April 16, 2007 — Gov. John deJongh Jr. has announced the appointment of Julito Francis as director of administration and finance for the Public Finance Authority, according to a Government House news release.
"I am extremely pleased that Mr. Francis is willing to lend his expertise to an entity that is so important to our financial affairs as an investor of funds and in managing our credit rating," deJongh said.
The major change under Francis’ leadership at the PFA will be the "transfer of the management of the government’s capital projects to Public Works and the strengthening of its capabilities, while allowing PFA to focus on financial management of the funds and information disclosure to our investors and the rating agencies," deJongh added.
Francis is a trained engineer, receiving his bachelor's degree in electronic engineering in 1985. Later he chose to further his education and received a master of business administration in 1990. Since then, he has worked in the finance industry while living in Atlanta, Ga., and in the Virgin Islands.
He worked for Merrill Lynch and, most recently, Popular Securities, where he held the title of vice-president and financial consultant. During his tenure at Popular Securities, Francis increased their assets from zero dollars to $60 million in less than two years.
The appointee has also worked for the V.I. Water and Power Authority as an electrical engineer / project manager. In that position, Francis developed and presented a comprehensive five-year capital-improvement plan for the public utility in areas of production facilities and business-computer networks.
Francis is a member of the Chartered Financial Analyst Institute, the Financial Planning Association and the Atlanta Society of Financial Analysts. He is also a certified financial planner and a wealth-management advisor.
A fencer, Francis represented the territory in the 1984 Olympic Games and the 1987 Pan-American Games. He is also one of the original musical arrangers and instructors of the Rising Stars Steel Orchestra.