Future of Restaurants

Ray Willets Washburne is the former President and Chief Executive Officer of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), a self-sustaining U.S. Government agency that helps American businesses expand into developing markets by providing businesses with tools to manage risks associated with foreign direct investment. Nominated for the OPIC presidency by President Donald J. Trump on June 5, 2017, Mr. Washburne was approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on July 27, 2017 and by the full U. S. Senate on August 3, 2017. Mr. Washburne served until February 28, 2019. He served on the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board from May 2019 until January 2021. 

Mr. Washburne has a long history working in business and has held several executive positions. He co-founded and co-owned M Crowd Restaurant Group, which owns and operates Mi Cocina, and The Mercury restaurants, with various locations around the U.S. He has a passion for the restaurant business and enjoys investing in new concepts across the country. Additionally, he serves as the President and Managing Director of Highland Park Village, an upscale shopping plaza in Dallas. He currently serves as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Charter Holdings, a private real estate investment company based in Dallas, Texas.

He currently sits on the board of Energy Transfer.  

A graduate with BA from Southern Methodist University, he served as an Adjunct Professor at the University’s Cox School of Business.