Leadership Team

Thomas Bakas

Managing Principal

As subject matter expert in product management and brokerage operations who has served in executive management capacities for several FCMs and futures exchanges and began his career as an audit professional.

Professional Experience:

Board Member (interim) – Global Digital Asset & Cryptocurrency Association (www.global-dca.org)
Member – National Futures Association Hearing Committee (www.nfa.futures.org)
Consultant to multiple venture capital-backed and angel financed start-ups, exchanges, and related
information technology companies
Chief Executive Officer – IG Financial Markets Group US, Inc.
General Manager – HedgeStreet (now known as North American Derivatives Exchange)
Managing Director – Financial Market Development, Chicago Board of Trade
Sales Leader – Major Accounts – Eurex/EurexUS
Business Unit Manager – Merrill Lynch Corporate & Institutional Client Group
Regional Business Unit Manager – Merrill Lynch Private Client Group
Chief Financial & Operating Officer, Partner – Linnco Futures Group LLC
Audit Supervisor – National Futures Association – Compliance Department
Staff Member – Chicago Mercantile Exchange – Law & Compliance Department
https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomasbakas/

Ian Polakoff, CPA

Principal, Co-Founder

A subject matter expert in accounting, regulatory financial reporting, treasury operations, internal audit, and enterprise risk management, who has served as both a Controller and Chief Financial Officer for FCMs and an exchange/clearinghouse, and began his career as a regulatory auditor.

Professional Experience:

Independent Consultant: Design Enterprise Risk Management frameworks; Support Internal Audit Departments; Develop, implement, financial operations and regulatory reporting processes
Chief Financial Officer: North American Derivatives Exchange, Inc.; IG US Holdings, Inc.; Bank of America – Global Futures Clearing and Execution
Controller/Treasurer: Bank of America Futures, Inc.; RB&H Financial Services LP
Regulatory Auditor: Chicago Mercantile Exchange
https://www.linkedin.com/pub/ian-polakoff/51/16a/a80

Charles McElhenie

Principal, Co-Founder

A subject matter expert in clearing, risk management, compliance programs, and business process design, has served as an executive manager with a clearinghouse and several technology companies, and consulted with numerous exchanges and clearinghouses on regulatory filings and operational program design.

Professional Experience:

Independent Consultant – Design of compliance and risk management programs. Clients included: CME Group/CME Clearing; Eurex Clearing; North American Derivatives Exchange, Inc.; London Clearing House
The Clearing Corporation – Head of Business Development
T-Systems US – Head of Business Development
IBM – Consulting, sales, and market development
www.linkedin.com/pub/charles-mcelhenie/1/862/5b8

William Steele

Principal

A subject matter expert in risk management, with an emphasis on market and credit risk and the enterprise-level interaction of operations, compliance, and finance in the risk function. Served as CRO of several FCMs, with additional experience as a proprietary trader (ag markets), research analyst, promotional material compliance and branch office manager.

Professional Experience:

Chief Risk Officer: Advantage Futures LLC; Fuji Futures LLC/Mizuho Securities USA; Linnco Futures Group/LFG LLC
Branch Manager/Promotional Material Compliance/Margin Manager: Brokers Resource Corp. (Introducing Broker Division of Index Futures Group)
§ Promotional material review, approval, and compliance for approximately 90 Introducing Brokers
Research Analyst: Daily softs and metals market analysis and special situation reporting for Research Department Inc. (independent research firm affiliated with Index Futures Group); Technical market analysis newsletter for all markets for Linnco Futures Group research department
Proprietary trading: Agricultural (primarily grains) option trading
https://www.linkedin.com/in/william-steele-82aa8a5

Debra Rabichow

Principal Emeritus

Debra Rabichow is an executive consultant and founding partner of RPM Financial Markets Group LLC, with over 44 years experience in the derivatives markets. She has served on numerous industry committees, including the Futures Industry Association’s (FIA) operations committee on automated trading (Chair), the Board of Trade Clearing Corporation’s operations committee, the full Clearing House Committee of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), and participated on the FIA’s Law and Compliance Panel on Capital Quality and Firm Liquidations. Her clients have included numerous Futures Commission Merchants, Broker Dealers, exchanges, clearing houses, law firms, venture capitalists, and software companies. Prior to forming RPM, Debra served as the Chief Operating Officer at the North American Derivatives Exchange; as the Global Head of Clearing and Settlement at FX MarketSpace, where she helped develop a centrally cleared OTC foreign exchange platform that won the FX Week Innovation Award; and as the COO of Goldenberg, Hehmeyer & Company, where she was instrumental in the expansion of its FCM, BD, and proprietary trading businesses. Debra has also served as an independent consultant, and has held a variety of senior management positions at Smith Barney, Citicorp Securities Inc., and Drexel Burnham Lambert. She began her career on the floor of the CBOT and has had direct involvement in the evolution and expansion of the derivatives industry including the operational integration of nine mergers and acquisitions. Debra sees herself as a practitioner and advisor rather than a consultant, and is dedicated to applying her considerable experience to helping develop the next generation of leaders in the financial services industry.