Logo

Our Team

A man in a suit and white shirt is smiling for the camera.

William Billeaud

CEO and Managing Partner of Lombard Global, Incorporated

He is an accomplished investment banker, senior executive, management consultant, and investor who possesses almost four decades of experience helping U.S. and international firms grow and/or turn around their firms. Bill is a leader, entrepreneur, and dealmaker who creates immediate impact and sustainable results for his clients and partners.


A couple of Bill’s recent high-profile sourced and closed transactions include: 


  • The acquisition of Plano, Texas based Visual BI by $13 Billion Paris-Headquartered IT Services and Digital Transformation giant, Atos. This complicated transaction included carve outs of businesses organized by technology sector, function, deliverable and geography. 

  • The strategic merger between Private Equity owned Google Cloud Partners (GCP) leaders 66Degrees and Pandera Systems. This merger created the second largest firm in the GCP ecosystem. See More


In addition, a lifetime of diverse cross-border business experience, technology business experience, education, and a personal non-fiction library, has provided him with significant RANGE and a mental playbook on cross-border deal origination and closure. While Bill’s client list and work background includes many multinationals, he also has a wealth of experience helping middle market and entrepreneurial firms. As a brief snapshot, Bill has grown and managed the Agribusiness Joint Venture established and led by Pepsi de Mexico SA de CV during the formation of NAFTA and has lived in Mexico City. He has managed and grown the operations of private equity portfolio companies, the global expansion of several management consulting firms, retailers and BPO firms. 


Bill’s also been an entrepreneur and senior executive with technology firms and startups ranging from IT services, website development and the wireless internet to big data, predictive analytics and AI. His technology experience includes IP creation with a mobility/wireless SaaS platform, IT Services sales and operations with technologies ranging from Microsoft, Unix, and ERP Systems to AI (including his own), and in tech investment banking leadership roles. He currently travels and executes business in North America and CALA, EMEA and APAC. He speaks Spanish fluently and can function in several others, including Italian, French, and Portuguese. Bill speaks and is published consistently on topics related to international business and technology. He is President of the UIUC Political Science Alumni Board.


Bill has a Global MBA from The Chaifetz School of Business at Saint Louis University, a Bachelors from The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and has an Executive Certificate in Mergers and Acquisitions from Columbia Business School. He also has specializations in executive data science, digital marketing, and global strategy from Johns Hopkins, UIUC and Thunderbird. Since 1986, he has held licenses in real estate, insurance and from FINRA (Series 7, 63, and 79). Bill was an all-state winger in high school and a D1 Big Ten conference soccer player and captain in college. He has lived in Texas for over 3 decades, chasing his teenage daughters and Aussie mix, Carter and still calls the Midwest (Illinois) home. He can be reached at bill@lombardglobal.com or via LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williambilleaud/

A man wearing glasses and a suit is looking at the camera.

Quan Vu

Managing Director

Quan Vu brings more than 20 years of “hands-on” healthcare business executive experience with an emphasis on corporate & business development, strategy and finance. He possesses a demonstrated history of prospecting, evaluating, structuring and closing transactions that augment both organizational and shareholder value. He is also a strategist with a sound understanding of pipeline development, commercial assessment and go-to-market strategies. An adept finance professional, Quan has consummated billions of dollars in capital raises and M&A deals for public and private companies. 


Prior to joining Lombard Global as a Managing Director, he served a dual role as Chief Financial Officer/Chief Business Officer of Ocugen, a Nasdaq traded company with a focus on the development of gene therapeutics. Prior to Ocugen, Quan served as Chief Operating Officer/Chief Business Officer for 180 Life Sciences, a Nasdaq traded company with a focus on the development of inflammatory therapeutics. At both companies, he was responsible for formulating the respective company’s corporate strategy, ensuring operational efficiency, bolstering PR/IR/Marketing efforts, executing business development initiatives, and securing additional financing and capital markets support. 


Also, since 2019, he has provided interim CFO/CBO/CEO consulting services through his own consulting firm, Melius BioPharma Consulting. He has partnered with LS Associates (a member company of LifeSci Partners), Baleena Bioscience, and Solganick & Co. on various projects, including private capital raises, out-licensing and M&A advisory. Prior to these roles, he served as Vice President of Strategy & Corporate/Business Development at Opiant Pharmaceuticals, a Nasdaq traded company that developed the NARCAN Nasal Spray for opioid overdose. Before Opiant, he held leadership roles of increasing responsibility at Impax Laboratories, Anthem, and Amgen. Earlier in his career, he worked in the healthcare corporate finance and M&A departments at bulge-bracket investment banks, including Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs.


Quan obtained his BA in Economics from UCLA, graduating summa cum laude with College Honors and Economics Departmental Honors. He is expected to receive his Master of Science in Legal Studies from Cornell University Law School by the summer of 2024.

A woman wearing a necklace and a white shirt is smiling for the camera.

Denice Sakakeeny

Managing Director

Based in Boston, she brings over 20 years of hands-on corporate finance experience, focusing on SaaS, green tech, food & beverage manufacturing, and professional services. She possesses a demonstrated history of M&A, strategy development, capital raise, winddowns, asset sales, and turnarounds that maximize shareholder value. 

 

A technology CFO by trade, Denice is a trusted advisor to entrepreneurs and senior executives. She leverages people, processes, technology, and good common sense in addressing complex business challenges and facilitating growth.

 

Her more notable engagements include Management Director and CFO of Infinium, a clean-tech start-up spun out of MIT, where she managed daily operations after an investor takeover. As CFO of a cloud backup company, she managed the asset sale of a distressed US start-up to an Indian held public company worth billions of USD in market cap and with over 100 vendors by tapping escrowed funds. Denice also represented a US company in the ad tech space as its CFO, while acquiring its foreign parent company by a German public company with $USD billions in market cap. Additionally, Denice was the founding CFO of a US-based firm that quietly acquired and consolidated companies in the digital marketing space.

 

In the fifteen years before launching her consulting business in 2011, Denice was CFO to a handful of VC-backed SaaS Companies in Boston, where she sourced and closed several financing rounds, from seed to Series C. 

 

Beyond her client work, Denice is passionate about sharing her knowledge and insights through speaking engagements, customized training programs, and mentoring others in their corporate finance career. She is honored to contribute to the education curriculum for the Breakthrough Energy Fellows, the climate action fund founded by Bill Gates, where she delivers workshops on "Deal Hygiene" and "Planning for Growth."

 

Denice obtained her BA in African and African-American Studies and Sociology from Brandies University and holds a MS in Accounting from Suffolk University.

Senior Advisors

A man in a suit and striped shirt is smiling for the camera.

Baruch Esparza

Senior Advisor

Baruch Esparza is an accomplished M&A executive with a highly impressive track record of closing deals internationally.  He has extensive buy-side and sell-side experience, with expertise throughout the M&A process, including due diligence, financial modeling, contract negotiations and business integration.

 

Baruch has lived and worked in CALA, EMEA, North America, and has done work in APAC. His family owns a successful small business in Mexico, giving him a big advantage when working with other founders and operators. 

 

Some examples of Baruch’s closed transactions include: 

  • Recently, he facilitated and closed a sell-side transaction between Performance, LLC and The Adherex Group, a shared investment between private equity firms Akoya Capital and Goldner Hawn.

  • He sourced and closed Iron Mountain expansion in Brazil through the acquisition of Keepers in 2014. As such, he was involved in all the phases of the transaction including sourcing, contract negotiations, board documentation and operational integration. He worked on M&A for Iron Mountain in other countries as well, including Colombia and The Philippines.


Baruch’s total investment transaction volume is over $5 billion USD. 


Baruch holds an MBA from the Cox School of Business at SMU in Dallas  and a B.S in Chemical Engineering from Tecnologico de Monterrey, in Monterrey, Mexico. He played football (soccer) his entire life and has competed at the highest levels. Baruch lives with his family in the Dallas area. 


A man wearing glasses and a suit is looking at the camera.

Ryan Hall

Senior Advisor

Ryan Hall is a seasoned technology Chief Revenue Officer, operational executive and investor with over two decades of experience driving transformative growth in high-tech environments. His unique combination of operational leadership and revenue growth expertise makes him an invaluable advisor for M&A transactions and strategic initiatives in the dynamic technology sector.


Ryan has consistently delivered exceptional results across various roles, including:

  • Executive Leadership: Leading transformative business growth at industry giants like IBM, Avaya, and Verint, where he consistently exceeded revenue targets.
  • Fractional CRO: Providing strategic sales leadership to early-stage B2B SaaS companies, helping them accelerate growth and expand market presence.
  • Innovation Leader: Pioneering AI and automation in sales processes to develop cutting-edge revenue strategies that give tech companies a competitive edge.
  • Angel Investor: Successfully investing in SaaS companies that have achieved profitable exits, giving Ryan hands-on experience with the full lifecycle of tech companies, from early growth to successful M&A transactions.


Ryan’s expertise spans go-to-market strategy, performance turnarounds, and revenue optimization—key skills for middle-market technology firms and private equity portfolios. His strategic insights help navigate complex market dynamics and uncover high-potential opportunities.


Career Highlights:

  • Generated over $1 billion in revenue impact
  • Multiple successful exits as an angel investor
  • Achieved consistent year-over-year growth in executive roles


Ryan holds a B.S. in Management from the Georgia Institute of Technology, blending technical knowledge with business strategy. He is recognized as a thought leader in applying AI to sales and revenue processes and remains at the forefront of leveraging emerging technologies for business growth.


Based in Milton, Georgia, Ryan is actively involved in his community and enjoys equestrian activities throughout the Southeast.

Junior Team

Lombard Global, Inc. has a Junior Team which consists of some of the best and brightest in the Tech Investment Banking space. They handle workload ranging from research, due diligence and business development to transaction closings, financial statement review and creation. 


They represent the entire world, including the Americas, APAC (including Greater China) and EMEA, and hail from the world’s top universities including Wellesley, NYU, Columbia, Texas A&M, UC Santa Barbara and UIUC. Our alum have gone on to work for top investment banks, the Big Four and the world’s best technology firms. They are top-notch as professionals and as people.

A man in a suit and striped shirt is smiling for the camera.

Luke Testa

Managing Analyst Intern

Luke Testa is a rising finance professional with practical experience in investment banking, specializing in M&A transactions, corporate strategy, and financial modeling across industries such as technology, telecommunications, and healthcare. With a strong academic foundation in finance and a proven track record of supporting deal execution and strategy development, Luke is committed to driving value for both companies and stakeholders.


Throughout his career, Luke has played a key role in cross-border M&A deals, financial modeling, and assisting with due diligence and valuation processes. His ability to translate complex data into actionable strategic recommendations has been instrumental in the successful completion of several high-profile transactions.


Before joining Lombard Global, Luke worked at InvestBank Corp. as an investment banking analyst intern, where he focused on financial analysis for capital raising opportunities, reviewing financial statements, legal documents, and other critical materials. He also interned at Carnahan Group, working closely with the seller during the post-LOI stage in a private equity acquisition, where he managed the internal data room and ensured the accuracy of due diligence request lists. His early experience as an Investment Banking Analyst Intern at Skyway Capital Markets helped him hone his skills in creating market materials, industry reports, and pitch presentations.


Luke is originally from Point Pleasant Beach, a small coastal town along the New Jersey Shore. He is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Tampa, where he maintains a 3.9 GPA and has earned multiple Dean’s List honors. He is a Presidential Scholarship recipient and a member of Pi Kappa Phi National Honor Society, an honor reserved for students in the top 7.5% of their class.


Additionally, Luke holds the Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) license, demonstrating his solid understanding of securities regulations and investment banking principles. Outside of work, he is passionate about health and fitness, enjoys producing music, and has a deep interest in cooking.

Share by: