Stratus Financial Team Members
CEO
Chief Investment Officer
For close to 7 years, Alan has accumulated a deep and recognized reputation in the banking industry. His career spans global banking, where during his last role at Citigroup, he served as Vice President for Citi's North America Global Family Office Group while based in New York. In this role, he catered to the firm’s top private banking clients by providing them institutional banking access and facilitating capital raises.
Presently at Stratus, Alan heads investor relations and Capital Markets efforts. In this role he manages equity and debt investors, contributing to the fund's operations and growth. At the same time, Alan actively explores opportunities to integrate the fund's private credit offering into larger institutions and expand its investor base with a strategic approach to transformational growth.
Alan holds a bachelor's degree in Finance from the McCombs School of Business at University of Texas at Austin with a focus on banking and capital markets. Outside of the financial industry, Alan curates private communities of investors, industry leaders and collectors with a passion for cultural pursuits, particularly in the contemporary art world.
Head of School Sales and Relationships
Gustavo has been flying since 2009 and holds a Private Pilot Certificate. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Aviation Science Management, a passion for flying, and 15 years of experience in sales and leading successful sales teams, Gustavo brings a deep understanding of aviation and a proven track record of exceeding targets.
General Counsel
Stratus Financial's Compliance and Regulatory team is lead by our General Counsel Don Ho, who joined Stratus in January 2024. Don is an accomplished attorney with over 18 years of business law experience. A recipient of an academic scholarship to Chapman University School of Law, Don's expertise spans the spectrum from innovative tech startups to established companies with annual revenues exceeding $100 million. Don is also a monthly contributor on compliance and emerging technologies to the University of California's CEB DailyNews newsletter.
CMO
Lesley Boyd serves as Chief Marketing Officer for Stratus Financial, where she directs the company's marketing strategy, brand positioning, and growth initiatives and brings deep expertise across aviation, financial services, and education. Lesley and her team developed AeroSummit from an initial concept into a premier industry event, and she led the launch of Ascend Flight Training Summit. In partnership with the Stratus leadership team, she ensures marketing efforts are strategic, measurable, and aligned with the company's long term growth objectives.
Principal
Chris Ragland is a Principal at Stratus Financial and an original member of its management team, serving as the company’s first Chief Investment Officer. With nearly 28 years of experience across approximately 100 companies, he specializes in capital raising, private credit, and alternative investments.
He is also the Founder and CEO of Ragland Capital, an Austin-based private investment firm focused on private credit, private equity, real estate, and venture capital. Chris is a frequent speaker and published author on private lending, real estate, and alternative investments.
He holds a BBA and MBA from St. Edward’s University, where he serves as a Trustee and Treasurer.
Chairman and Co-Founder
Chairman and Co-Founder of Stratus Financial, Anthony Geraci, Esq., followed his passion for aviation and obtained both his Commercial Pilot Certificate and Ground Instructor Ratings in 2020. During his instruction, he recognized a lack of available funding in the space.
Bringing a combination of legal and financial expertise to Stratus Financial, Anthony is tasked with strategy creation for the firm. A skilled mortgage lending and securities law attorney, Anthony has authored numerous articles on real estate finance and security subjects. Over the past fifteen years, he has run financial funds and served as legal advisor to several lending funds which have totaled more than $100 Billion offered and more than $200 Million raised. Leveraging his securities background, Anthony has been instrumental in securing credit lines and starting capital raising ventures to fund flight school loans for Stratus Financial.
A founding member of EO (Entrepreneurs Organization) Inland Empire and Founder and Vice Chairman of the American Association of Private Lenders (AAPL), Anthony keeps his finger on the pulse of the financial industry.