Impact Investing

David R. Malpass

Mr. Malpass is Senior Advisor at Chicago Atlantic and member of Chicago Atlantic Trident’s Advisory Committee. Mr. Malpass was the 13th President of the World Bank Group (2019-2023). During his tenure, he focused on promoting stronger policies to increase economic growth, alleviate poverty, improve living standards, and reduce government debt burdens. Under his leadership, the World Bank Group responded quickly to global crises­—mobilizing a record $440 billion in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, sharp global economic slowdowns, unsustainable debt burdens, climate change, and food, fertilizer, and energy shortages. The World Bank Group also more than doubled its climate finance to developing countries during Mr. Malpass’s presidency, reaching a record $32 billion in 2022.

Prior to his appointment at the World Bank, Mr. Malpass served as Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs for the United States. Mr. Malpass represented the United States in international settings, including the G7 and G20 Deputy Finance Ministerial, World Bank–IMF Spring and Annual Meetings, the Financial Stability Board, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation.

Before joining the U.S. Treasury, Mr. Malpass was an international economist and founder of a macroeconomics research firm based in New York City. He served as Chief Economist at Bear Stearns and conducted financial analyses of countries around the world.

Previously, Mr. Malpass served as the U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Developing Nations, and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Latin American Economic Affairs. He focused on an array of foreign policy and development issues, including U.S. involvement in multilateral institutions, the World Bank’s 1988 capital increase—which supported the creation of the Bank’s environment division, the Enterprise for the America’s Initiative, and Brady bonds to address the Latin American debt crisis. He also served as Senior Analyst for Taxes and Trade at the U.S. Senate Budget Committee, and as Staff Director of the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress.

Mr. Malpass has served on the boards of the Council of the Americas, Economic Club of New York, National Committee on U.S.–China Relations, Manhattan Institute, and Gary Klinsky Children’s Centers, as well as various for-profit entities. He is the author of numerous articles on economic development.

Mr. Malpass earned his bachelor’s degree from Colorado College and his MBA from the University of Denver. He was a CPA and undertook advanced graduate work in international economics at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, and has studied Spanish, Russian, and French.

Dimitris Tsitsiragos

Mr. Tsitsiragos is Senior Advisor at Chicago Atlantic and member of Chicago Atlantic Trident’s Advisory Committee. Previously, he was a Vice President at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), member of the World Bank Group, where he spent more than 28 years.

He held progressively more prestigious positions in the Oil, Gas, and Mining, and Central and Eastern European departments, including appointments as Manager, Oil and Gas, and Manager, Manufacturing and Services (1989-2002). Mr. Tsitsiragos also held director positions at the IFC for South Asia, as well as overseeing the IFC’s global and regional investment operations in the Middle East, North Africa, and Southern Europe (2002-2011). Mr. Tsitsiragos was promoted to Vice President, EMENA region in 2011, and was appointed Vice President Investments/Operations in 2014.

Mr. Tsitsiragos served as a Senior Advisor for Emerging Markets at Pacific Investment Management Company (PIMCO) in London, UK (2018-2022). He currently sits on the Board of Directors at Alpha Bank where he is Chair of the Remuneration Committee, and a Member of the Risk Management Committee. He also sits on the Board of Directors at Titan Cement International.

Mr. Tsitsiragos has previously served as a Non-Executive Independent Board Member at the Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IDFC), and at the Commercial Bank of Ceylon (CBC).

He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Rutgers University, and an MBA from the George Washington University. He has also completed the World Bank Group Executive Development Program at the Harvard Business School.

Michalis Sarris

Mr. Sarris is Senior Advisor at Chicago Atlantic and member of Chicago Atlantic Trident’s Advisory Committee. Mr. Sarris was formerly the Minister of Finance of Cyprus and Director at the World Bank.

Mr. Sarris joined the research department of the Central Bank of Cyprus in 1972, before moving to the Bank of Cyprus to work in planning and project analysis in 1974. Mr. Sarris was then employed by the World Bank in 1975. During his career, Mr. Sarris’ work has covered a broad range of sectors and geographies across Europe, Africa, Latin America, and East Asia. At the World Bank, he supervised the design of overall country strategies, provided advice on policy issues for economic and social development, elaborated programs for structural adjustments, and developed economic policy dialogue between the World Bank and national authorities of countries seeking assistance. Mr. Sarris retired from the World Bank as Department Director in 2004.

The President of Cyprus, Tassos Papadopoulos, appointed Mr. Sarris as Minister of Finance in 2005, a position he held until 2008. During Mr. Sarris’s tenure as Minister of Finance, Cyprus prepared for and introduced the euro as its national currency.

Mr. Sarris currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors at AstroBank. He was previously Chairman and Chairman of Nominations Committee at Cyprus Popular Bank, Non-Executive Independent Director and Member of Audit Committee at AFI Development, and Non-Executive Director at FxPro. Mr. Sarris was also Director, Chairman of Audit Committee, and Member of Conflicts Committee at Navios Maritime Partners, and Member of the Board of Takis Louki Nemitsas Foundation.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from the London School of Economics & Political Science, and a PhD in Economics from Wayne State University.

Michael DiRoma

Mr. DiRoma is Senior Advisor at Chicago Atlantic and member of Chicago Atlantic Trident’s Advisory Committee. Mr. DiRoma is a Co-founder and Partner of DiRoma Eck Co. LLP, a Washington, D.C. advisory firm focused on helping organizations navigate the United States’ complex political and public policy landscape.

Mr. DiRoma previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Legislative Affairs, where he advised and represented over 200 International Affairs officials He worked to ensure the successful implementation of the Secretary of the Treasury’s legislative agenda on matters related to the World Bank and other multilateral development banks, the International Monetary Fund, the U.S. Export–Import Bank, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States and international tax and trade policy.

Prior to his work with the Treasury, Mr. DiRoma served as Tax Counsel to Senator Susan M. Collins of Maine during the successful negotiation and passage of tax reform in the United States in 2017. He also led the Senator’s engagement on trade policy, most notably as principal sponsor of the PRINT Act of 2018, a calculated legislative reaction to U.S. duties on imported Canadian newsprint, which would have had a detrimental effect on the American newspaper industry.

Before his service in the Senate, Mr. DiRoma was Director Counsel at Quinn Gillespie Associates, where he advised and represented clients on matters related to taxation, foreign affairs, and financial services. He previously served as a law clerk in the White House Counsel’s Office, and in the United States House Committee on Ways Means.

Mr. DiRoma is a Member of the Bar of the District of Columbia. He holds a Master of Laws in Taxation, with distinction, from the Georgetown University Law Center. He also holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of San Diego School of Law, and Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of California, San Diego.

Andrew Eck

Mr. Eck is Senior Advisor at Chicago Atlantic and member of Chicago Atlantic Trident’s Advisory Committee. Mr. Eck is a Co-founder and Partner of DiRoma Eck Co. LLP, a Washington, D.C. advisory firm focused on helping organizations navigate the United States’ complex political and public policy landscape.

Mr. Eck was previously Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Legislative Affairs, where he was the principal liaison between the Department, Congress, and the interagency on all legislative issues relating to the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, including the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, the Office of Foreign Assets Control, the Office of Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes, the Office of Intelligence and Analysis, and the Treasury Executive Office for Asset Forfeiture. In his role as Deputy Assistant Secretary, Mr. Eck directed all legislative activity regarding economic sanctions, anti-money laundering, combating the financing of terrorism, the Bank Secrecy Act, beneficial ownership, and the exploitation of digital currencies and financial technology. Mr. Eck also served as the Legislative Director for the Department of the Treasury to the Intelligence Community.

Prior to joining the Treasury, Mr. Eck served as Staff Director of the House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Terrorism and Illicit Finance. He was the inaugural head of the subcommittee where he designed its overall strategy and worked with Members and their senior staffs to implement legislative, regulatory, and oversight priorities. Mr. Eck was also Senior Policy Advisor to Chairman Jeb Hensarling.

Mr. Eck also served as Legislative Assistant to Senator Pat Roberts, where he was responsible for economic and financial services issues relating to the Senator’s seat on the Finance and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committees. Mr. Eck was also a management consultant at KPMG.

He holds a master’s degree in government from Johns Hopkins University, and a bachelor’s degree finance and economics from Rockhurst University. He is also a Сertified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist, and a Сertified Fraud Examiner.