Improving Your Community

Our veteran public finance team has a passion for helping communities. We leverage the tax-exempt and taxable bond markets, along with other available federal and local incentives to fund critical and quality-of-life infrastructure.

From state and local governments to non-profit organizations, Carty & Co. funds community-improving projects, like facility and land acquisition, new construction, refinancing, improving and expanding facilities, equipment acquisition, and more. 

Recently, our team helped a charter school in Oklahoma be the first in the state to access the public bond market, securing funding for facilities that serve thousands of low-income students. We’ve also funded water Improvements and new hospital equipment in West Virginia, road improvements in rural Mississippi, financed a large rural economic development project in Arkansas, and affordable housing in Texas. We care about the people we serve — let us help you make your community a better place to live and work.

Our Experienced Financial Experts Can Help 

At Carty & Company, our priority in Public Finance is to help our customers efficiently access capital. In an ever-growing and crowded marketplace, we continue to emphasize customer service, honesty, integrity, and client education. If you are interested in funding a public finance project, contact our experienced team today.

Areas of Expertise

State & Local Governments

Public, Private and Charter Schools

Economic Development

Energy Performance Contracting

Healthcare

Higher Education

Special Districts

Public & Affordable Housing

Solar Projects

Water & Sewer

Select Transactions

Meet the Public Finance Team

Edmond G. Hurst

Senior Managing Director, Head of Capital Markets and Public Finance

With more than 30 years of experience in investment banking, Edmond joined Carty & Co. as a stockholder to lead the firm’s Capital Markets and Public Finance endeavors. Edmond has spent the majority of his career facilitating taxable and tax-exempt financings. Through these transactions he has helped raise billions to fund projects in various parts of the country. Working from the firm’s Little Rock office, Edmond is active in his community and loves spending time outdoors with family and friends.

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Rush “Buddy” Harding IV

Senior VP, Managing Director

Buddy joins the Carty team as a Senior Vice President, stockholder, director, and manager of the Little Rock office. After playing basketball on scholarship at the University of Arkansas Little Rock, Buddy received his BS degree in health sciences and began his successful tenure at Crews and Associates where he was a consistent top 5 producer. Since 2008, Buddy has specialized in fixed income sales and trading to institutional and retail investors. In the past, Buddy served on several boards including UALR athletic board and strategic planning committee, Arkansas Baptist College athletic board, Junior Deputy and Centers for Youth and Family. Buddy and his wife Rachel are involved in and support many charitable organizations. Outside of the office, Buddy enjoys coaching their two boys, Rush “Five” Harding V (8) and Wilder (4) in soccer, baseball, and basketball.

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Greg Isaacs

Senior Managing Director, Public Finance

Greg Isaacs joined Carty & Co. in 2022 to lead the firm’s public finance efforts in West Virginia. With over 28 years’ experience in municipal finance, Greg has spent most of his career facilitating bond issues in his home state, participating in 400 transactions totaling more than $10 billion. He has broad experience in healthcare, housing, higher education, transportation, economic development, and water and sewer utility bond financings. A graduate of West Virginia University and West Virginia Wesleyan, Greg actively donates his photography to youth sports and non-profits throughout the state.

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Steve Shields

Public Finance Relationship Banker

Steve Shields joined Carty & Co.’s Little Rock office in 2023 to serve municipalities throughout the region. Steve is the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s winningest basketball coach in history and most recently the Director of the City of North Little Rock Parks and Recreation. He will help communities throughout Arkansas find the funding they need to grow and prosper.

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EJ Gregory

Public Finance Banker, Managing Director

In May of 2024, E.J. Gregory III joined Carty and Company as a Public Finance Banker and Managing Director. He established the Carty and Company office in Tupelo, Mississippi, and from this base he brings more than 20 years of experience in public finance municipal bond banking. Gregory’s goal is to assist Mississippi governmental entities at every level in attaining their objectives of funding projects that will better the lives of their citizens.

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Brent Whisnant

Head of Underwriting

Brent joined Carty & Co.’s Little Rock office in May of 2022 and is responsible for coordinating negotiated bond sales with the sales team and public finance. In addition to handling the negotiated transactions, Brent also bids on regional competitive new issues and partners with other firms to bid nationally on competitive new issue transactions that come to market. Since he joined the firm as Head of Underwriting, the firm has already served as Co-Manager on 358 competitive transactions totaling over $6.69 billion. Brent graduated from the University of Arkansas with a double major in accounting/finance and joined a regional investment banking firm in 2009 as a municipal bond analyst specializing in high yield bonds. In 2015 Brent moved to the underwriting desk to assist with competitive and negotiated new issue transactions. Soon thereafter, Brent was promoted to head of the underwriting department.

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Humza Hashmi

Analyst

Humza Hashmi joined the Carty & Co.’s Little Rock office in 2023 as an analyst in the firm’s public finance department. Humza is graduate of the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville with a degree in Finance.

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