Stacy Armijo is Chief Experience Officer for Amplify Credit Union. Based in Austin, Texas, Amplify stewards more than $3B in assets under management through fee-free banking, lending for individuals & businesses and loan servicing for 150+ credit unions and banks.
Stacy’s responsibilities include the credit union teams responsible for demand, deposits, payments and people. Most recently, she acquired responsibility for commercial banking services. Amplify is the only financial institution in the country that offers entirely fee-free banking, including business banking. Since launching fee-free treasury management in 2024, Amplify’s business banking portfolio has almost doubled and its commercial customer count has grown 25 percent.
Stacy joined Amplify in 2018 after spending 17 years in public relations & marketing. Since, she graduated with leadership distinction from the Southwestern Graduate School of Banking at SMU’s Cox School of Business and was named one of the Most Powerful Women in Credit Unions by American Banker in 2023.
Beyond Amplify, Stacy is involved in a variety of civic and philanthropic causes in the Austin area. She earned a bachelor’s degree in public relations from the University of Texas at Austin and later was an instructor in UT’s Moody College of Communications. She’s also a proud mom to two boys, ages 16 and 12, and loves entertaining friends with her amateur bartending skills and bad jokes.
Ana Liza Grandner is an Executive Vice President, Chief Payments Officer at First Bank of the Lake. Grandner is an internationally recognized leader in the Fintech banking space, bringing over 17 years of experience in the digital payments ecosystem and Private Label Banking. As the Chief Payments Officer, she drives the bank’s payments strategy and oversees the development of its Private Label Banking product, aimed at supporting the evolving needs of Fintech partners.
With a distinguished career across both banks and FinTechs, Grandner has been a driving force in building and optimizing financial systems that shape the future of digital banking for industry leaders such as Google Wallet, Chime, Varo, Simple, Seed, Walgreens, Bento and many others, guiding them through critical build, financial enhancements and product innovations. Her development of a cutting-edge Third-Party Risk Framework and Compliance Management System has been widely adopted as a best practice, underscoring her pivotal role in advancing financial strategies and setting new benchmarks in the digital finance sector.
Prior to First Bank of the Lake, Grandner served as Vice President, Head of Fintech Banking and Head of the Payroll Protection Program, where she led efforts that made the bank the top community bank for issuing and supporting Payroll Protection Plan (PPP) loans. Her strategic vision has been recognized by numerous global financial institutions and conferences, including the Most Influential Women in Payments Summit at Card Forum, where she delivered the keynote address and the International Payments Group, where she delivered the keynote address in Croatia.
Grandner comes from some of the most influential institutions in the space, including Cross River Bank, Bancorp Bank, Bank of America, Citibank and The Vanguard Group.
Grandner holds a TRIUM Global Executive MBA, jointly issued by NYU Stern School of Business, London School of Economics, and HEC Paris. She also earned a BA in Psychology from Yale University. Fluent in both English and Spanish, Grandner’s global perspective has been a key asset throughout her career.
James Duff is the U.S. Head of Business Banking and has over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry. Jim worked with both privately held and public corporations along with and Private Banking clients. Jim also spent nearly five years as a Management Consultant with Ernst & Young helping Financial Services clients with strategy, business process reengineering and technology consultation.
Jim’s tenure with BMO began in 2003. Jim served in a variety of leadership roles in Commercial & Business Banking including Market Manager Regional President and Managing Director of Risk. Jim led BMO Wealth Management’s Banking Practice for over 7 years.
Jim holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from Illinois State University with a Double Major in Economics and Finance. Jim has also earned an MBA with a Concentration in Finance from DePaul University.
Jim is active in a number of Not For Profit organizations and other volunteer activities such as, the Women in Need Growing Stronger (WINGs) organization in Chicago, IL, and currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Chicago History Museum. Jim was also recently named A Distinguished Alumni by Illinois State University Department of Economics.
Patrick L. Cristino is Head of Small Business at Citizens, where he leads a team that partners closely with the Retail organization to drive business banking growth. His work is focused on client acquisition, onboarding, deepening relationships, increasing primary banking engagement, and reducing client attrition.
Since joining Citizens in 2003 as a Branch Manager, Patrick has built a broad and impactful career across the organization. He has held several senior leadership roles, including Regional Manager, District Manager, and Retail Director for New England, where he oversaw 180 branches and more than 1,100 colleagues. In his role as National Sales Director for Retail, Patrick led a team of 13 sales managers across the footprint and played a key role in shaping the strategy and execution of retail banking.
Patrick brings deep expertise in strategic planning, sales leadership, and digital transformation, with a strong track record of driving performance and building high-performing teams.
A graduate of the Consumer Banking Association’s Executive Banking School in 2018, Patrick now serves as a faculty member, where he shares his leadership experience and industry insights with the next generation of banking professionals.
As the Head of Small Business Banking, I’m focused on strengthening the financial backbone of small businesses by building products, services, and teams that help entrepreneurs thrive. I lead with a blend of strategic discipline and customer obsession—working every day to simplify banking, deepen relationships, and deliver real value to business owners. Throughout my career, I’ve been energized by assembling high-performing teams, scaling new business lines, and partnering across the organization to turn good ideas into measurable outcomes. I believe in clarity, accountability, and coaching people to do the best work of their careers. At my core, I’m driven by the mission of helping entrepreneurs succeed. When small businesses win, communities grow—and I’m proud to contribute to that impact every day.
Cristin Reid has served as Chairman and CEO of Capitol National Bank since 2019, where she leads the bank’s long-term strategy, growth initiatives, and community engagement efforts. Under her leadership, the bank has strengthened its market position, expanded its impact within the community, and developed forward-looking plans that include recruiting emerging leaders to the board and creating internal pathways for employee growth and advancement.
In addition to her role at Capitol National Bank, Ms. Reid serves as Managing Director of Access BIDCO, a regulated financial institution specializing in turnaround and management consulting for small businesses. She also brings prior executive experience from a public bank holding company, where she held key leadership roles including General Counsel, Chief Administrative Officer, and President.
Ms. Reid is the founder and CEO of Capitol Foundation, an organization dedicated to providing emergency funding to local small businesses and individuals. She remains actively involved in industry and community leadership through her service on the boards of the Michigan Bankers Association, Lansing Economic Area Partnership, and multiple startup and nonprofit organizations, including a boat-building school.
Her leadership has earned national and statewide recognition. Ms. Reid has been named to American Banker’s “Most Powerful Women in Banking – Women to Watch” list in 2006, 2024, and 2025. She received the “Impact and Influence” award at the Lansing 2024 Entrepreneur of the Year event and was recognized as a Notable Leader in Finance by Crain’s Detroit Business in 2025. Under her direction, Capitol National Bank has been recognized by S&P Global as a Top 100 Community Bank for three consecutive years, SBA lender of the year by MCDC, Michigan Export Lender of the Year by the SBA and as a Top Lender by Independent Banker.
Ms. Reid holds a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Kalamazoo College, a Juris Doctor from the University of Toledo College of Law, and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Michigan.
Blake Weathers is Senior Vice President of Commercial Lending at America First Credit Union, where he leads the strategic direction of business lending across commercial real estate, SBA, and small business platforms.
Blake is focused on advancing scalable, disciplined growth by integrating strong credit risk management with forward-looking lending strategies. He has been instrumental in modernizing underwriting practices, strengthening portfolio performance, and guiding expansion initiatives, including complex acquisition integrations and multi-state market growth across the Western United States.
Known for his balanced approach to growth and risk, Blake specializes in aligning lending strategy with long-term institutional resilience while building high-performing teams. His work centers on helping organizations adapt to evolving market conditions, regulatory expectations, and competitive pressures in today’s dynamic banking environment.
Chris Nichols is a finance leader with 30+ years of banking experience specializing in predictive analytics, marketing, pricing, technology and innovation, risk management and creating superior bank performance.
Chris is President of Institutional Banking for SouthState Bank, a $67 billion, publicly traded regional bank based in Florida. In addition to capital market activities, Chris supports artificial intelligence, digital assets, loan pricing, asset-liability management, payments, open banking, innovation and fintech investing for the Bank. Prior to his role at SouthState, Chris was Chief Strategy Officer and supported digital banking and channel transformation for CenterState, a $15B publicly traded bank.
He is an active bank investor, small business owner, frequent speaker, and author on a multitude of banking topics including his book, “The Successful Lender’s Field Guide.” Chris writes and produces the Banker-to-Banker blog and a frequent host of The Community Bank Podcast.
Mr. Nichols has held executive and operating positions at several banks, including Bank of America and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi. Chris was a co-founder of FinancialOxygen, a banking technology company; and was a forensic accountant at PriceWaterhouseCoopers. He holds a degree in economics from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Chris is an active participant in the community as a sworn law enforcement officer, emergency medical technician, flight rescue officer and is certified in both search and disaster incident management.
Heather Kesner is the Head of Small Business Banking and National Sales for U.S. Bank. She has over 25 years of experience in the financial services and banking industry. She leads U.S. Bank’s small business team including 650 small-banking managers and specialists who operate within the 26-state branch footprint, as well the U.S. Bank National Sales Team that focuses on customer outreach to clients in states without a branch presence.
Heather’s career at U.S. Bank began in April 2019 as the Consumer and Business Banking Market Leader in San Francisco, and she most recently served as East Region Small Business and Branch Banking Executive where she oversaw over 450 branches and small business in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, and North Carolina.
Prior to joining U.S. Bank, Heather spent 16 years with J.P Morgan Chase, advancing her career through several roles, most notably as a Consumer Market Manager, and Managing Director of Customer Experience for Consumer Banking and Chase Wealth Management. Following her 16 years at J.P Morgan Chase, she was the Managing Director of the Retail Network and Sales and Service Strategy at Santander Bank. She led the sales and service transformation of the bank’s 640 branches across the United States.
Heather has been honored with many awards during her banking career, including being part of the Most Powerful Women in banking team award for U.S. Bank in 2025, named one of the Women We Admire for 2025 for North Carolina and a Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business by the San Francisco Business Times in 2020. She is a board member for the United Way of Greater Charlotte and UStrive. She is an active volunteer and has been a board member for JVS- San Francisco, Junior Achievement, and the American Cancer Society and has volunteered with Carry the Load, Habitat for Humanity, March of Dimes, and has been a troop leader for Girl Scouts of America.
Heather earned her B.S. in Business Management from Western Governors University. She resides in Charlotte with her husband and daughter.
Holly Sraeel is Arizent’s Senior Vice President of Strategy and Content, Live Media, leading content creation and innovation for the events portfolio and introducing new multimedia and invitation-only experiences for senior executives that drive critical conversations and action around corporate strategy, innovation and financial performance. She is part of the company’s operational leadership team and is focused on developing cross-platform programming that creates higher levels of engagement for subscribers, community participants and partners across the company’s brands, including American Banker, The Bond Buyer, National Mortgage News, Accounting Today, Digital Insurance, Financial Planning and Employee Benefits News. Sraeel is an award-winning editorial director, media executive and content strategist with expertise in developing influential content, communities, and events for C-level executives in the banking and financial services, insurance, and technology industries. Prior to joining Arizent, she held several content leadership and strategist roles, including for B2B media consultancy New York Ventures, capital markets management consultancy Opimas, Oxford University-incubated startup Wise Responder, and as cofounder of Genesys Partners Agility First Forum. This new role marks a return to the company for Sraeel. In her previous 12-year run, she was a member of the executive team and was pivotal in driving new cross-platform editorial, events and business innovation as SVP of Brand Management; Group Editorial Director of Banking and Technology magazines; and Founder, President and Editorial Director of The Most Powerful Women in Banking, the company’s first-ever, community-based media platform, now part of Arizent’s flagship American Banker. Sraeel is an early honors graduate of Marist College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications and a concentration in journalism.