Speakers from DigitalBridge, Kirkland & Ellis, Aflac Global Investments, OMERS Infrastructure, and UBS Investment Bank discuss key themes in debt and equity investing in digital and energy infrastructure.
Join us for the latest in WIN's breakfast series! Enjoy breakfast and a panel discussion among leading women in infra. Hosted by UBS Investment Bank!
Please join us in our 2026 Women in Infrastructure (WIN) NYC Breakfast Series, a dynamic and inclusive gathering aimed at fostering meaningful connection and growth among women leaders in the infrastructure sector.
Our March event, hosted by UBS Investment Bank, will feature a panel with special guests Valentina Burger-Jimenez (Principal in Debt Capital Markets at DigitalBridge), Cristina Sarmiento (Managing Director at OMERS Infrastructure), Linzi Wang (Portfolio Manager at Aflac Global Investments), Kelly Mellecker (Partner at Kirkland & Ellis), and Keely Henesey (Executive Director at UBS Investment Bank), moderated by Marina Pristupova (Managing Director and Head of Securitized Products Origination at UBS Investment Bank). This will be followed by breakfast and an opportunity to engage with peers in the sector in a small group setting.
Join our panelists for a discussion on the key themes in debt and equity investing in digital and energy infrastructure... We encourage attendees to submit any topics or questions when RSVPing.
MODERATOR
Marina Pristupova is the Head of Securitized Products Origination at UBS, overseeing the buildout of the firm’s securitization effort focused on Core Commercial and Non-Traditional ABS asset classes including Digital Infrastructure assets, Whole Business Securitizations, Media Royalties, Renewable Energy, and other IP and operating assets.
Prior to joining UBS in 2025, Marina was a Senior Managing Director at Guggenheim Securities where she spent twelve years, following three years at Barclays and two years at Lehman Brothers.
Marina holds a B.S. in finance from the Wharton School and a B.A. in international studies from the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania.
SPECIAL GUESTS
Valentina Burger-Jimenez is a Principal in the Debt Capital Markets team at DigitalBridge Investment Management. Based in New York, Valentina works on the structuring and execution of debt financing transactions across DigitalBridge’s portfolio companies in the Americas, as well as on the development and management of the firm's lending relationships globally.
Prior to joining DigitalBridge, Valentina was a corporate finance attorney at Linklaters' New York and London offices and in-house at Sojitz Corporation of America.
Valentina holds a BA in Political Science from the University of Florida, an MA in Contemporary Chinese Politics from Remin University, an LLM in Intellectual Property from Turin University, and a JD from Boston University Law School.
Cristina Sarmiento is currently a Managing Director with OMERS Infrastructure, having joined in July 2016. She is responsible for the origination, execution and management of infrastructure investments in the Americas. Since joining, Cristina has worked on a number of transactions, including the acquisitions of GNL Quintero and Leeward Renewable Energy, and the divestiture of Airports Worldwide – and has also been closely involved in the asset management of those investments.
Prior to joining OMERS, Cristina was part of Macquarie Capital’s Infrastructure team in New York, advising clients on M&A transactions, primarily across the transportation sector in North and South America.
Cristina holds a B.S. in Economics, with a concentration in Finance, from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Linzi Wang is a Portfolio Manager in the Structured Credit team at Aflac Global Investments, focusing on ABS investments, particularly Non-Traditional ABS asset classes.
Prior to joining Aflac in 2025, Linzi was a VP at Guggenheim Securities, Structured Products Origination group and at BofA Securities, ABS Banking and Finance Group. Linzi began her career in Deloitte’s Securitization Advisory practice.
Linzi holds a B.S. in Mathematics and Applied Statistics from Pennsylvania State University.
Kelly Mellecker is a partner in the Complex Securitizations Practice Group in the New York office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Kelly’s practice focuses on advising sponsors, credit funds, initial purchasers, institutional investors, investment banks and borrowers on a broad array of structured finance transactions including securitizations, structured private credit and private placements.
Kelly has been instrumental in designing a number of hybrid financing structures melding securitization with traditional leveraged finance and liability management transactions. Kelly is known as a thought leader in the structured finance and infrastructure financing space, having been profiled by Bloomberg, The Banker and other outlets.
Before joining Kirkland, Kelly was a managing director at Goldman Sachs, where she led a number of efforts in digital infrastructure securitization and pioneered the non-contracted fiber-to-the-home securitization asset class. Prior to joining Goldman, Kelly was an attorney at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, where she represented issuers and sponsors as well as investment banks in connection with some of the highest-profile securitizations in the market, including Wendy’s, Dunkin’ Brands, Dine Brands, Diamond Communications and Coinstar.
Keely Henesey is an Executive Director in the Real Estate, Lodging & Leisure Group at UBS, focusing on strategic advisory and debt and equity financing assignments for real estate companies. During her career at UBS, Keely has completed over $60 billion in M&A, equity capital markets, debt capital markets, and financing transactions and has experience working across multiple sub-sectors in real estate including data centers, cold storage, industrial, multifamily, office, net lease, movie studios, and mortgage REITs.
Keely received a BA from Boston College, where she majored in Economics, concentrating her studies in statistics and econometrics.
