Our Team

Gene Ludwig, LISEP’s chair, is an internationally recognized leader on matters relating to banking, including financial technology, regulation, risk management, and fiscal policy. He is a managing partner of Canapi Ventures, which is focused on investments in early to growth-stage fintech companies. He is the founder and CEO of Ludwig Advisors, which provides counsel to leading financial institutions on critical issues. Gene is founder and former CEO and chairman of Promontory Financial Group, where he was an IBM executive after the firm was acquired. He was the founder and CEO of Promontory Interfinancial Network (now IntraFi), a technology leader in deposit services he sold to Blackstone.

In 2019, Gene founded the Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity (LISEP), which is dedicated to improving the economic well-being of middle- and lower-income Americans. Its research includes the creation of more meaningful economic indicators for unemployment, earnings, and cost of living. LISEP’s statistics aim to provide policymakers and the public with a more realistic view into the economic situation of all Americans as compared with traditionally relied-upon metrics. Gene is the author of The Vanishing American Dream: A Frank Look at the Economic Realities Facing Middle- and Lower-Income Americans.‍

As U.S. Comptroller of the Currency from 1993 to 1998, Gene served as the Clinton administration’s point person on the policy response to the credit crunch of the early 1990s. He fashioned an 11-point plan that was instrumental in helping banks begin to lend again and fulfill their role of supporting the economy. Under his purview, lending to low- and moderate-income Americans increased tenfold, as did national bank investments in community development corporations. He brought 27 fair-lending cases, resulting in tens of millions of dollars in fines against violators. Before he was Comptroller, he was a partner at Covington & Burling. Gene graduated magna cum laude from Haverford College; he earned an M.A. from Oxford University and a J.D. from Yale Law School.

Gene spearheaded the Carol and Gene Ludwig Program in Public Sector Leadership at Yale Law School, which is focused on educational and professional support to Yale Law students who aspire to leadership roles in the public sector. The Ludwig Program helps prepare students for careers in areas such as government, nonprofits, and other institutions focused on serving the public.

Santiago is a research analyst at LISEP where he conducts data analysis to generate labor and cost-of-living statistics that better illustrate the economic reality of low- and middle-income Americans.

Santiago previously interned at Development Finance International, Inc (DFI), a global consultancy dedicated to advancing business and country development objectives in emerging economies. He also worked as a business development intern at Booster2Success, a French digital communications agency.

Santiago earned a B.S. in economics from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania with a concentration in business economics and public policy as well as in behavioral economics.

Shannon is a research analyst at LISEP where she uses data analysis to generate, improve, and contextualize metrics that better represent the economic situation of low- and middle-income Americans. She also works to improve the efficiency and replicability of LISEP's data processing and reporting methods.

Shannon earned her M.S. in Statistics from Stanford University and her A.B.s in Economics and Statistics from the University of California Davis, where her senior thesis focused on the local labor market effects of international trade.

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Philip serves as a special adviser to LISEP. He generates statistics that more meaningfully represent the economy, including on unemployment and earnings. He also works to apply these indices to research and to help formulate financial solutions for low- and moderate-income Americans.

As an undergraduate at Princeton University, he wrote a senior thesis about the links between financial regulation, corruption, and entrepreneurship. He graduated summa cum laude in economics with a minor in political economy and finance.

As vice president of marketing and communications, Gina Simpson expands LISEP's reach and influence through strategic initiatives spanning events, thought leadership, media engagement, and targeted outreach.

Gina has nearly two decades of experience developing innovative marketing strategies for national and international brands such as S.C. Johnson, Goodyear, PPG Industries, and Walgreens. She holds a B.A. in Communications from Northern Illinois University.

Kathleen Goldstein is a special adviser at LISEP where she works to enhance the institute’s communications.

Previously, Kathleen worked in communications and marketing at Promontory Financial Group, managing marketing campaigns, global events, sponsorships, and internal communications.

She has worked for the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) and Institutional Investor in similar roles. Kathleen holds a B.A. in French from the School of European Studies at the University of Sussex.

Rebecca Yochum is a senior executive assistant and works closely with the team to provide core administrative support and assistance with special projects. She has worked with the LISEP team since its inception and is passionate about being part of this institute with such an important mission.

Rebecca is a graduate of the University of Kentucky with a major in marketing and communications.