Buyout & Build – Leading in Private Markets & Financial Services
Panel
A discussion on building lasting careers and creating impact in private markets and financial services. The panel will explore key industry trends, pathways to leadership, critical skills for being an effective dealmaker, and strategies for navigating Wall Street. Attendees will gain insights on how to accelerate career growth, build influence, and position themselves for senior roles across finance and alternative asset sectors.
Adani Illo, Managing Director, Evercore Investment Banking
Adani Illo is a managing director in Evercore’s Equity Capital Markets practice and leads the origination and execution of public and private equity transactions in the fintech and financial institutions sectors.
Mr. Illo has worked on more than 165 book-run deals, raising over $110 billion during his career, including transactions for Chime Financial, Palomar Holdings, Fidelis Insurance, Gemini Space Station, Cardlytics, TPG, MercadoLibre, XP, StoneCo, PagSeguro, Corebridge Financials, Energy Transfer, Globant and LyondellBasell Industries.
Mr. Illo joined Evercore from Goldman Sachs, where he worked on originating and executing public and private equity transactions across Latin America with an emphasis on tech and fintech. Earlier in his career, he held a similar role within Equity Capital Markets origination at Barclays, concentrating on the natural resources and chemicals sectors.
Mr. Illo sits on the board of Rising Ground. He earned a B.A. in economics and Spanish from Middlebury College and an MBA from Yale University.
Gairy Hall, Managing Director, The Carlyle Group (CBS '16)
Gairy Hall is a Managing Director and Client Relationship Manager at the Carlyle Group focused on institutional investors in the Midwest and Southern United States.
Prior to joining Carlyle in 2020, Gairy was a Vice President at J.P. Morgan Asset Management leading business development and private fund distribution to institutional and wealth management clients across the United States and Latin America. Previous roles at J.P. Morgan included corporate strategy, emerging markets portfolio management, and sovereign credit based in the firm’s London office. Prior to J.P. Morgan, Gairy worked as an investor at Citi Private Bank.
Gairy earned a B.A. in Economics from Columbia College and an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School where he was a Feldberg Fellow.
John Watson, Senior Managing Director, Blackstone Tactical Opportunities (CBS '13)
John Watson is a Senior Managing Director in the Tactical Opportunities Group, where he focuses on investment opportunities in the Media and Communications sectors. Mr. Watson has been involved in the firm’s investments across several asset classes including CoreWeave, Hotwire and New Tradition Media.
Before joining Blackstone in 2021, Mr. Watson worked at Morgan Stanley as an investment professional for the firm’s Infrastructure fund, and prior as an Investment Banker in the Media and Communications group.
Mr. Watson received a BA from Wesleyan University, an MBA from Columbia Business School. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of YES Network, Certified Collectibles Group, New Tradition Media and as an observer for Coreweave.