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.

In this month's episode, we are joined by Matt McCombs, President and CEO of Vibrant Credit Union in Moline, Illinois. Matt discusses his early days of cutting the front lawn of his father’s credit union and spending 180 days a year on the road as a consultant before ultimately landing at Vibrant and leading that organization for the last 10+ years.

Matt also shares his experiences from seven mergers in the span of 20 months, perspectives on the commoditization and fragmentation occurring in the financial services industry today, and what the “balance sheet of the future” looks like.

Tune in to hear Matt discuss why the only way to drastically change the business model of an institution is to “run towards the storm” and be the force of change in an industry “running out of runway.”  

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

In episode 9, the guys are joined by DCG Quantitative Consultant Chase Ogden. The trio investigates a panoply of subjects in the MRM space, including the importance of building out a data strategy to promote better decision-making, thoughts from the CECL frontlines, and why there is always room for bankers to better utilize quantitative results ("with humility”).

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

In episode 8, Vin and Zach are joined by the one and only DCG Managing Director Frank Farone. The trio discusses five key themes all bankers should be thinking about if the Fed does begin cutting rates soon, hitting all aspects of the balance sheet, and more!

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

In the 7th episode of season 3, Vin and Zach are joined by the dynamic Jesse Schwamb of Members 1st FCU in Pennsylvania, a top 50 CU by asset size in the United States. The three embark on an energetic discussion of how Jesse and his team are improving the ancient business of financial intermediation, diving into topics including: his passion for using data and technology to personalize the money experience, jumping from first- to second-level thinking, the ubiquity of fintech, and much more.

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

Chris Low, Chief Economist at FHN Financial, joins the guys for a live appearance from DCG’s 40th Annual Balance Sheet Management Conference in Boston.  Throughout a sweeping economic discussion, Chris digs into the mindset of the Federal Reserve and what to expect from their upcoming meetings, inflation trends and why “time” could be the answer, confusion within the unemployment data, resilient GDP, and the outlook for lending in the banking industry.

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

In Season 3 Episode 5, the guys are joined by Colliers Director of Research Aaron Jodka and DCG colleague Justin Bakst. The four dig into multiple topics in the commercial real estate landscape, including: why "commercial lending" can't be painted with a broad brush, differentiation between community and larger bank exposures,  investor outlook on “work from home” policies, contagion fears, and why loans written today could have some tremendous upside.  

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

In this episode, the guys are joined by Howard Bluver, Director at Studio Bank (TN) and Israel Discount Bank (NY). The depth and breadth of Howard’s professional experience serve as the foundation for a wide-ranging and engaging discussion. Howard discusses his “entry” into banking after obtaining a law degree and going to work with the Securities and Exchange Commission. From there, he shares the critical lessons he learned while working for the Office of Thrift Supervision during the Savings and Loan Crisis. He also discusses the value of being mentored during his time at GreenPoint Bank and the lessons that ultimately helped him turn around Suffolk County National Bank years later. Lastly, Howard shares some of his thoughts on the current state of New York City’s highly publicized multifamily real estate market and his outlook for institutions like New York Community Bank.

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