Speakers

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  Ashish Masih President and CEO, Encore Capital Group
  

  Ashish Masih

  President and CEO, Encore Capital Group

  Ashish Masih is Encore Capital Group’s President and Chief Executive Officer. Masihasih joined the company in 2009 and was appointed President and CEO in June 2017. Previously he served as President of Midland Credit Management (MCM), Encore’s largest business unit. Mr. Masih also served in additional roles at Encore in operations and corporate development. Prior to joining Encore, Mr. Masih was Vice President at Capital One Financial Corp., where he held senior roles in its U.S. credit card business. Prior to joining Capital One, Mr. Masih worked at McKinsey & Company and KPMG Consulting.

  In 2022, Mr. Masih was reappointed by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce to serve a second consecutive two-year term on the U.S.-India CEO Forum, which brings together business leaders from both nations to discuss ways to strengthen economic and commercial ties. From 2013-2015, Mr. Masih was elected to the Receivables Management Association (RMA International, previously DBA International) board of directors, where he served as both a director and a member of its Federal Legislative and Regulatory Committee. He also currently serves as a Trustee of the Committee for Economic Development (CED) of The Conference Board, a leading non-profit business-led public policy organization and on the Board of Directors of U.S.-India Business Council, part of U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In early-2025, Mr. Masih also joined the Junior Achievement Worldwide Global Council, a body focused on advancing the mission of JA globally, which provides young people with financial health, work readiness and entrepreneurship education and skills. Junior Achievement is one of Encore’s main non-profit partners globally.

  Mr. Masih earned a Master of Business Administration from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, a Master of Science in Manufacturing Systems Engineering from Lehigh University and a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi, India.

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  Lawrence A. Cunningham Director, UD Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance
  

  Lawrence A. Cunningham

  Director, UD Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance

  Cunningham has written dozens of books and scores of articles on a wide range of subjects in law and business. These include best-selling books such as The Essays of Warren Buffett (in collaboration with Warren Buffett) and The AIG Story (written with Hank Greenberg) and influential research articles on accounting and corporate governance. Before retiring from GW in 2022 at age 60, Cunningham founded and for many years directed GWNY, GW Law’s innovative boot camp for aspiring Wall Street lawyers.

  Cunningham has served on several public company boards, including Markel Group (New York Stock Exchange), a global insurance and investment company, as vice chairman of Constellation Software Inc. (Toronto Stock Exchange), owner and operator of nearly one-thousand vertical market software businesses, and Kelly Partners Group (Australian Stock Exchange), owner and operator of nearly one hundred independent accountancy firms.

  Before becoming a professor, Cunningham practiced corporate law with Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York from 1988 to 1994, where his practice areas included corporate governance, M&A, finance, and international. In 2018, Cunningham received the B. Kenneth West Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD).

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  H. Thomas Felix Partner, Morrison Foerster
  

  H. Thomas Felix

  Partner, Morrison Foerster

  Tommy Felix is a partner in the firm’s Capital Markets and Public Company Advisory & Governance practices.

  Drawing upon a wealth of experience advising public and private companies, private equity and venture capital firms, and investment banks, Tommy guides clients through complex transactional matters, including initial public offerings, debt and equity offerings, leveraged buyouts, mergers and acquisitions, SPAC transactions, and cross-border deals.

  Tommy’s deep understanding of securities law issues and transactions, coupled with his ability to navigate intricate regulatory frameworks, enables him to provide strategic and practical solutions that align with his clients’ business objectives.

  Tommy’s experience extends to advising on preferred stock issuances, private placements of debt and equity securities, public mergers and acquisitions, and innovative restructuring and liability management transactions, and spans diverse industries, including life sciences, biotechnology, gaming, industrials, healthcare, retail, technology, telecommunications, and transportation.

  Tommy is a member of The Century Club of San Diego, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the local community and youth programs through San Diego’s annual PGA TOUR golf tournament.