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Studying philosophy and business economics at Marquette University.
When you graduated from high school, what did you think you wanted to be as an adult?
To be a father (either Catholic priest or have children). I wanted to be in investments since grade school.
Was there an event in the last 20 years that had a great impact on your aspirations and/or career path?
The work ethic I observed in my mom, a single mother, and my older sister, Fran.
Have you been mentored by (or had any significant interactions with) previous Forty Under 40 honorees?
J.P. Hanlon, past Providence Cristo Rey High School board member, demonstrated passion and commitment to being part of the solution to our education crisis rather than complaining about the problems.
Where do you want to be 20 years from now?
Guiding my children to make the most of their talents alongside my wife, Valerie. Investing for myself, my clients, special needs trusts, and not-for-profit/charitable entities.
Executive Director, JP Morgan Chase and Co.
Age: 38
When Frank Esposito was 5, his grandmother bought him shares of IBM. He remembers thinking, “This is how you make money.” By eighth grade, he was writing that he wanted to be a stockbroker. Then, about 15 years ago, his dentist and mentor, George Karalis, went back to school at Northwestern University to learn investing, which inspired Esposito to go there for his MBA.
By Esposito’s sophomore year at Marquette University, he was interning at Merrill Lynch, where he discovered that what he really wanted to do was invest money for people. At his first job after grad school, with First Wisconsin Bank & Trust, he learned about lending. He moved on to Goldman Sachs, where he learned investing, then Strong Capital Management, which brought him to Indianapolis in 2002.
Then in 2009, he joined JP Morgan as the investment team leader for the local private bank office, which manages more than $4 billion.
Esposito credits his high school, Fenwick, in Oak Park, Ill., with preparing him for college and the world.
“I knew I wanted to be something, but I didn’t know how to get there,” he said. “Fenwick High School got me there.”
So when he arrived in Indianapolis, he got involved with Providence Cristo Rey High School, a college-preparatory school for students from families with limited financial means. The school combines classroom instruction with real-life corporate work study experiences, which Esposito thinks is the way to help kids get ready to contribute rather than be a drain on society.
He’s vice chairman of the board there, and he’s also active with St. Vincent New Hope and St. Maria Goretti Church, which he and his wife, Valerie, and their five children attend.
“I love what I’m doing,” he said. “I want to be the best investor I can be. I love investing for people. I always think about investing. I want to get the Cristo Rey school to sustainability. And I want to raise five great kids.”
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