Val Shapiro joins Ankura's turnaround & restructuring practice

Val Shapiro has joined Ankura's turnaround & restructuring practice as a senior managing director. She will be based out of the business consulting firm’s New York office.

Shapiro brings more than 20 years of restructuring, corporate finance, and accounting experience to Ankura. She spent the last seven years as a senior research analyst at Goldman Sachs and Onex Credit, managing leveraged loan and high-yield investments across mutual fund, direct lending, and managed account strategies, among others.

Before that, Shapiro spent nine years at Deutsche Bank, where she was latterly a director in the restructuring finance & workout group. At Deutsche Bank, Shapiro executed more than $10 billion of restructuring transactions across various industries, including retail, business services, insurance, and food and beverage. She also managed a portfolio of stressed credit and equity investments – developing and executing turnaround and exit strategies.

“Val brings a unique perspective from her previous roles as an investor, dealing with the same complexities as the clients she will now work with as a trusted advisor,” said Philip J. Gund, head of turnaround & restructuring at Ankura. “She is a welcome addition to our Turnaround & Restructuring team as we extend our existing strength, and her experience in creditor side representation will certainly benefit our clients.”

Earlier in her career, Shapiro was a senior associate at PwC and a staff accountant at Arthur Andersen, where she delivered assurance services to clients in consumer and industrial products, healthcare, and not-for-profit.

She holds an MS in accounting from the University of Hartford and a BA in economics from Colgate University. Shapiro also has CFA and CPA certifications.

“Ankura has built an incredible team and has been on a remarkable growth trajectory, attributes which were key to my decision to join the company,” said Shapiro. “I look forward to collaborating with such an accomplished group of professionals to help our clients navigate the challenges of the current business environment.”

Ankura last month named Kevin Cowherd as head of strategy & performance, and in October added three professionals from rival BRG to launch a new CFO practice.

The Washington, DC-based firm focuses on corporate performance and risk management, providing consulting services across compliance, investigations, forensics, technology, turnaround and restructuring, and corporate strategy. The company has over 1,500 employees across more than 30 global offices.