Mark Whitaker is a Senior Managing Director and Head of Municipal Sales and Credit Research within Mesirow’s Institutional Sales and Trading division. He leads distribution for the municipal platform and oversees the firm’s municipal credit research function, contributing to the strategy and growth of the municipal business.

As a member of the leadership team, Mark is responsible for institutional sales strategy, investor engagement, and research direction across municipals. He serves as Chief Credit Officer for new issue transactions and is a member of Mesirow’s Credit Commitment Committee, Senior Risk Committee, and Capital Markets Asset Allocation and Strategy Committee.

Mark brings more than 20 years of financial markets experience, including over 15+ years focused on municipal finance. Prior to joining Mesirow, he was a municipal bond research analyst at Northern Trust Asset Management, where his team was recognized by Institutional Investor as Municipal Asset Manager of the Year.

He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and forums and has been quoted by Bloomberg and Debtwire on municipal credit markets and trading dynamics. Mark has also been recognized as a Smith’s Municipal Analyst All-Star in the Sell-Side Director of Research and Generalist categories in 2023, 2024, and 2025.

Mark earned a BS in Finance and Business Education from Illinois State University. He holds the CFA® charter and FINRA Series 7, 63, and 52 licenses, and completed Wharton Executive Education’s Chief Revenue Officer Program. He is a member of the CFA Society of Chicago, serves on the national board of the National Federation of Municipal Analysts, and is a past president of the Chicago Municipal Analyst Society.