Ben Lehrer
Ben Lehrer is the Founder & CEO of First Water Finance, the Relational Finance Platform. Ben and the First Water team optimize FP&A and execute on growth, financing, and transaction initiatives by embedding in the daily challenges, opportunities, and recurring dialogues led by finance teams at emerging and mid-market companies. As technology advances rapidly, Ben holds steadfast to the belief that finance is a people sport, and First Water is here to help you win it. His front-line experience and engagement within the CFO Alliance peer community position him as an indispensable partner to finance leaders and business owners to evaluate options and execute with confidence and urgency.
Prior to founding First Water, Ben served in multiple institutional investment roles in New York City. He was a member of the Private Equity team at Fortress Investment Group, part of the Global Structured Solutions Group within Fixed Income Capital Markets at Citigroup, and an Investment Officer for credit opportunities and internal M&A at CapitalSource Finance. Over the course of his career, Ben has personally supported almost 100 different management teams, sponsors, advisors, and partners while leading and facilitating a wide variety of debt and equity transactions ranging from $1M to $1B+.
Ben graduated from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), a holder of multiple FINRA securities licenses, an Eagle Scout, and the author of Relational Finance: The New Model to Accelerate Growth, Attract Capital, and Maximize the Value of Your Business. He resides in Houston with his wife and their two children.
