B.E. Wall St. All-Stars: from investment banking to asset management, these 50 MVPs score big in the financial markets - Special Report - Cover Story - Top 50 African Americans on Wall Street

Bottom Line: In 1999 Ernst & Young honored him as one of the New York City Entrepreneurs of the Year. Fletcher believes that the success of his company is due to its uncompromising commitment to making investments that create value. At times, his trades have at times accounted for 5% of exchange volume on the Big Board.

Ronald T. Gault Managing Director, Client Relations & Business Development JPMorgan South Africa

Age: 61

Education: B.A., Grinnell College; M.A., University of Michigan

Responsibilities: His primary focus is on client business development and the expansion of the JPMorgan franchise in South Africa. He plays a key role facilitating financing deals in South Africa and provides strategic advice for a broad range of services, including foreign exchange, swaps, fixed-income securities, and derivatives. He is chairman of the Professional Development Program, an executive exchange initiative between South Africa and New York City.

Previous Experience: Prior to taking on the task of opening JPMorgan's operations in South Africa; he headed one of the institution's public finance groups in New York where he senior-managed infrastructure financing deals In fact, he helped financially resuscitate Washington, D.C. as its financial advisor and investment banker.

C. Kim Goodwin Chief Investment Officer, Equities State Street Research & Management Co.

Age: 43

Education: M.S., University of Texas at Austin; M.B.A., University of Texas at Austin

Responsibilities: She oversees all of State Street's equity investments and leads a team of more than 50 portfolio managers, analysts, and traders, bringing over 15 years of experience to one of the nation's oldest investment managing firms.

Previous Experience: Before joining State Street, she was the chief investment officer, domestic growth equities for "American Century Investments. She led a department of 40 investment professionals who handled more than $38 billion in assets. She was also a senior vice president with Putnam Investments, where she comanaged the Putnam Vista Fund and the Putnam U.S. Growth Fund; a vice president and portfolio manager for Prudential; and an assistant vice president for Mellon Bank.

Pro Bono Work: She joined the strategic planning board for the McCombs School of Business in 1999.

Ernest G. Green Managing Director, Public Finance Lehman Brothers

Age: 61

Education: B.S. & M.A., Michigan State University

Responsibilities: He is the key negotiator and strategist of public finance deals for Lehman Brothers' Washington, D.C., office. He has served as the senior investment banker on transactions to secure billions of dollars in financing for clients such as the city of New York, city of Atlanta, city of Chicago, the port of Oakland, the Denver Airport, and the Washington Metropolitan Airport Authority.

Previous Experience: He was formerly the head of his own firm, Ernest Green & Associates, a consulting firm that provided technical assistance in marketing, financial management, and economic forecasting. He was also the former assistant secretary of labor for employment and training during the Carter administration. He has served as chairman of the National Association of Securities Professionals (NASP), the trade organization for leading black Wall Street professionals.