Meet the Team
Lawrence Parks
Lawrence Parks
Long recognized for his work in business policy development and advocacy, Larry has authored parts of several groundbreaking banking legislative initiatives. Most recently, he helped author key provisions in the Dodd Frank Act of 2010.
Prior to the formation of Forethought Advisors, Larry spent 21 years as Senior Vice President of Legislative and Regulatory Affairs at Federal the Home Loan Bank of San Francisco. He’s worked closely with Congress, Presidential Administrations, the Federal Housing Finance Agency as well as member institutions and national housing and community development advocates to shape regulatory policy in the housing finance and banking industries.
In addition to the numerous enacted legislative priorities he’s authored, he is known for creating the $100M innovative business funding and labor training initiative (The Quality Jobs Fund) that the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco has begun to implement through donor funding. The initiative has drawn the praise of key figures in President Trump’s Administration, Congressional Democrats, and key Senate Democrat and Republican Leaders.
He has a J.D. from Yale and an undergraduate degree in Finance from Temple University.
Timothy Simons
Timothy Simons
Tim brings more than 20 years of corporate and government relations experience in regulated industries to Forethought Advisors. He draws from an extensive network of organizations to engage and advocate around critical national policy initiatives. He is widely recognized for his risk assessment expertise as well as the development and implementation of several successful legislative and regulatory strategies.
Before leading Forethought Advisors, Tim spent 14 years organizing grassroots and grasstops advocacy campaigns, working with Congress and Presidential Administrations at the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, where he served as Vice President. Tim was also instrumental in the establishment of the $100M Donor Advised Fund created by the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco to promote job growth and future home ownership opportunities. The initiative drew the praise of several key members of Congress, the Senate, and Presidential Administrations, with House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters recognizing “the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco and the contributions of Lawrence Parks and Timothy Simons.”
In addition to his extensive legislative and regulatory network, Tim has a deep background in financial and operational compliance developed while working for KPMG and Cable & Wireless in the U.S., Caribbean, and Latin America. He has an MBA from University of Maryland College Park and an undergraduate degree in Accounting from Hampton University.
Timothy McTaggart
Timothy McTaggart
Timothy brings an extensive background in regulatory and financial sector legal counseling to Forethought Advisors. Prior to helping establish Forethought Advisors, Timothy served as an equity partner and financial services group leader at several AmLaw 100 law firms and provided legal advice to clients in the financial services sector, including mortgage firms, banks, thrifts, government sponsored enterprises, fintechs and trust companies.
Tim previously served as the Bank Commissioner for the state of Delaware, where he testified before Congress on behalf of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. He served CSBS by chairing both the legislative and regulatory committees. His expertise in regulatory, legislative, and transactional issues brings proven experience to Forethought Advisors. In addition, Tim has unique experience providing banking and regulatory advice in the fintech sector as well as anti-money laundering, data security, cyber security and consumer privacy matters for fintechs and other financial services entities.
As Counsel for the United States Senate Banking Committee, Timothy drafted legislation, helped conduct hearings, and advised on new and existing laws affecting banks, thrifts, consumer credit and industry financial stability. While in private law practice, he testified before the House Financial Services Committee on the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Tim continues to speak across the nation on regulatory and governance matters and helps clients understand the real impact of financial services reform legislation.
Timothy has an A.B. from Harvard and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.