Episodes

With the help of AI technology, the subjectivity with approving or denying borrowers for credit has been removed and replaced this with objective reasons that every person can work to improve if necessary. In this episode, Margie Click, CEO & President at Agriculture Federal Credit Union, explains how lending has changed and how AI can help institutions lend more inclusively while minimizing risk. We discuss: The 4 Cs of lending & creditworthiness Finding the right fintech partner Seizing the...

There’s a delicate balance between balancing risk and reward. Michael Reed, Chief Risk Officer at WSFS Bank, emphasizes how risk managers can partner with business owners to achieve “risk-adjusted rewards.” In this episode, Reed explains how to bring risk teams and business owners together to achieve an informed decision. He also discusses the importance of end-to-end digital transformation to create an optimal customer experience and evaluating the right fintech partnerships to help achieve th...

Consumers have been adopting fintech solutions at an increasing rate. In fact, according to a Harris Poll conducted in conjunction with Plaid, the number of US consumers using fintech grew by 30 points last year to 88 percent. The advent of open banking has enabled the flow of data from financial institutions into the fintech ecosystem. However, it’s not a one way street—that data is also enabling banks to gain a more complete picture of consumers. In this episode, Raja Chakravorti, Head of Fina...

The more banks lend, the better they do and the broader their customer base becomes. With AI & ML, banks can lend to a larger set of customers — those who are perceived as high risk — with a greater level of certainty that there won't be undue losses. Despite this, many banks and regulators remain uneasy about the outcomes. Tom Faughnan , EVP & Director of Consumer Lending at Associated Bank , is bullish on the potential of AI & ML. In this episode, he shares what needs to happen for regulators ...

For a long time, banks didn't fully understand the value fintechs provide. As partnerships with fintechs have grown, banks are experiencing that value firsthand, and they've also discovered an economic model that is a win-win for both. In this episode, Matt Deines, President & CEO at First Fed, shares how he vets potential partners and how he ensures that the economics are aligned so that everyone can benefit. We discuss: -Why digital transformation starts with mindset -First Fed’s fintech partn...

The community reinvestment act (CRA) is a decades-old law requiring banks to meet the credit needs of their community, but with all the changes that have taken place in banking over the last 10 years, how can FIs can partner with fintechs to best serve their communities. ? In this episode, Nathalia Artus, SVP, Director of Community Development and Reinvestment & CRA Officer at Atlantic Union Bank, discusses how her bank approaches CRA and how strategic partnerships will play a part in community ...

Customer needs are changing, and along with them, borrowing behaviors. How does this impact consumer lending and banking? Rich Longo, Investor and Growth Advisor at Nxtsoft, joins the show to share his insights into the trends that are reshaping the...

In traditional finance, the system runs on a centralized infrastructure and the burden of trust falls on people. In decentralized finance (DeFi), the burden of trust falls on smart contracts and on code. According to today’s guest, Ryan Berkun, Founder & CEO at Teller Finance, financial institutions are going to dive into DeFi in a big way over the next 12 months. Do you need a primer on all things DeFi, crypto, and NFT? Listen in. We discuss: - How lending on the blockchain has evolved - L...

We've talked about AI a lot on this show, but we’ve never explained what it is exactly. In this first part of a series of episodes explaining AI, we’re going back to the basics. Host Jeff Keltner, Senior Vice President of Business Development at...

Banks can no longer afford to play it safe when it comes to their digital capabilities. “Safe” is now risky. That’s why, in this episode, Tony Hejna, EVP, Consumer Bank Chief Credit Officer at KeyBank, joins the show to share the secrets behind...

Financial institutions, particularly community banks, are experiencing a paradigm shift in the architecture of banking. While the idea of stitching together the banking experience has always been present, we’re finally seeing a truly connected ecosystem due in part to the technological acceleration that’s taken place in the past 3 to 5 years. In this episode, Nitin Mhatre, CEO of Berkshire Bank, discusses the importance of combining automation with personalization and how community banks can g...

How we grow digitally and use aids such as AI to accelerate current processes have been hot topics in the finance space for a while. And through the conversations we’ve had on Leaders in Lending, we’ve gained some invaluable insights. In this special recap episode, Jeff Keltner, Senior Vice President Business Development at Upstart, takes the time to discuss the show's biggest themes and some takeaways for the audience. We discuss: Recurring themes gathered from guests & digitization The best ca...

Only 82% of the US population can be scored using conventional credit scores. That unscorable 18% is overwhelmingly comprised of marginalized communities—and that extreme disparity is unacceptable in this day and age. However, things are changing. Alternative data sources are opening the door for lenders to offer credit products to marginalized communities in ways that do not create more risk. Lenders have tools at their disposal to drive financial inclusion today—not to mention boost ROI. In th...

Connecting with new and existing customers for financial institutions has been a challenge to execute. But with so much opportunity, it’s something financial institutions can’t afford to miss out on. We speak with Jonathan Gagliano, EVP, GM Financial Services at Merkle, Inc., about what he sees, what works, and what to look forward to in regards to customer service. We discuss: - The right tech investments to improve the FI customer experience - Trends in messaging to the top-of-funnel-custo...

Banking is changing. The industry is at a transformation point. Consumers by and large have shown that they are ready to conduct their banking online. And the events of the last year have only accelerated this trend. In this re-run episode, Richard Hunt joins us to talk about what all the changes mean for the future of banking. Richard formerly worked for SIFMA, a securities industry trade association. Now, he is the President & CEO of Consumer Bankers Association (CBA), a trade association focu...

In the modern world, financial institutions are looking to strike a delicate balance between offering consumers easy transactional interactions online and offering more relational services by phone or in person. The banks and credit unions that continue to adapt and to figure out how to add value in the way consumers want these days are the ones that will survive in the evolving landscape Nathanael Tarwasokono, President & CEO at Firstmark Credit Union, joins the show to talk about the art of ...

Building trust and loyalty in the digital age is an ongoing challenge many businesses face. The question always comes down to: What investments should you be making to enable a digital experience that will leave your customers wanting more? Jeff...

As community-based institutions, credit unions are well positioned to truly understand the unique needs of their members. With digital platforms and evolving technologies transforming the landscape, credit union leaders have an opportunity to capitalize on the digital wave to grow and better meet the needs of their members - any time and any place. Yet, navigating this new terrain can be complicated. In this episode, Jake Darabos, Chief Financial and Administration Officer, and Chuck Eads, Ch...

Digital-only banks face a particular challenge: How do you create that human touch without having the physical human touch? As a branchless entity, Axos Bank has been tackling this tricky problem for the last 20 years. Anthony Capizzano, the...

Cash is up and loan demand is down.One way to navigate this challenge is by driving demand through personalized marketing. Personalization is especially effective for credit unions. After all, as community-based organizations, they’re most effective when they are interacting with their communities at all times. Chad Van Handel, Chief Lending Officer at Unison Credit Union, shares why personalization in marketing is so important. We discuss: - Transitioning from an agency to in-house marketin...

The old paradigm in banking involved developing a product and turning to life-stage marketing to sell that product to customers. But that paradigm is evolving. Financial Institutions are identifying customer needs and providing solutions regardless of what the product is, rather than hawking a product In this episode, Ted Krus, Director o f Consumer and Indirect Lending at Flagstar Bank explains the strategy behind taking a product-agnostic approach to product development and customer interact...

Around 15 years ago, non-bank financials had about 20% of the share of mortgage originations. Today, they have over 60% of the share. Why? It’s because they are 100% focused on the quality of the experience. That’s exactly what banks need to do to get back in the game. Matt Cammarota, Head of Retail Lending at Liberty Bank in Connecticut, joins the show to discuss why process transformation, in an effort to improve the customer experience, is vital to success in retail lending. We discuss: ...

Around the time of the Great Recession, there weren’t many lenders originating educational loans. Most of them had exited the business because of the volatility of the market. This void opened up the perfect opportunity for credit unions to help consumers achieve their educational goals while lowering the average age of their membership at the same time. Vince Passione, Chief Execut ive Officer and Founder at LendKey , joins the show to discuss how his company saw this emerging need in the mar...

Credit Union National Association , or CUNA, represents 5,000 credit unions in the United States serving more than 120 million americans. In partnership with a network of state credit union leagues and associations, CUNA advocates on behalf of its members and works to ensure that they are able to improve their members’ financial well-being and advance the communities they serve. Ryan Donovan , Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy Officer, joins the show to discuss CUNA’s four primary ar...