TOP BANKER PANEL 2021 AGENDA
Thursday, November 4th
3:15 pm – 4:30 pm: Specialized Products and Services – Vista Ballroom
Moderated by Gary Findley with Tony Repanich, President and COO, Shield Compliance & Radhika Dholakia-Lipton, CEO/Risk and Compliance Executive, RADD LLC
3:15 pm – 4:30 pm: Specialized Products and Services – Vista Ballroom
Moderated by Gary Findley with Tony Repanich, President and COO, Shield Compliance & Radhika Dholakia-Lipton, CEO/Risk and Compliance Executive, RADD LLC
Tamara Gurney, President & CEO, Mission Valley Bank
In 1980 Tamara Gurney began her career in Community Banking when she began work at American Pacific State Bank as the Executive Assistant to the President. When American Pacific State Bank was sold (twenty years later) Tamara was Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Today she is the founding President and Chief Executive Officer of Mission Valley Bank, a $425 million dollar (June 2021) community based business bank headquartered in Sun Valley, California.
In 2000, Tamara brought together a group of highly respected community business bankers as well as a number of local area business people to form Mission Valley Bank. After raising slightly more than $6 million in initial capital, together this group opened the doors of Mission Valley Bank in July of 2001. While it wasn’t an easy start – the Bank’s first location was a “triple wide trailer” set-up in the parking lot of the site that today serves as the Bank’s 10,000 square foot headquarters building – it worked. Tamara and her team’s commitment to build a bank that was “more about the client and less about the bank” proved to be exactly what the area needed. Mission Valley Bank reached breakeven after just eleven months of operation and was “black/black” or fully profitable in less than thirty months.
Also during 2011 Tamara was recognized by the San Fernando Valley Business Journal as “The Valley’s Most Trusted Advisor” as well as receiving the “Trail Blazer Award”. Today Mission Valley Bank’s 2 branches as well as the Bank’s Specialized Lending and Accounts Receivable Divisions, serve more than 3,000. Tamara has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix and is an Honors Graduate of the University of Wisconsin’s School for Bank Administration in Community Bank Management. Tamara currently serves on of the Board of Directors and / or Advisory Boards for the following organizations:
• Federal Reserve Bank – Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council
• Past President California Independent Bankers Association
• Pacific Coast Bankers’ Bank
• Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation
• Chairman, College of the Canyons Foundation
• Valley Economic Alliance – Vice Chair
• BizFed
• Advisory Board Member of the YMCA of the Santa Clarita Valley
• Founding Chair, Community Foundation of the Valleys
• Southland Sings
T. Ryan Sullivan, President & CEO, Bank of George
T. Ryan Sullivan is President/Chief Executive Officer of Bank of George. Bank of George was recognized by S&P Global Market Intelligence as the #2 top performing community bank for 2018 – an acknowledgement that included the review of over 4,600 banks with up to $3 Billion in assets across the entire U.S. Mr. Sullivan has 23 years of commercial banking experience. He was the Bank’s original Chief Financial Officer and served in that capacity from inception in September 2007 through July 2013, when he was named President/Chief Executive Officer. He has served as a Bank Director since January 2011 and currently chairs the Bank’s Community Reinvestment Act Committee and serves as a member of the FinTech Committee. He also serves as President/CEO as well as Director of GBank Financial Holdings Inc., parent of Bank of George, since its formation in December 2017.
Mr. Sullivan has provided organizational oversight for the Risk Management, Sales Production Management, Accounting/Finance, Credit and Lending Administration, Deposit Operations, Information Technology/Cybersecurity, and Investment functions. Previously, Mr. Sullivan served as the Chief Financial Officer of Alliance Bank of Arizona, a $650 million statewide commercial bank at the time of departure, where he had responsibilities including active balance sheet portfolio management, serving as Chairman of the Asset/Liability Committee and managing Audit and Risk Management functions of the bank while coordinating organizational compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley requirements. Additionally, he provided management and oversight for Deposit Operations, Information Technology and Human Resources/Payroll functions. Mr. Sullivan joined Alliance Bank at its inception in 2003 as its original Chief Financial Officer after working with Bank of Nevada (formerly BankWest of Nevada) in numerous lending, accounting/finance, and operational capacities.
Mr. Sullivan currently serves on the Board of the Nevada Bankers Association as well as the Community Banker’s Council of the American Bankers Association. He also currently serves on the Board of Trustees for SafeNest, Southern Nevada’s oldest and most comprehensive non-profit organization dedicated to the eradication of domestic violence. Mr. Sullivan attained his Bachelors of Science degree in Finance from UNLV and was also an honors graduate of Pacific Coast Banking School at University of Washington.
Gary Steven Findley, President of Gary Steven Findley & Associates
Gary Steven Findley & Associates is a law firm specializing in banking law whose areas of expertise include regulatory relations/legal work, mergers and acquisitions, securities, corporate representation, regulatory enforcement action counseling, and capital restoration programs.
Gary Findley is a specialist in the creating and legally shepherding of new and innovative programs for financial institutions. In addition, he counsels boards of directors and senior managements on maintaining safe and sound financial condition in a changing and challenging environment. Gary Findley is Director of The Findley Group, the management consulting arm of The Findley Companies. He is also President and Editor of The Findley Reports Newsletter and a Registered Investment Advisor.
Tony Repanich, President and COO, Shield Compliance
Tony served as a community banker for 25 years and is a former Executive Vice President for Peoples Bank, a $1.5 billion community bank based in Washington State. He was responsible for all aspects of retail banking, mortgage lending, cash management, investment services, and corporate marketing. Under his leadership, the bank grew from less than $200 million in assets to its current size.
Prior to joining Shield Compliance, Tony operated a consulting firm focused on cannabis banking and finance, community banking, and financial technology.
Radhika Dholakia-Lipton, Founder & CEO, RADD LLC
Radhika Dholakia-Lipton is one of the nation’s most esteemed authorities on internal auditing, compliance, operations, and risk management for financial institutions. She’s a tenured banking executive, accomplished businesswoman, in-demand conference speaker and philanthropist who excels in banking regulatory compliance, policy and procedure development, internal audit best practices, implementing controls to mitigate risk, and strategic planning and process improvement consulting.
Since launching her banking career in 1990, she has held senior executive auditing and compliance positions for leading national, regional and community banks, including Citigroup, Sunwest Bank and Wedbush Bank, a start-up De Novo bank.
In 2017 Radhika founded RADD LLC, a boutique consulting firm that provides internal auditing and compliance consulting, virtual staff support, and customized compliance solutions – all from one experienced and trusted firm.She led the Operational Risk Task force for Citigroup and various other national committees for process improvement and is frequently engaged to lead strategic planning and process improvement workshops for financial institutions and non-profits. She is an active member of the CCBN association and a former member of the CBA and the WIB associations.
In 1980 Tamara Gurney began her career in Community Banking when she began work at American Pacific State Bank as the Executive Assistant to the President. When American Pacific State Bank was sold (twenty years later) Tamara was Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Today she is the founding President and Chief Executive Officer of Mission Valley Bank, a $425 million dollar (June 2021) community based business bank headquartered in Sun Valley, California.
In 2000, Tamara brought together a group of highly respected community business bankers as well as a number of local area business people to form Mission Valley Bank. After raising slightly more than $6 million in initial capital, together this group opened the doors of Mission Valley Bank in July of 2001. While it wasn’t an easy start – the Bank’s first location was a “triple wide trailer” set-up in the parking lot of the site that today serves as the Bank’s 10,000 square foot headquarters building – it worked. Tamara and her team’s commitment to build a bank that was “more about the client and less about the bank” proved to be exactly what the area needed. Mission Valley Bank reached breakeven after just eleven months of operation and was “black/black” or fully profitable in less than thirty months.
Also during 2011 Tamara was recognized by the San Fernando Valley Business Journal as “The Valley’s Most Trusted Advisor” as well as receiving the “Trail Blazer Award”. Today Mission Valley Bank’s 2 branches as well as the Bank’s Specialized Lending and Accounts Receivable Divisions, serve more than 3,000. Tamara has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix and is an Honors Graduate of the University of Wisconsin’s School for Bank Administration in Community Bank Management. Tamara currently serves on of the Board of Directors and / or Advisory Boards for the following organizations:
• Federal Reserve Bank – Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council
• Past President California Independent Bankers Association
• Pacific Coast Bankers’ Bank
• Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation
• Chairman, College of the Canyons Foundation
• Valley Economic Alliance – Vice Chair
• BizFed
• Advisory Board Member of the YMCA of the Santa Clarita Valley
• Founding Chair, Community Foundation of the Valleys
• Southland Sings
T. Ryan Sullivan, President & CEO, Bank of George
T. Ryan Sullivan is President/Chief Executive Officer of Bank of George. Bank of George was recognized by S&P Global Market Intelligence as the #2 top performing community bank for 2018 – an acknowledgement that included the review of over 4,600 banks with up to $3 Billion in assets across the entire U.S. Mr. Sullivan has 23 years of commercial banking experience. He was the Bank’s original Chief Financial Officer and served in that capacity from inception in September 2007 through July 2013, when he was named President/Chief Executive Officer. He has served as a Bank Director since January 2011 and currently chairs the Bank’s Community Reinvestment Act Committee and serves as a member of the FinTech Committee. He also serves as President/CEO as well as Director of GBank Financial Holdings Inc., parent of Bank of George, since its formation in December 2017.
Mr. Sullivan has provided organizational oversight for the Risk Management, Sales Production Management, Accounting/Finance, Credit and Lending Administration, Deposit Operations, Information Technology/Cybersecurity, and Investment functions. Previously, Mr. Sullivan served as the Chief Financial Officer of Alliance Bank of Arizona, a $650 million statewide commercial bank at the time of departure, where he had responsibilities including active balance sheet portfolio management, serving as Chairman of the Asset/Liability Committee and managing Audit and Risk Management functions of the bank while coordinating organizational compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley requirements. Additionally, he provided management and oversight for Deposit Operations, Information Technology and Human Resources/Payroll functions. Mr. Sullivan joined Alliance Bank at its inception in 2003 as its original Chief Financial Officer after working with Bank of Nevada (formerly BankWest of Nevada) in numerous lending, accounting/finance, and operational capacities.
Mr. Sullivan currently serves on the Board of the Nevada Bankers Association as well as the Community Banker’s Council of the American Bankers Association. He also currently serves on the Board of Trustees for SafeNest, Southern Nevada’s oldest and most comprehensive non-profit organization dedicated to the eradication of domestic violence. Mr. Sullivan attained his Bachelors of Science degree in Finance from UNLV and was also an honors graduate of Pacific Coast Banking School at University of Washington.
Gary Steven Findley, President of Gary Steven Findley & Associates
Gary Steven Findley & Associates is a law firm specializing in banking law whose areas of expertise include regulatory relations/legal work, mergers and acquisitions, securities, corporate representation, regulatory enforcement action counseling, and capital restoration programs.
Gary Findley is a specialist in the creating and legally shepherding of new and innovative programs for financial institutions. In addition, he counsels boards of directors and senior managements on maintaining safe and sound financial condition in a changing and challenging environment. Gary Findley is Director of The Findley Group, the management consulting arm of The Findley Companies. He is also President and Editor of The Findley Reports Newsletter and a Registered Investment Advisor.
Tony Repanich, President and COO, Shield Compliance
Tony served as a community banker for 25 years and is a former Executive Vice President for Peoples Bank, a $1.5 billion community bank based in Washington State. He was responsible for all aspects of retail banking, mortgage lending, cash management, investment services, and corporate marketing. Under his leadership, the bank grew from less than $200 million in assets to its current size.
Prior to joining Shield Compliance, Tony operated a consulting firm focused on cannabis banking and finance, community banking, and financial technology.
Radhika Dholakia-Lipton, Founder & CEO, RADD LLC
Radhika Dholakia-Lipton is one of the nation’s most esteemed authorities on internal auditing, compliance, operations, and risk management for financial institutions. She’s a tenured banking executive, accomplished businesswoman, in-demand conference speaker and philanthropist who excels in banking regulatory compliance, policy and procedure development, internal audit best practices, implementing controls to mitigate risk, and strategic planning and process improvement consulting.
Since launching her banking career in 1990, she has held senior executive auditing and compliance positions for leading national, regional and community banks, including Citigroup, Sunwest Bank and Wedbush Bank, a start-up De Novo bank.
In 2017 Radhika founded RADD LLC, a boutique consulting firm that provides internal auditing and compliance consulting, virtual staff support, and customized compliance solutions – all from one experienced and trusted firm.She led the Operational Risk Task force for Citigroup and various other national committees for process improvement and is frequently engaged to lead strategic planning and process improvement workshops for financial institutions and non-profits. She is an active member of the CCBN association and a former member of the CBA and the WIB associations.