In our eighth episode of the season, Clay Adams, President & CEO of Mascoma Bank (NH), joins Vin, Zach, and Joe Kennerson. The guys dig into Clay’s background in the private sector and on the Mascoma Board before emerging as the bank’s CEO, Peter Drucker and Daniel Pink, the role of AI and stablecoins in banking’s future, and how Mascoma Bank created its own SaaS platform (“Stratum”) designed to modernize the technological environment of financial institutions.

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

In this episode, Hal Horvat, President & CEO of Centreville Bank ($3B mutual savings bank in Rhode Island), joins Vin, Zach and DCG colleague Justin Bakst. The foursome delves into why Hal never intended to have a career in banking, relationship-focused loan and deposit growth, making a nearly 200-year-old bank an "employer of choice," and how Centerville successfully partnered with professional soccer team Rhode Island Football Club.

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

Chris Low, Chief Economist at FHN Financial, rejoins the guys for a live appearance from DCG’s 41st Annual Balance Sheet & Model Risk Management Conference in Boston. In this comprehensive conversation, Chris expounds on the impact of tariffs and the nation’s debt on long-term interest rates, the Sahm Rule and unemployment expectations, housing market trends along with bank lending and credit implications, and answers the question of whether we have seen Jerome Powell’s last rate cut.

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

In this episode, the guys are joined by JP Lapointe, Chief Financial Officer of Needham Bank ($5B institution in the Boston metropolitan area), and DCG colleague Jeff Reynolds. The four dig into JP’s career progression from Wolf and Company to Northeast Bank to his current role at Needham. JP also expands on the nuances of working for a "specialty asset" business, why banking cannabis is not for the "faint of heart," Needham’s recent IPO and the "perfect time to go public," and why their customers have direct access to the CEO's personal cell phone.

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

In this special episode, Darling Consulting Group President & CEO Matt Pieniazek joins for a C-suite-focused “fireside chat” to share his insights and perspectives on managing earnings and balance sheet risks in this highly volatile and uncertain environment. Matt reflects on key realities, challenges, and opportunities, and also addresses some very relevant current strategies for managing an institution’s risks in general – and lending and deposit customers in particular.

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

In this episode, the guys are joined by Nathan Stovall, the Director of Financial Institutions Research for S&P Global. Nathan shares his observations on deposit trends, how banks are the "thermometers" of local economies, his outlook for M&A activity, and why it is so important for banks to "not sit still" in an ever-changing banking landscape. 

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

DCG Managing Director Joe Kennerson returns to talk about the top 5 areas risk managers should be discussing as 2025 progresses. Joe, Zach, and Vinny dig deep into deposit and lending trends, potential margin restoration, hedging, and bond portfolios making a comeback.

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

In the first episode of Season 4, Dr. Lacy Hunt, Chief Economist and Executive Vice President of Hoisington Investment Management Company, rejoins the show for a timely and engaging discussion on what to expect from markets in 2025. Lacy delves into the reasons he would "take the under" on inflation, GDP, and unemployment vs Blue Chip economic consensus forecasts, why the US is "the strongest ship in the sea," how tariffs are not inflationary, and where he thinks interest rates will move this year. 

Disclaimer: Dr. Hunt's views expressed on the show are for educational purposes only and are not solicitation or marketing for Hoisington Investment Management Company.

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

In the final episode of Season 3, Vin and Zach are joined by colleague Jeff Reynolds for a terrific discussion with Dale Oberkfell, former President & CFO of Midwest BankCentre in Missouri. Dale shares lessons from a 40-year career, ranging from his early days as a CPA to his time as Chairman of the FHLB of Des Moines and his experiences from 10 years as a CFO driving digital transformation at a multi-billion dollar bank. Dale discusses the importance of establishing a separate brand from the legacy bank, how to manipulate the digital funnel, and the importance of removing roadblocks from the customer experience.

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

In this month’s episode, Peter Boockvar, Chief Investment Officer of Bleakley Financial Group, visits with Vin, Zach, and DCG’s Justin Bakst to discuss potential economic implications from the recent US Presidential election.  The four dive into the key policy areas Peter thinks will be most impactful over the next few years, expectations for our “two-lane highway” economic system, why the Fed should be taking the recent bond market activity seriously, and prospects for deregulation as it pertains to the banking industry. 

For more insights and ideas, visit DCG at DarlingConsulting.com or follow us on LinkedIn.