The Most Powerful Women in Finance: No. 21, Christina Minnis, Goldman Sachs

Christina Minnis needed a village to rise to the rank of head of global credit finance and head of global acquisition finance at Goldman Sachs .

"While there weren't as many senior women to look up to when starting my career, I identified them and modeled after them," Minnis said of her early days in finance when she was a working mom. "I've relied on support when needed, and that has made me a better leader today."

At Goldman, Minnis oversees teams worldwide that advise corporate and sponsor clients on their credit, acquisition and other financial decisions. She's responsible for a $2 billion global credit and acquisition finance business and has 35 direct reports.

At times, she found it challenging to juggle her career and raising three children, who are all now college-aged. But she found that what she learned in one role helped her succeed in the other.

"Motherhood will give you many transferable skills," she said.

"Some days will be more family-focused," Minnis added. "On others, work will take priority. Net-net, it will all balance out."

Recently, Minnis received global recognition for spearheading innovative changes in finance. Her team pioneered market asset classes, including airline loyalty programs during the pandemic, music royalty catalogs in 2022 and securitizing fiber for the first time ever last year. She oversaw deals including Thoma Bravo's $5.3 billion acquisition of the software company Darktrace and the placement of Zotec Partners' new $315 million private credit facility.

Earlier in her career, Minnis was recognized for masterminding the development of the second-lien term loan structure, now an industry standard.

Meanwhile, she finds time to mentor junior leadership and identify new talent. In February, Minnis spoke at the welcome event for Bloomberg's New Voices initiative to support underrepresented professionals. She hosts annual luncheons and dinners in her own home and at events like the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference and the women's amateur golf tournament.

At the collegiate level, Minnis co-leads Goldman Sachs' global banking and markets inclusion and diversity committee. She's a member of the Yale University development council and is on the advisory board for the Yale School of Management, where she established an annual scholarship for women seeking their master's in business administration.

Minnis also leads recruitment efforts at Yale, along with Williams College, the University of Virginia and Middlebury College.

"Recruitment is very important to me because investment banking is an apprenticeship," she said. "We train the next generation on both the tangibles and intangibles necessary to succeed and win client trust."

For her team at Goldman, Minnis said she allows flexible work schedules for those juggling caretaking responsibilities and encourages new parents to use the investment bank's 20-week parental leave for primary and secondary caregivers.

"When employees make the decision to have a family, that is not a decision to achieve less in their career," Minnis said. "Motherhood is a differentiator. Find people who champion that."