Paul Hawkinson is a former Wall Street dealmaker turned community-focused innovator. After a 17-year investment banking career at Bankers Trust, Deutsche Bank, BofA Securities, and BMO Capital Markets—where he led BMO’s U.S. industrial investment banking business—he redirected his work to better align with his faith and commitment to impact, building enterprises that strengthen historically disinvested communities across the Chicago region.

Today he leads Transform Capital (www.tccommunity.org), a nonprofit reshaping community lending, while also serving as an Associate Professor of business strategy and finance. Paul holds an MBA from Kellogg and is a proud Chicagoan and Cubs fan alongside his wife, Kristin (33 years), and four beloved kids. Fun fact: he launched Matt Plootser’s investment banking career.