
Our monthly gatherings aim to offer an informational and positional advantage for attendees, whether de-risking investments or servicing deals. Our events are free, thanks to our strategic partners. We invite you to the next topical session.
June 12th, 2025 | 2 PM - 3:30 PM CST
The Fort Worth Club, 12th Floor Trinity Room, 306 W 7th St, Fort Worth, TX 76102
Comped parking in the building.
Policy & Governance Update:
Impact on Banking & Capital Flow
A gathering and panel offering insights relevant to professionals in service of capital and community.

Registrants represent the following firms
Frost Bank
Trinity Bank
Encore Bank
Regions Bank
Pinnacle Bank
Simmons Bank
CrossFirst Bank
PlainsCapital Bank
Great Plains Bank
J.P. Morgan Private Bank
Goldman Sachs
Kelly Hart & Hallman LLP
Marcus & Millichap
Calvetti Ferguson
Higginbotham
Whitley Penn
Transwestern
Duane Morris LLP
Autobahn
New York Life Insurance
Shalehaven Partners
Alternative Wealth Partners
Spectra Advisory
Eden Advisory
Black Raven Advisors
Arise Capital
BMB Capital
Eagle Mountain Capital
Castile Capital
Baruk Capital Group
J.H.M. Capital Group
Albertsons Companies
Northwestern Mutual
Underwood Perkins PC
Black Swan Financial Group
Strittmatter Wealth Management Group
The Texas Tribune
AgTrust Farm Credit
Delta Oil & Gas
Stonetex Oil Corp
SVN Trinity
TRB Wealth
Foley & Lardner LLP
Pro-Forma
Simpli.fi
Sotheby's International Realty
Texas A&M University
TCU Neeley School of Business
Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Champion Commercial Insurance Agency
Life Investors Management Company, LP
Velocity SBA
Whiteglove AI
IonXS.ai
Regal Professional Services
Texas Secured Notes
Edward Jones
Seeds of Legacy
Crestline Group
Solomon Bruce Consulting
Military Brand Advisor
The Summit Group Wealth Management
The Goulding Real Estate Team
True North Home Loans
SES ESOP Strategies
Chase Analytics Corporation
Cavendelle Row
Indication Bioscience LLC
Superior Data Science
Alpine Anchor
Indication Bioscience LLC
Virtual Practitioners
The Hidden Wealth Sution
d2 Digital Designs
K5 Consulting
Chameleon Collective
D2 Digital Design
Executive Networks, Inc.
Lisa Cobb, ExecHQ
Luka Industries LLC
AFS Logistics LLC
Hola/Hello LLC
AnsidCFO
Cherre
SGWM
Napkinn Studios
Harvest Returns
Tuttle Equity
Checki Financial
Clear Sky Partners
Featured Panelist

Reed Clay
CEO
Crestline Group
Before founding Crestline, Reed served as Chief Operating Officer for the State of Texas, Deputy Chief of Staff, and Senior Advisor to Governor Greg Abbott, where he oversaw implementation of statewide executive initiatives and legislative priorities across a broad range of sectors, including healthcare, energy, infrastructure, technology, and transportation. He also led recruitment and support for executive agency leadership and managed the state’s Office of State-Federal Relations, acting as Texas’s primary liaison to the federal government and Congress.
Reed’s public service began as Senior Counsel to the Attorney General of Texas and Assistant Solicitor General under then-Attorney General Greg Abbott. He later served as a Trial Attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice, further deepening his legal and regulatory expertise. Reed also served as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Texas School of Law, reflecting his commitment to public service and legal education.
Crestline Group is a strategic advisory and lobbying firm serving clients ranging from Fortune 50 companies to early-stage startups. With over a decade of experience at the highest levels of government, Reed has earned a reputation as a tireless advocate, trusted for his honest communication, strategic insight, and mastery of complex regulatory and policy environments.
His accomplishments have been recognized across the political spectrum. He has been named a “Top 10 Lobbyist in Texas Politics” by Transparency USA, a “Rising Star” by Capitol Inside, and one of the Top Lobbyists in Texas by Texas Scorecard. Reed earned his Juris Doctor from Duke University School of Law and holds a Bachelor of Arts from Wake Forest University. With a deep understanding of how government works—and how it can work better—Reed leads Crestline Group in helping clients navigate legislative, regulatory, and executive challenges with clarity and purpose.

Matthew Watkins
Editor-in-Chief
The Texas Tribune
Matthew Watkins began serving as Editor-in-Chief of the Tribune in September 2024. He joined the Tribune in 2015 has held various roles, including higher education reporter, breaking news editor and politics editor.
As a managing editor, Matthew has guided the Tribune’s award-winning journalism and other reporting of statewide significance, including coverage of elections and legislative sessions to major breaking news and ambitious storytelling about the Texas-Mexico border, the tragic school shooting in Uvalde, the impeachment of the Texas attorney general, and battles over public education.
Matthew is a Texas native, born in Houston and raised in Austin. He attended public schools and graduated from Texas A&M University. He’s spent nearly two decades in Texas journalism, and previously worked at The Eagle in Bryan-College Station and The Dallas Morning News. He lives in Austin with his wife, Susan, and their two children.

John Sepehri focuses on an array of state regulatory, administrative, legislative, and political law matters with insurance as one of his areas of focus. In the latter regard, in addition to securing approvals of acquisitions of insurers, TPAs, and producers from the Texas Department of Insurance and advising clients on all manner of insurance regulatory compliance, John also assists clients with the regulatory side of transactions and has spearheaded the regulatory analysis and due diligence for multiple multistate insurance transactions.
John has worked with his Foley colleagues to help secure wins for his clients against state agencies or to minimize the severity of enforcement actions, as well as having successfully helped clients achieve many affirmative and defensive legislative goals in the Texas legislative process.
In recent years, much of John’s work has also involved providing clients with legal advice and legislative representation in connection with the increasing array of state-level Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) laws.
John has significant experience with an array of specific state agencies or bodies, including the Texas Department of Insurance, the Texas Legislature, the Office of the Governor of Texas, the Office of the Secretary of State of Texas, and the Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner of Texas. He’s also been involved in representing clients against the Federal Trade Commission.
Prior to joining Foley, John served as general counsel to the Texas Apartment Association and was a member of its government relations team, as well as having served as general counsel to a statewide official (former Texas Secretary of State Hope Andrade) in the administration of former Texas Governor Rick Perry. As a result of those experiences and his long-term involvement in civics and public affairs, John has relationships throughout Texas state government and political circles.
John also practiced business law with other national or regional law firms prior to his time at Foley and therefore has a strong understanding of a variety of business transactions and the civil justice system. In the latter regard, he also clerked for United States District Judge Paul Brown in the Eastern District of Texas.
Pics from the most recent gathering.
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About the host, God Bless Retirement
An M&A firm offering mid-market competency for the lower market.
We manage the process of
buying or selling a business.
Certified Valuations
Our thorough valuations include research and assessment from personnel who are certified by the National Association of Certified Value Analysts.
Getting Deals Done
Working with a broker communicates to the market seriousness about buying or selling a business. Our team's resources, relationships, and capabilities further propel this commitment.
Sourcing Buyers & Sellers
After years of marketplace matchmaking, we leverage private-listed channels with qualified buyers and sellers. We engage relationships and optimize outreach on behalf of our clients.
Transferrable Valuations
Our NACVA-certified valuations and appraisals are accepted by buyers, sellers, banks, courts, and the IRS. We do not use ballpark estimates to protect clients from significant opportunity costs.
Confidentiality Protection
Confidentiality enables businesses to maintain their value without operational disruption or internal discord. Our processes factor this priority in each stage.