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  • Services
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    • Capital Raising
  • Team
  • Transactions
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    • Recent Updates
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The Colonnade Team

Cocking

Gina Cocking

CEO 
gcocking@coladv.com
312.953.2658

Gina Cocking
CEO and Managing Director

Gina Cocking serves as the Chief Executive Officer. She returned to Colonnade Advisors as a Managing Director in 2014. Gina began her career in investment banking at Kidder Peabody, was an analyst at Madison Dearborn Partners and an associate at J.P. Morgan & Co. She was a Vice President at Colonnade Advisors from 1999 to 2003. She left Colonnade to gain operating experience as the Chief Financial Officer of Cobalt Finance, a specialty finance company. She went on to become the Chief Financial Officer of Healthcare Laundry Systems, a private-equity backed company for which she oversaw the successful sale to a strategic acquirer. Gina served as the Line of Business CFO – Consumer Banking and Lending at Discover Financial Services. Gina serves on the Board of Directors of CIB Marine Bancshares, Inc., a bank holding company based in Waukesha, Wisconsin, that operates banking offices in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. Gina received her BA in Economics and MBA from the University of Chicago. Additionally, Gina holds the Series 24, 28, 79 and 99 securities licenses. gcocking@coladv.com

Guylay

Jeff Guylay

Managing Director
jguylay@coladv.com
847.452.8315

Jeff Guylay
Managing Director

Prior to Colonnade Advisors, Jeff was an investment banker at J.P. Morgan in the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions and Fixed Income Capital Markets groups in New York. He also spent several years in J.P. Morgan’s Chicago office. Jeff has over 20 years of M&A and investment banking experience and has served as lead execution partner on over 25 M&A and financing transactions at Colonnade. Jeff received an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management and a Master of Engineering Management from the University’s McCormick School of Engineering. Jeff received a BA from Dartmouth College and a BE from Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering. Jeff holds the Series 7, 24, 63 and 79 securities licenses. Jeff serves as a director of the non-profit Nurture, an organization dedicated to enhancing the nutrition and wellness of children and families. jguylay@coladv.com

Spies

Derek Spies

Senior Vice President
dspies@coladv.com
312.544.8541

Derek Spies
Senior Vice President

Derek Spies joined Colonnade Advisors as an Associate in June 2021. Derek began his career at First Midwest Bank in Chicago where he helped provide middle market companies debt financing for strategic initiatives. Derek then joined BMO Harris and transitioned to the firm’s corporate advisory team; providing buy-side advisory services, valuation services, and other corporate finance solutions to middle market clients of the bank. Derek received his bachelor’s degree from Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI with a major in Finance. Derek holds the Series 24 and 79 securities license.  dspies@coladv.com

Collins

Jack Collins

Vice President
jcollins@coladv.com
312.544.8543

Jack Collins
Vice President

Jack Collins joined Colonnade Advisors as an Analyst in February 2020. Previously, he was a financial analyst at Honor Finance. Jack graduated with a BA magna cum laude in Accounting and Finance from Illinois Wesleyan University. Jack holds the Series 24 and 79 securities license.  jcollins@coladv.com

2

Greg Makoid

Associate
gmakoid@coladv.com
312-870-6205

Greg Makoid
Associate

Greg Makoid joined Colonnade Advisors as an Analyst in September 2021. Previously, he was an Investment Banking Analyst at PNC Bank specializing in the structuring and origination of Trade Receivables Securitizations while also supporting PNC’s Receivables Monetization and Sports Finance verticals. Greg received his BS in Finance, Magna Cum Laude, and MBA from The University of Tampa’s John H. Sykes College of Business. Greg serves as Chairman of the Junior Board of Directors for the Children’s Cancer Center, an organization dedicated to serving children and their families throughout Tampa and Sarasota. Greg Holds the Series 7, 63, and 79 securities licenses. gmakoid@coladv.com

matt - for website

Matt Magee

Senior Account Executive
mmagee@coladv.com
312.870.6204

Matt Magee
Senior Account Executive

Matt Magee joined Colonnade Advisors in March 2022 as a Senior Account Executive. Matt brings over 15 years of experience in the financial sector. Prior to joining Colonnade, Matt provided investment banking services to financial institutions in a variety of capacities, including capital raising and M&A advisory. Matt also worked with executive management and board of directors on strategies to maximize shareholder value. 

Matt began his career as an Investment Executive in Equity Capital Markets at Howe Barnes (now Raymond James), a Vice President – Financial Institutions Group at FIG Partners, and as a Director of Investor Relations at Lambert. Matt received his bachelor’s degree from Spring Arbor University’s Gainey School of Business and holds the Series 79 license.   mmagee@coladv.com

peter

Peter Semprevivo

Associate
psemprevivo@coladv.com
312.544.8540

Peter Semprevivo
Associate

Peter Semprevivo joined Colonnade Advisors as an Associate in March 2025. Prior to Colonnade, he was a Manager on the Mergers & Acquisitions team at Hightower Advisors, where he supported the firm’s inorganic growth strategy through the acquisition of Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs). Peter earned a BBA in Finance, Investment, and Banking from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and holds the FINRA Series 79 license. psemprevivo@coladv.com

Nimsakont

Peyton Nimsakont

Analyst
pnimsakont@coladv.com
312.870.6212

Peyton Nimsakont
Analyst

Peyton Nimsakont joined Colonnade Advisors as an Analyst in December 2023. He previously worked as an Associate at Grant Thornton in its Transaction Services practice where he gained experience working in financial due diligence for clients across multiple industries. He received his BS in Accounting from Miami University’s Farmer School of Business. Peyton holds the Series 79 securities license. pnimskont@coladv.com

Corporate Headshots, Glamour, Senior portraits https://www.kevinkeliiphotography.com/

Austin Cambas

Analyst
acambas@coladv.com
312.584.4252

Austin Cambas
Analyst

Austin Cambas joined Colonnade Advisors as an analyst in July 2024. Prior to this role, he was part of the Corporate Development team at AmeriLife, a portfolio company of Genstar Capital and TH Lee, where he specialized in the execution of mergers and acquisitions within the insurance and wealth management sectors. Austin earned his Master of Accounting (MAcc) from Florida State University and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of Alabama. Austin holds the Series 79 securities license. acambas@coladv.com

Bunn

Willard Bunn III

Senior Advisor
wbunn@coladv.com
312.425.8161

Willard Bunn III
Senior Advisor

Willard Bunn III joined Colonnade Advisors as a Managing Director in 2012. Willard has served as chairman, chief executive, and/or director of several commercial banks in the course of his 40 year career. Willard’s long career in the banking industry began at Chemical Bank in New York before he returned to Springfield in 1978 to serve as Executive Vice President, and eventually Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, of Marine Corporation, a multibank holding company with $1.2 billion of assets. Following Marine’s merger with Banc One, Willard was appointed Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Banc One Illinois Corporation, a position which he held until 1994. Willard went on to serve in various management positions with two investment banking firms. Willard served as a Director of Baytree Bank of Lake Forest, Illinois from its founding in 2000 and as Chairman of the Bank from April 2010 to August 2012. Willard serves on the Board of Directors of CIB Marine Bancshares, Inc., a bank holding company based in Waukesha, Wisconsin, that operates banking offices in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. He also serves on the Boards of Midland National Life Insurance Company and North American Company for Life and Health Insurance, insurance subsidiaries of the Sammons Financial Group. In addition, Willard was Chairman of the Board for the Poetry Foundation, a literary organization and publisher of Poetry magazine. He serves as an advisory director of Chicago-based Campus2Career Transition Services, and a member of the valuation committee of The Banc Funds Company. Willard holds a BA from Princeton University and an MBA from the University of Virginia. In addition, he holds the Series 79 securities license. wbunn@coladv.com

Flynn

Danielle Flynn

Director of Operations
dflynn@coladv.com
312.870.6203

Danielle Flynn
Director of Operations

Danielle Flynn is the Director of Operations for Colonnade Advisors. Prior to joining Colonnade in 2013, Danielle was a Sales Audit Supervisor for Crate & Barrel. Since 1997, she has been the Office Manager for a family construction company. Danielle began her career at First of America Bank in Mortgage Processing. Danielle received a BS in Business from Eastern Illinois University. dflynn@coladv.com

Koelling

Tim Koelling

Project Manager
tkoelling@coladv.com
312.544.8542

Tim Koelling
Project Manager

Tim Koelling is a Project Manager for Colonnade Advisors. Tim began his career at Northern Trust in trust administration. Following his time at Northern Trust, Tim worked abroad as an English teacher, then in education sales for International TEFL Academy. Most recently, Tim was Director of Operations for Nomadic Ant, an independent jewelry boutique. In addition to the above, Tim maintains an active schedule as a professional saxophonist in Chicago. Tim received a BA with Distinction in Communications Studies from the University of Iowa. tkoelling@coladv.com

Morgan

Morgan Silhavy

Transaction Support Specialist
msilhavy@coladv.com
312.544.8538

Morgan Silhavy
Transaction Support Specialist

Morgan Silhavy joined Colonnade as a Transaction Support Specialist in March 2025. She received a BA from Ball State University and has previous administrative experience with Amergis Healthcare Staffing. msilhavy@coladv.com

Ben

Ben Gherman

Transaction Support Specialist
bgherman@coladv.com
312.544.8539

Ben Gherman
Transaction Support Specialist

Ben Gherman joined Colonnade Advisors as a Transaction Support Specialist in March 2025. Before working for Colonnade, he served as a paraprofessional for Chicago Public Schools and worked for several private tutoring companies throughout the Chicagoland area. Ben received his BA from Northwestern University. bgherman@coladv.com

Mason

Mason Tregre

Research Specialist
mtregre@coladv.com
312.544.8537

Mason Tregre
Research Specialist

Mason Tregre joined Colonnade Advisors as a Research Specialist in March 2025. He began his career in education, tutoring university-level physics and designing supplemental learning materials. More recently, he served as a subject matter expert in mathematics for AI development, contributing to the training of instructional models. Mason holds a BS in Pure Mathematics with a minor in Physics from Louisiana State University. mtregre@coladv.com

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