Pepe Finn began her career in the securities industry after graduating from college with a degree in political science. In her first position, she was one of five women in an office of 50 men. Upon moving to the municipal bond desk, Finn was told that “we don’t have skirts on our bond desks.”
“Being told she could not do a job because she was a female was a great motivator for Ms. Finn,” said her colleagues. This experience motivated her to go to law school to be a bond attorney while working as a municipal investment banker at Boatman’s Bank. During this time, Finn and her husband had the opportunity to begin investing in Stern Brothers with the goal of ultimately buying the firm and making it a woman-owned business.
She did just that and now serves as the chairman and CEO of Stern Brothers, a women-owned brokerage dealer in the securities industry serving institutional investors. The firm is engaged in the sale and trading of stocks and bonds as well as the underwriting of securities.
Finn is one of only a handful of women in the securities industry who own and lead a broker dealer. She is an industry leader focused on both the sustainability of small minority and women business entity firms as well as expanding diversity within the securities industry. She currently serves on the national diversity committee for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and on the institutional advisory committee for Pershing, Stern’s clearing firm, and the Citizen’s Budget Commission of the City of New York.
“Ms. Finn’s industry tenure, as well as her involvement with a variety of organizations provides a role model to younger women in the securities industry,” said her staff. “Since becoming the owner of Stern, she has sought to build a team that is diverse in gender, race, sexual orientation and geography – it’s important to her that the firm’s workforce reflects the nation’s diversity.”
While Finn’s motivation began from a negative workforce experience, she said the path was something she had passion to pursue. “You never know where you will end up and there are a lot of potential paths to take – don’t get discouraged,” said Finn. “Keep in mind, a diamond is just a lump of coal that did well under pressure.”
For finding success under pressure and leading by example, Finn has been named a Titan 100.
