With great insight and signature wit, Beane conveys his innovative, winning style of management and leadership, which involves identifying undervalued assets to create and sustain a competitive advantage. By striking parallels between baseball and business, Beane inspires audiences across industries with his unforgettable winning underdog story.

Billy Beane, now senior adviser to Oakland Athletics owner John Fisher, has molded the team into one of baseball’s most consistent winners since taking over as General Manager following the 1997 season. Eventually rising to the role of Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations, Beane shattered traditional MLB beliefs that high payrolls equated wins by implementing a data driven methodology that led the Oakland A’s, with one of the lowest payrolls, to 7 AL Western Division titles and 10 playoff appearances. That strategic methodology has come to be known as the “Moneyball” philosophy, named for the best-selling book and Oscar-nominated film chronicling Beane’s journey from General Manager to hero to celebrated management genius. Beane is a four-time Major League Baseball “Executive of the Year” award winner and was named by Forbes as one of the “100 Greatest Living Business Minds.”

*Arrangements for the appearance of Billy Beane made through UTA Speakers, New York, NY*

Mr. Ivie is executive vice president, head of government and regulatory affairs at Banc of California, N.A. Prior to joining the company, Mr. Ivie was executive vice president, chief risk officer of PacWest Bancorp and Pacific Western Bank. Prior to joining PacWest Bancorp and Pacific Western Bank in March 2016, Mr. Ivie served as the regional director for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s (FDIC) San Francisco Region since April 2007. Prior to becoming the regional director for the San Francisco Region, Mr. Ivie was regional director for the FDIC’s Dallas Region. Before those appointments, Mr. Ivie served as the deputy director for the division of resolutions and receiverships, where he directed field operations nationwide for the division. He also served in an interim capacity as director of the office of public affairs in Washington, D.C. He served in various capacities in Washington, including assistant director and senior congressional liaison for the resolutions division.

In 2017, Mr. Ivie was elected to the board of directors of the California Bankers Association, where he serves on the executive committee, and has served on the board of directors of the Pacific Bankers Management Institute for Pacific Coast Banking School since 2010.

Paul Worthing serves as the Regional Director in the San Francisco Region of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). He has been with the FDIC for over 33 years and is responsible for the supervision and oversight of financial institutions in 11 Western States and the territories of Guam and the Federated States of Micronesia. Prior to serving as Regional Director, Paul served as Deputy Regional Director for six years (2017-2023) where he was responsible for overseeing the risk management examination and supervision functions in the San Francisco Region. From 2010 to 2017, Paul served as Assistant Regional Director responsible for supervising financial institutions in the states of Alaska, Oregon, and Washington. Prior to his appointment as ARD, Paul was a Senior Case Manager, Case Manager, and Examination Specialist in the San Francisco Regional Office. He served as a field examiner in both the Dallas and San Francisco Regions from 1990 to 2000.

Paul graduated from the University of Nebraska-Kearney, Kearney, Nebraska in 1990 with a Bachelor of Science degree: majoring in accounting and finance and a minor in economics. He is also a graduate of the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin (2002).

Karen Boehler is the Deputy Comptroller for the West and Midwest Regions of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC).

In this role, Ms. Boehler is responsible for the supervision of over 300 institutions located in 22 states with assets totaling $297 billion. She is based in Denver, Colorado, and supervises a staff of nearly 350 people, who operate out of 24 office locations. She took on these duties in January 2021.

Prior to becoming the Deputy Comptroller, Ms. Boehler served as the Associate Deputy Comptroller for the Western District. She served the OCC in a variety of bank supervision and leadership roles throughout her 38-year OCC career. Ms. Boehler earned her National Bank Examiner commission in 1989 and the Federal Thrift Regulator certification in 2013.

Ms. Boehler is a graduate of the University of Colorado in Boulder.

Joe A. Lozano has been a federal financial institution regulator for 35 years with the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco (FRBSF). In his current role, he serves as the Vice President over the Regional Institutions Group, responsible for the oversight of institutions between $10 Billion and $100 Billion, in the Division of Supervision + Credit (S+C).

Previously, Joe was responsible for overseeing the San Francisco, Los Angeles and Salt Lake City based financial examination staff responsible for conducting safety and soundness, information technology and fiduciary examinations of agencies and branches of foreign banks, state member banks and bank and savings and loan holding companies. Joe also had responsibility for S+C’s centralized examination scheduling function and the enforcement unit.

Since joining the FRBSF in 1989, Joe served in various roles within the Division, including Commissioned Examiner, Team Leader, and Officer of the Examination Support Unit. In addition, he served as the Officer over the Community Institutions Group, responsible for institutions less than $10 Billion. He has extensive experience in community bank supervision, including credit portfolio analysis, risk management, market and liquidity risk, and bank operations. He also participated on several Federal Reserve System committees and workgroups focused on regional and community bank supervision issues and examiner training.

Prior to joining the FRBSF, Joe served as an Investment Officer and Funds Manager for a savings and loan institution located in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Joe received Bachelor of Arts degrees in Economics and Psychology from Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.

Chris Bureau is the National Sales Manager for Fiserv's Community Bank Segment out of Atlanta, Georgia. Chris has been with Fiserv for 8 years and leads a team responsible for providing any and all Fiserv solutions to community banks. He prides himself in helping banks use innovative technology to succeed in their markets and accomplish their business goals. When in California, Chris enjoys surfing in Oceanside, although the locals would probably say it looks more like boogie boarding. Chris and his wife have 3 kids under 4 years old, so Chris spends much of his time as an imaginary supportive role in the latest princess movie.

Anthony Calozza is Senior Sales Executive at Jack Henry on the bank solutions team. Anthony joined Jack Henry in 2010 and has over twenty years’ experience partnering with community and mid-tier financial institutions to build strategy to acquire technology solutions to enable clients to exceed business objectives, deliver best of class financial solutions to their customers, and mitigate bank fraud to eliminate risk.

Anthony lives in a suburb of Seattle with his wife and three children. In his spare time Anthony enjoys snow skiing, mountain biking, coaching high school sports, and serving on various boards for local organizations.

Anthony is a graduate of Washington State University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

In this role, Melanie leads a team of market strategists and enterprise solution architects at FIS. Her team specializes in the banking, fintech, corporates, payments, and digital segments and enables clients to achieve their strategic objectives and competitive edge by offering market insights, best practices, strategic solution packages, and transformational delivery strategies to optimize the customer financial experience today and in the future.

With over 25 years of experience in the financial technology and services industry, Melanie has been in leadership roles in Development, Solution Architecture, Enterprise Strategy and Product, and Sales Engineering. More recent roles involved leadership in key enterprise strategy programs focused on next generation user experience, open banking, and data analytics, as well as leading technology strategy for a flagship core platform and business of FIS.

Kevin McPhaill was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Bank of the Sierra on April 1, 2015.

Mr. McPhaill’s educational background includes a bachelor’s degree from Fresno Pacific University, a master’s degree in business administration from California State University, Fresno, and the successful completion of post-graduate training at the Southwestern Graduate School of Banking at Southern Methodist University.

He has over 30 years in the banking industry. He has been employed by Bank of the Sierra since June 2001, starting as the regional manager of the Hanford area, and eventually progressing to his current role as the bank’s President and CEO.

Kevin Gould is the president and CEO of the California Bankers Association (CBA). In his role, he is responsible for executing the association’s mission and vision. Kevin works closely with CBA’s executive committee and board of directors to develop and implement strategic plans to serve our members and the banking industry.

Joining the CBA in 2004, Gould is involved in all aspects of the association’s operations, including advocacy, professional development, finance, external communications, and human resources. He has more than 25 years of public policy experience, 19 years of which have been dedicated to advocating for the CBA.

Before being named president and CEO, Kevin led the association’s state and federal government relations department. He continues to serve as one of CBA’s three registered lobbyists and remains engaged in the association’s advocacy efforts.

Gould is a member of the 2009 graduating class of the Pacific Coast Banking School and is the 2016 recipient of the Almon McCallum Award for distinguished and meritorious service to the California banking industry.

Jason Lane is senior vice president, director of government relations for the California Bankers Association and manages California state tax policy for the association, which involves analyzing legislation and regulatory activity, and the development of policy positions for the association. Lane is one of three lobbyists at CBA and, in addition to his primary focus on taxation, he also lobbies on behalf of the association on issues related to the state budget, and consumer lending legislation. Lane has significant expertise in handling legislative issues including taxation, data security, identity theft, and housing.

Before joining CBA in May 2006, Jason Lane served as director of government affairs for Providian Financial and managed the bank’s financial privacy compliance program, as well as tracked and analyzed the impact of federal legislation and rulemaking for the company.

Melanie Cuevas serves as the vice president of government relations for the California Bankers Association, where her advocacy portfolio focuses mainly on issues related to cannabis, debt collection, labor and employment, political reform, privacy, and agricultural, student and military lending.

Prior to joining CBA in 2019, Ms. Cuevas began her foray into government relations work in 2015 with the firm Gonzalez, Quintana, Hunter & Cruz, LLC, after serving as a legislative aide in both the California State Senate and Assembly. Preceding her work in the Legislature, she worked in news media, serving as Editor of Dandelion Magazine, which caters to families living with special needs. Dandelion won prestigious PMA awards for Overall Writing and General Excellence during her tenure with the magazine.

Ms. Cuevas graduated with a degree in journalism and marketing from San Francisco State University, during which time she also coached competitive cheerleading teams. After graduation, she spent four years dancing professionally, including with the Oakland Raiderettes, an internationally recognized public relations team, where she participated in philanthropic events, performances associated with the National Football League, community workshops, and media appearances on the local, national, and international levels.

This well-rounded history allows Ms. Cuevas to seamlessly adapt to the evolving and diverse political landscape in California and to provide CBA’s member banks with excellent customer service and effective representation.

Jeffrey J. Wishner is a Managing Director in the San Francisco office at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods. Mr. Wishner has 30 years of experience advising West Coast banks, thrifts and financial institutions on mergers and acquisitions and capital raising transactions.

Over that time period, Mr. Wishner has been involved in over 120 M&A transactions with over $29 billion in transaction value and over 105 capital raising transactions with over $16 billion of capital raised. Mr. Wishner is often an invited speaker at banking industry conferences to speak on M&A and capital market topics.

Mr. Wishner joined KBW in 2002. Prior to that, Mr. Wishner worked at Putnam Lovell Securities and at Banc of America Securities (formerly Montgomery Securities) with the same industry focus. While at Putnam Lovell and Montgomery, Mr. Wishner executed financings and mergers and acquisitions primarily for depository institutions and specialty finance companies.

Mr. Wishner holds a Masters of Business Administration degree from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from the University of California, Berkeley.

Ms. Lonowski possesses over 38 years of banking regulatory experience, holding several executive positions during her career. She recently retired from her position as Regional Director at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), San Francisco Region, which she held since 2016. She joined the Boards of Discover Financial Services, and its subsidiary, Discover Bank, and serves on the Risk Oversight Committee. She is also a Board member of Pacific Coast Bancshares Board, and its subsidiary PCBB.

Kathy’s expertise includes risk management and consumer protection for financial institutions across the nation, the intersection of regulatory guidelines and technological product expansion, strategic execution, and managing government interagency relationships.

Prior to her role as Regional Director, Lonowski served as Deputy Regional Director Risk Management Supervision, and Field Supervisor, Risk Management Supervision. She served as acting Deputy Director for the Division of Insurance and Research and was an instructor at FDIC Headquarters.

Throughout her career she has led in a regulated environment subject to economic fluctuations, while navigating complex interagency relations, provided a unique skill-set. Kathy is recognized for pioneering an Emerging Technology Committee to address the pace of innovation and technological changes facing regulators and the financial industry. She led several transformational projects including the FDIC Chairman initiative on Supervision Modernization involving enhanced data utilization and technology to improve off-sight risk monitoring. Kathy is an advocate for building partnerships and served as Executive Sponsor for the Partnership of Working Women, an Employee Resource Group.

Lonowski serves on the Board of Directors of the Pacific Bankers Management Institute/Pacific Banking School and is a graduate of the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Colorado. She holds a Commissioned Examiner Certification from the FDIC, a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Nebraska, and a certificate in Leadership and Management from the University of California at Berkeley. She is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors and Extraordinary Women on Boards.

Michael Reed advises on public and private transactional, strategic, regulatory, compliance, corporate finance and disclosure matters. He represents publicly and privately held companies and private equity firms, with an emphasis on financial institutions, fintech companies and diversified companies.

Michael rejoins the firm after serving as Executive Vice President, Chief Risk Officer of WSFS Financial Corporation, where he oversaw all risk management functions including credit risk management, enterprise risk management, real estate services, asset recovery, legal, internal audit, loan review, and regulatory compliance. In addition, Michael was a leading member of WSFS Financial’s strategic development team and co-led a number of strategic initiatives including the acquisition and integration of Bryn Mawr Bank Corporation, a strategic partnership with Upstart and a $150 million senior debt public offering.

Michael has regularly represented public and privately held clients in all types of acquisitions, including stock-for-stock mergers, cash mergers, going private transactions, joint ventures, strategic alliances and stock and asset purchase and sale transactions. He also has represented underwriters and issuers in capital market transactions, including public and private offerings of debt, equity, and hybrid securities, and complex structured finance transactions.

Michael advises and represents boards of directors on a variety matters, including strategic transactions, corporate governance issues, and legal issues and fiduciary duties in the context of strategic transactions and corporate governance.

Michael is a frequent lecturer and author on a variety of topics including mergers and acquisitions, fiduciary duties, disclosure matters, corporate governance, and securities laws issues.

Kevin Colombo is an Executive Vice President and a partner of the Occupier Services Bay Area (OSBA) team. OSBA is a 30+ person team that specializes in occupier representation providing clients with a platform of integrated services on local, national, and global levels. Kevin utilizes his vast commercial real estate experience and creative approach to embed himself in his Client’s core business model to advise beyond the real estate transaction.

Kevin joined Colliers International in 2015 after beginning his real estate career in 2004 while attending the University of California Santa Barbara. After graduating, Kevin moved back to San Francisco where he worked for Capital Pacific, Retail West, and then ran Terra Verde Commercial in 2009. After building and running a successful company for close to 5 years, Kevin brought his business to Colliers International where he has been able to leverage resources and collaboration that has led to the continued growth of the Occupier Services Group in the Bay Area. Sitting in the San Francisco office, Kevin has become a market leader, is responsible for training new associates, and leads the financial services vertical within OSBA. His proven success is the direct reflection of him delivering unparalleled knowledge and service to his clients.

Kevin received a B.A. in Communications and a Certificate in Entrepreneurship from the University of California Santa Barbara. Spending a summer in Italy, Kevin studied at the University of Turin, Italy where he focused on International Business Management. With an internship at Pacifica Commercial Real Estate during his Junior year of college, Kevin was a licensed commercial real estate broker working on lease transactions during his senior year of college. After working for multiple commercial real estate firms in San Francisco, Kevin joined Colliers and OSBA in late 2014.

Kitty joined Colliers International as Executive Vice President in January 2010. She was named “Los Angeles County’s Number One Multifamily Agent” by Pierce-Eislen. For 15 years, Kitty has delivered impactful solutions for her clients, servicing every facet of their multifamily real estate needs – from the sale of apartment buildings and residential land developments to condominium conversions, student housing, affordable housing and special assets. Her transactions have spanned throughout Southern California and the West Coast, with a heavy focus on West Los Angeles.

Upon entering the commercial real estate field in 1997, Kitty quickly became an expert in her market and has since consistently set and exceeded performance goals within her organizations and the industry as a whole. During her tenure with Sperry Van Ness, she ranked as the company’s #2 agent in the nation for seven years in a row. Kitty now serves as Executive Vice President for Colliers International, where she has ranked #1 in the Greater Los Angeles region since joining the company 2010.

A recognized leader in her industry, Kitty is also a five-time winner of Real Estate Southern California’s “Most Powerful Women in Real Estate” award and has made the magazine’s “Hot Broker List” multiple times. She was also recognized for five years in the magazine’s “Women of the Year” edition and holds the record for achieving the highest cost-per-square-foot sale in Los Angeles County. Among the top one percent of investment brokers in the nation, Kitty’s average listing closes in 3.8 months and at 98.6 percent of list price.

Steig Seaward is the Senior National Director of Research, leading a dynamic team of over 125 researchers across nearly 80 U.S. markets. With a distinguished career spanning over three decades, Steig is a seasoned Commercial Real Estate and CRE technology sector leader.

His expertise encompasses a wide array of disciplines, including research and analysis, product design, and customer retention strategies within the information technology and commercial real estate industries. Steig’s comprehensive knowledge and innovative approach have consistently propelled him to the forefront of his field.

Steig is a highly sought-after public speaker who delivers captivating presentations on economic and commercial real estate trends. Renowned for his ability to distill complex concepts into accessible and engaging content, he has been featured prominently at numerous prestigious events, including the CCIM annual governance meeting and the NAR Commercial Economic Issues & Trends Forum.

Prior to his tenure at Colliers, Steig held key roles at prominent organizations, including serving as the Senior Research Director for the east coast region of Grubb & Ellis and as the EVP of Customer Success at Xceligent, a leading SAAS-based commercial real estate information provider. His multifaceted career also includes significant positions such as National Director of Business Development and Client Services at Xceligent, Director of Sales at IdealSpot, and VP of Technology & Member Services at the Denver Metropolitan Commercial Association of Realtors.

Steig’s journey in the industry began as a research analyst for the Resolution Trust Corporation, where he honed his analytical skills and laid the foundation for his illustrious career. Today, he continues to drive innovation and excellence in research and technology, shaping the future of commercial real estate.

Rob Nichols is the president and CEO of the American Bankers Association, the voice of the nation’s $23.7 trillion banking industry and the only organization that represents banks of all sizes and charters in Washington.

Since joining ABA in August 2015, Nichols has led ABA's advocacy efforts, working to ensure that banks of all sizes operate in a policy environment that allows them to best serve their customers and communities. In 2018, Nichols led ABA's successful efforts to win passage of the first major banking bill in nearly a decade. Among other things, the bipartisan legislation modified rules for community banks originally intended for larger institutions.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Nichols and ABA played a critical role in helping banks navigate unprecedented challenges. ABA resources and advocacy helped banks of all sizes rapidly deliver 90 percent of the $800 billion Paycheck Protection Program, the largest economic rescue plan ever deployed for the private sector, protecting more than 80 million Americans from job loss. The banking industry's efforts helped limit the pandemic's effects on the U.S. economy.

As ABA's president and CEO, Nichols has advanced a number of industry-wide initiatives. In 2019, Nichols encouraged all banks to offer low-cost, easy-to-use Bank On-certified accounts. The effort has been credited with helping reduce the number of unbanked in the U.S. to its lowest level ever. And ABA's award winning #BanksNeverAskThat public education campaign has won national recognition for empowering consumers to spot scams before they can do harm.

As the leader of one of Washington’s largest trade association workforces, Nichols has reshaped ABA's workplace. Since 2018, ABA has been certified as a Great Place to Work by independent analysts, and in 2022, Nichols moved ABA into a contemporary, collaboration-focused new office adapted for hybrid teams. Under his leadership, ABA has gender parity within the executive leadership team, and ABA hired its first external facing DEI expert to help banks expand their DEI programs.

From January 2020 – January 2023, Nichols served as chairman of the International Banking Federation, whose members include the national banking trade associations representing every major financial center.Nichols joined ABA following 10 years at the helm of the Financial Services Forum, a nonpartisan economic policy and advocacy organization whose members are the chief executive officers of the largest and most diversified financial institutions doing business in the United States. During his time at the Forum, Nichols led the industry through the financial crisis and the Dodd-Frank Act, guiding his members and the broader banking sector in its policy response and the law’s implementation.

Before joining the Forum, Nichols served in the George W. Bush administration as assistant secretary for public affairs at the Treasury Department a position requiring confirmation by the United States Senate. In this role, he acted as chief spokesperson and head of the office of public liaison, serving as Treasury’s lead representative with the media, business, professional trade organizations, consumer groups and the public.

Prior to that he worked as communications director to the late Sen. Slade Gorton and press secretary to the late Rep. Jennifer Dunn. He began his career in public service in the West Wing as a White House aide in the George H.W. Bush administration.

Nichols is a recipient of the Alexander Hamilton Award, the highest honor of the Department of the Treasury. He also is consistently named as one of the most influential people in Washington by Washingtonian, and one of Washington's top lobbyists by The Hill. He has been described as one of the “new generation of trade group CEOs” by the Washington Post.

Nichols serves on the board of governors of FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) and is a Corporate Advisory Council member at Children’s National Hospital.

He is a graduate of the George Washington University and lives in the Washington area with his wife and two children.

Linda Ezuka is Executive Director of Hawaii Bankers Association. Ezuka has more than three decades of community development experience. She is the founder of CRA Today and the CRA Hub for banking professionals and hosts the CRA Podcast, which focuses on the Community Reinvestment Act.

Ezuka has worked in CRA compliance, training, community development finance and Community Development Financial Institutions initiatives.

She serves on the board and investment committee of the HMSA Foundation and on the advisory board of the Patsy T. Mink Center for Business and Leadership. She has also served as chairwoman of the board for the YWCA of Oʻahu, Hospice Hawaiʻi and the Hawaiʻi Community Reinvestment Corporation, a CDFI.

She is a past CDFI New Markets Tax Credit and CDFI Reader, a Pacific Century Fellow, SBA Financial Services Advocate of the Year Awardee and Pacific Business News 40 Under 40 honoree. She is the author of the book “Outstanding: A Practitioner’s Guide to Exam Readiness.”

Ezuka holds an MBA from Hawaiʻi Pacific University.

Dan Bailey is the EVP & Chief Banking Officer at Tri Counties Bank.

Bailey joined Tri Counties Bank as the Executive Vice President, Retail Banking & Bank Operations, in 2007, and was promoted to Chief Retail Banking Officer in 2015. Prior to joining Tri Counties Bank’s executive team, Bailey spent more than 15 years at Wells Fargo Bank, the majority of his time as SVP & Market President, with responsibility for retail branches from Sacramento north to the Oregon border.

Martin Plourd is President of Community West Bancshares. Mr. Plourd previously served as CEO of Community West Bank since 2011, after a career in California’s Imperial Valley, which included 30 years of commercial and retail banking experience. Mr. Plourd’s banking experience includes operations as well as consumer, commercial and agricultural lending. Beginning with Security Pacific Bank and First Interstate Bank, Marty became Executive Vice President of Valley Independent Bank. In 2009, he was named President and Chief Operating Officer of Temecula Valley Bank, where he served until joining Community West Bank. He is a graduate of California Polytechnic State University and Stonier Graduate School of Banking.

James J. Kim is President and CEO of Community West Bank and CEO of Community West Bancshares. Kim previously served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Kim has over 20+ years of leadership and financial expertise. Prior to joining the Bank in 2018, he served in the positions of chief executive officer, chief operating officer, chief financial officer, and controller for community banks in the Greater Sacramento Region, including Community 1st Bank, North Valley Bancorp, Calnet Business Bank and Feather River State Bank. Kim’s extensive experience in strategic planning, regulatory relationships, team-building, management and client service – as well as his strong community commitment – have laid the foundation for his leadership.

James first worked in assurance services for Arthur Andersen, LLP, an international business firm in Sacramento. His education includes earning an MBA and BS in Accountancy from California State University, Sacramento. An active community steward, Kim professionally and personally provides support to a wide range of community nonprofits, including community foundations, education, youth causes, healthcare and food insecurity organizations.

David J. Gershon is a partner in the Corporate and Securities Practice Group in the firm’s San Francisco office.

David’s practice focuses on securities and general corporate matters for financial institutions and technology companies, including mergers and acquisitions, securities law compliance, SEC reporting, securities offerings and corporate governance. David represents financial institutions, technology companies, underwriters and private equity funds in these matters. His corporate finance experience includes private placements, public offerings, PIPE transactions and at-the-market offerings. He also advises clients regarding bank regulatory matters, such as acquisition and control issues, holding company issues, nonbanking activities, the organization of de novo banks and supervision and enforcement matters. He has represented underwriters in equity offerings and private equity funds in their investment transactions.

Prior to joining Sheppard Mullin, David served as general counsel of a NASDAQ-listed semiconductor company and its successor, a consumer electronics developer. He also served as the general counsel of a venture-backed software developer. As general counsel, David regularly advised executives and board members on a broad range of legal issues. He has also advised clients on a variety of intellectual property matters.

Peter Buck is a managing director in the financial services group at Piper Sandler.

Previously, he was a managing director in the investment banking group of Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P. where he provided merger and acquisition, capital raising and overall strategic planning advice for financial institutions nationwide. While with Sandler O’Neill, Buck helped clients structure over 50 M&A transactions and was involved in numerous capital raising transactions.

Recent representative transactions include Blackhawk Network Holdings, Inc.’s $3.5 billion sale to Silver Lake and P2 Capital Partners, Community West Bancshares’ $100 million merger with Central Valley Community Bancorp, American River Bankshares’ $135 million sale to Bank of Marin Bancorp, SoFi’s acquisition of Golden Pacific Bancorp and FinWise Bancorp’s $42 million IPO.

Buck graduated with distinction from the University of Virginia with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering.

Lori Shao stands at the helm as the CEO and Founder of Finli, a distinguished Certified B Corp committed to reshaping the landscape for small, medium-sized, and micro businesses. At the core of Finli’s offerings is a cutting-edge platform that serves as a digital back-office, empowering businesses with an array of tools including CRM, billing, versatile payment collection methods (via invoicing, QR code, SMS, and email), inventory management, quotes/estimate management, and a host of other invaluable features. With an extensive background spanning over 22 years in the financial industry, Lori is a seasoned expert in crafting scalable technology solutions that cater specifically to the needs of the business community. Beyond her role in steering this venture-backed technology company, Lori embraces the role of a devoted mother to two human children and caretaker to 10 non-human children, in the form of cherished pets.

Saujin Yi is the Founder/CEO of Liquid, a fintech startup building global payment solutions for small businesses. Saujin brings more than 20 years of product, finance, and strategy experience to these roles.

Previously, Saujin was the SVP of Strategy and Product and GM of Digital at GameFly. Prior to that, she was an investment banker at Chanin Capital Partners and Credit Suisse First Boston.

To advance women in tech and work, Saujin makes angel investments in female founders under 79 Studios and currently serves on the board of FlexTeam, a consulting firm of executive-level women that she co-founded in 2016.

Saujin holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT and an MBA from UCLA Anderson, where she now is a part-time lecturer in the entrepreneurship program. She is also a Venture Partner with Resolute VC.

Jane Barratt serves as the Chief Advocacy Officer and Head of Global Public Policy at MX, where she vigorously champions financial wellness. In her capacity, she collaborates closely with government entities, regulatory organizations, financial institutions, and industry coalitions to ensure individuals have secure access to their financial data. Barratt is a proponent of financial literacy and offers educational courses on LinkedIn Learning. Prior to joining MX, she was the Founder and CEO of GoldBean, a platform designed to simplify "investing for beginners," and spent more than twenty years fostering growth for Fortune 500 companies.

George Leis is the president & chief operating officer for Montecito Bank & Trust. George joined the bank in July, 2016. Montecito Bank & Trust is the oldest and largest locally owned community bank in the Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. Founded in 1975, the bank operates 13 branch offices in Santa Barbara, Goleta, Solvang, Montecito, Carpinteria, Ventura, Camarillo, and Westlake Village.

George was formerly a managing director for MUFG Union Bank, N.A. He was named the national sales manager for The Private Bank after becoming regional president of Union Bank’s Central Coast region with the acquisition of Santa Barbara Bank & Trust (SBB&T) in December 2012. Previously, Leis was president and chief executive officer of Pacific Capital Bancorp (PCBC), a $7 billion in assets community bank holding company that included SBB&T. PCBC had more than 1,000 employees and 47 branches.

After joining SBB&T in March 2006, Leis was the executive vice president for two divisions, Wealth Management and Information Technology, and was the chief information officer. He was responsible for 500 staff members and a $78 million budget.

Prior to 2006, Leis was a managing director, U.S. products head, and national practice leader for investments at Deutsche Bank Private Wealth Management. He also served as a senior vice president and director of the private client services center at Wells Fargo, and as a senior vice president and manager for Bank of America Private Bank.

Leis began his banking career with Security Pacific National Bank in Retail and Commercial Banking. A graduate of California State University, Northridge (CSUN), he is a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor.

Leis’ community involvement is exemplified through his service to universities and charities throughout Southern California and beyond, including:

• National Disaster Search Dog Foundation (Board Chair)
• California Bankers Association (Chairman Elect)
• YMCA of the USA (Vice Chair)
• Santa Barbara Zoo (Board Member)
• Channel Islands YMCA (Board Member)
• Santa Barbara Historical Museum (Board Member)
• Santa Barbara Botanic Garden (Board Member)
• California State University Northridge (Board Member)

A distinguished alumnus of Cal State Northridge, Leis is a prior board member and prior committee chair for the CSUN Foundation board of directors. He has participated on numerous other CSUN boards, including the College of Business and Economics advisory board and the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences Ambassadors.

His successful career and passionate involvement in community-focused organizations have earned Leis several awards including: the Santa Barbara/Ventura Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals 2019 Volunteer of the Year; the CSUCI Robert J. Lagomarsino Award in 2014; the CIYMCA Golden Triangle of Distinguished Service award in 2014; CSUN Distinguished Alumni Award in 2013; and CSUCI’s Business & Technology Partnership’s 2011 Business and Community Leader of the Year. Leis has also been a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, the National Leadership Honor Society, since 1981.

With over 25 years of experience in balance sheet and model risk management, and hands-on experience in audit and leading the operations of DCG’s Financial Analytics Department, Mark has unique expertise for optimizing and “right-sizing” risk management in the community, mid-size, and large banking space.

In his current role, Mark facilitates educational programs and collaborative workshops and is a trusted resource for financial institutions, industry, and state trade associations, as well as regulatory agencies on a variety of balance sheet and model risk management/validation topics, including IRR, Liquidity, CECL, BSA/AML, and ALCO.

Mark is a frequent author and top-rated speaker on a vast array of risk management topics and is a member of the Financial Managers Society’s Board of Directors. The son of an educator and member of the faculty of Pacific Coast Banking School, Mark’s passion for teaching drives his desire to work with bankers to strive for excellence within their organizations.

Mark lives on the North Shore of Boston with his wife, two children, and two dogs. He is a graduate of St. Michael’s College in Vermont with a degree in accounting.

Max Damm is a Managing Director at IntraFi, covering banks in California, Hawaii, and Alaska. Max has more than 24 years of experience in financial services, working at national and community banks along the way. As Managing Director, Max works hand in hand with banks on numerous activities including C-level deposit strategy, liquidity management, new product rollout, sales training, and end client education. Max studied at American University in Washington, DC and is a proud husband and father to two young boys.

Francis leads the foundation’s industry relations strategy and develops partnerships to advance the field of social impact banking. Francis developed a strong understanding of the social and environmental impact of values-based banking while serving in the role of Vice President for Beneficial State Bank in the Seattle marketplace. He enjoys gardening, science fiction movies, musicals and hosting gourmet dinner parties.

Aaron J. Axton joined KBW in 2000 and is a Managing Director in the Depositories Investment Banking Department, serving banks in North America and Europe. Aaron has been providing strategic advice to West Coast banks, thrifts and financial institutions for over 20 years.

Aaron is based in the San Francisco office, and specializes in M&A and capital solutions for the financial services industry, having recently advised on several of the largest transactions on the West Coast. He also has significant expertise in strategic advisory work relating to activism defense and restructuring.

He is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley.

Mr. Colombo served as President, CEO and Director from July 2006 through May 2021, at which point he relinquished the President role and continued in the role of CEO and Director. Mr. Colombo retired from the Bank in October 2021 and is continuing to serve as a Director. He currently serves on the Bank’s Asset/Liability Committee and is a past member of the Executive Committee and the Bank’s Wealth Management and Trust Services Committee. Mr. Colombo joined Bank of Marin in March 2004 as Executive Vice President and Branch Administrator and was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in July 2005. As of July 1, 2006 he assumed the position of President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Colombo has over forty-six years of banking experience including positions as Senior Vice President and Group Manager of the San Francisco office of Comerica Bank and as Senior Vice President and Regional Manager during his nineteen year career with Union Bank of California. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Economics & Business Management from University of California, Davis and a Master of Business Administration in Banking & Finance from Golden Gate University. Mr. Colombo is a Board member of California Bankers Association, past Chairman of Western Independent Bankers Association and former member of its Executive Committee. He also served on the Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council of the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank from 2019 to 2021. Mr. Colombo was a Regent of Hanna Boys Center for fifteen years until leaving the Board in 2017 and is currently Chairman of the Citizens Oversight Committee of Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART). Mr. Colombo is currently a Trustee for Golden Gate University.

Brian Montgomery utilizes his background in financial services regulation to strategically advise businesses on federal and state regulatory compliance.

Brian’s practice focuses on representing and advising banks, non-bank financial institutions, fintech companies, money services businesses and other businesses on regulatory and compliance matters, with a particular focus on consumer financial products and services. He regularly advises companies on how to navigate regulatory issues as they bring innovative financial products and services to market. Brian also counsels clients on compliance with regulators’ cybersecurity, information technology and third-party risk management requirements.

Prior to joining the firm, Brian served in several senior positions at the New York Department of Financial Services, including leading the department’s program to examine regulated institutions for compliance with federal and state consumer financial laws. Brian also supervised a group that conducted investigations and brought enforcement actions involving consumer financial products and services.

A principal in Crowe’s national credit and loan review practice, Steve joined Crowe LLP in 2013. He focuses on commercial loan portfolio review, bank due diligence, credit administration practices, internal loan review functions, regulatory issues, and developing credit technology solutions. He has consulted for hundreds of financial institutions in the U.S. and Canada, ranging from de novo to those with assets exceeding $100B in assets.

Prior to joining Crowe, he spent seven years in various commercial credit and lending roles at financial institutions. He frequently presents at industry events, board of director and audit committee meetings, and peer groups, as well as publishes articles, on credit risk and lending.

Michael Blanchard is the CEO of Blanchard Consulting Group. He has extensive experience in the human resources field and has conducted or supported over 500 compensation planning, market research, and organizational development projects over the past twenty-five years, with over twenty years specific to the banking industry. Mike has presented to various national and state banking associations including Bank Director, American Bankers Association, the Sheshunoff CEO Conference, the Bank CEO Network and over 20 state banking associations on a variety of bank compensation topics. With a master’s degree in advanced industrial and organizational psychology, Mr. Blanchard’s experience includes advising clients on assessing and designing executive, director, and staff compensation plans.

Eric Devine is the President & CEO of Vitex where he brings a highly motivated, fiscally conscious, and goal driven atmosphere. In tandem, Eric is a contract negotiation expert with additional focuses on banking technology and operations. With his immense business, banking, and technical backgrounds, Eric has a deep understanding of what it takes to be a leader within the management spectrum and optimize banking infrastructure to ensure daily operational success.

Eric comes to Vitex after being in the banking industry for 20 years. He last held the First Vice President and Director of Innovation and Technology at a 2-billion-dollar bank. In addition, he was the Chief Information Security Officer, making him a valuable resource to the Vitex team. He brings along a diverse set of skills, such as CORE and banking contract negotiation, financial software reviewing, core banking system expertise, and implementing Fintech and best of breed solutions.

If there is one thing that banks cannot afford to lack or be outdated in, it is their technologies. At Vitex, Eric is diligently providing his expertise to aid banks with IT software negotiations, finding ultimate solutions for best practices, and coming up with the latest information technology recommendations to maximize banking efficiencies. In tandem Eric is tremendously familiar with banking guidelines and various Information Technology frameworks.

Eric earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Technology at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, CT, and holds numerous business, banking, and IT certifications. He is a graduate of the ABA Stonier National Banking school and holds a certificate from Wharton Business school in leadership. Furthermore, Eric has obtained many awards and recognitions for his work. For instance, he received the 40 Under 40 award twice (once in 2015 and again in 2019) due to his influencing leadership in both business and within the community. Eric has been on several CIO panels for various IT, innovation, and leadership conferences.

Eric is exceptionally self-motivated, organized and hosts strong interpersonal skills, which he leverages to build solid working relationships. From his exceptional service and support in improving business and banking functionalities, Eric approaches every challenge with complete confidence and expresses true leadership skills to drive success.

Eric lives in Massachusetts and during his personal time he enjoys playing hockey, watching sports, and spending time at home with his twin daughters, Erin and Alana.

Noory has been working with financial institutions since 2005. His experience is focused in finance, accounting, operations, compliance, and risk management with specialties in the review of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), regulatory compliance, residential mortgage/commercial lending, and asset quality reviews. Noory devotes his time to consulting with financial institutions on operational and regulatory compliance matters, performing and managing operational audits and regulatory compliance reviews, and conducting risk assessments and anti-money laundering audits.

Chris has provided compliance consulting and internal audit services since 2003. He performs and leads internal audit, compliance, and IT consulting engagements across the financial services industry.

Chris devotes most of his time to the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), IT controls, information security and cybersecurity, FDIC Improvement Act (FDICA) compliance, and electronic payments.

Chris also assists clients with regulatory compliance controls, information security programs, and internal audit regulatory programs.

Prior to joining Moss Adams, Chris was vice president and senior consultant at a national consulting firm, where he was responsible for regulatory compliance consulting and internal audit services.

David is a principal with the financial institutions group, dedicated to certified audits, directors’ examinations, internal audits, and general control reviews. David began his career with CliftonLarsonAllen in 2005, and has twelve years of experience working with financial institutions.

Joshua joined CLA in 2007 in the financial institutions group. Josh devotes 100 percent of his time serving financial institutions with varying levels of complexity, with asset sizes ranging from $25 million to over $5 billion. He focuses on certified audits, internal audits, loan file reviews, directors’ examinations, and other consulting services for community banks.

Joshua also spends a portion of his efforts working with financial institutions in their partnership efforts with financial technology (Fintech) companies. This includes Fintech companies with a focus on lending, efficiency improvement, and alternative finance sources.