The Hon. Reta Jo Lewis

Reta Jo Lewis is a global business leader, lawyer, and advisor with extensive experience in international trade, U.S. competitiveness, geopolitics, transatlantic relations, global affairs, state and local relations, and economic security. From 2022 to 2025, she served as the 27th Chairman of the Board of Directors, President and CEO of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM), the first African American and second woman to lead the agency. She oversaw $135 billion in financing authority, supporting U.S. jobs through American exports. Under her leadership, EXIM expanded its reach to 177 countries, authorized over $22 billion in financial products, facilitated $40 billion in export sales, and supported over 150,000 American jobs.
 
As Chairman, she diversified EXIM’s portfolio and led strategic investments in critical minerals, 5G, digital technologies, nuclear, clean and renewable energy, and mining, particularly aiding U.S. exporters facing competition from the People’s Republic of China (PRC). She reversed a decade-long decline in EXIM’s portfolio, achieving year-over-year growth in FY 2024 from FY 2013. She expanded co-financing partnerships with foreign ECAs and lenders, increased delegated authority with commercial institutions, and spearheaded the implementation of two high-impact initiatives, Make More In America (MMIA) and the Supply Chain Resiliency Initiative (SCRI), to strengthen critical mineral and rare earth element supply chains for U.S. industries. She deepened EXIM’s global partnerships, negotiated MOUs with seven new governments, and over 25 co-financing agreements with export credit agencies and financial institutions worldwide.
 
With over 30 years of experience, Reta Jo has held senior positions in both the private and public sectors. At the German Marshall Fund of the United States, she was Senior Fellow and Director of Congressional Affairs, designing initiatives to enhance transatlantic engagement. Reta Jo also brings experience from three different Presidential administrations. Appointed by President Obama at the U.S. Department of State, she was the first-ever Special Representative for Global Intergovernmental Affairs for Secretary Hillary Clinton. As the special representative, she was the lead diplomat and negotiator in executing agreements that solidified subnational cooperation with BRICS and EU Nations.
 
Earlier in her career, she was Vice President and Counselor to the President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, supporting women- and minority-owned businesses; Special Assistant to President Clinton for Political Affairs; the Administration’s Domestic Political Advisor for the White House Task Force on the 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 1996 Olympics and Paralympics games, and the 1994 Summit of the Americas. Her legal experience includes roles at international law firms, Greenberg Traurig, where she was a Shareholder; firms Arter & Hadden and Edward Wildman Palmer, where she was Of Counsel. Her practice primarily focused on representing major corporations, including national and international businesses, trade associations, and non-profit organizations.
She serves as the Co-Chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Advanced Manufacturing and Value Chains. She is also a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations. She also serves on the Advisory Board for Blue Star Families and the Leadership Council for Women in National Security. She earned her J.D. from Emory, an M.S. from American University, and a B.A. from the University of Georgia.