansion for Odyssey Transfer. Her core focus is to profitably grow market share for Odyssey Transfer’s transfer agent and trust business by partnering with executive management teams at domestic and multinational corporations to deliver shareowner service solutions that serve the needs of clients and their investors. Ms. Van Valin has more than 12 years of experience working in the transfer agent and trust space, focusing on complex corporate action events, Mergers and Acquisitions, and IPOs.
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