2024 MBA/VBA Joint Convention
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We are thrilled to welcome you to The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island for our event! This year’s Convention will combine a great lineup of speakers on timely topics and networking with bankers and industry providers. We are excited to come together, enjoy each other’s company and educate ourselves on industry topics together.

Please bookmark this page for easy access during the event!

Thank  you to our portal sponsor, DDI Technology, an IAA Company

DDI Technology logo

DDI Technology provides automotive title management services to lenders across the country and can partner with banks to allow for easier processing and management of the titles. DDI operates and has solutions in all 50 states.

Contact:

Anthony Lipinski
ELT Inside Sales Representative
DDI Technology an IAA Company 
1 Wellness Blvd, Suite 201  | Irmo, SC  29063
O 803.490.3244 | C 803.587.5680 | Anthony.Lipinski@DDITechnology.com
www.dditechnology.com

Convention Dates, About the Hotel & Attire

Convention dates

June 2-5, 2024

About the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island

The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island
4750 Amelia Island Parkway
Amelia Island, Florida 32034

A barrier island sanctuary of nature nestled along 13 miles of immaculate shorelines in North Florida, The Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island stands as an exquisite testament to refined luxury. This Amelia Island resort beckons with an allure of southern charm, where vistas seamlessly embody the sublime essence of the island. 

  • Learn more about the dining options here.
    • Salt, a AAA 5-Diamond Restaurant will be open on Monday night, June 3, for Convention attendees. Reservations are recommended. 
  • Learn more about the spa services here - Convention attendees receive 10% off spa services!
  • Learn more about the destination and activities here.

You can learn more about Amelia Island here.​​

Parking Information

Overnight valet parking is available for $25 per day for hotel guests.

For commuters, daily parking is available for $15 per day.

Attire

Attire for all Convention events is resort casual. Resort casual attire includes polo shirts, shorts, sandals, sundresses, etc. Dress requirements may vary with the specific restaurant or activity. 

Agenda & Attendee Roster

Roster of Attendees

2024 MBA/VBA Joint Convention Roster

Agenda

See the “Speaker Information & Session Materials” dropdown below for full General Session descriptions.

View the Exhibit Hall Layout Here!

Sunday,
June 2
Event Location
2:30–5:30 PM

Registration & Refreshments

Exhibit Hall Open 2:30-5:30PM

Salon Foyers
5:30–7:00 PM Welcome Reception
Sponsored by Investors Title Insurance Co.

Ocean Front Lawn

Weather Backup: Talbot Ballroom & Talbot Foyers/Colonnade
Monday,
June 3
Event Location

7:00 AM

Registration Desk Open

Exhibit Hall Open 7:00 AM-12:15 PM

Salon Foyers
7:00-8:00 AM Breakfast
Sponsored by Stifel
Salon Foyers
7:30-8:15 AM

Breakfast Session 
Economic Outlook
Dr. Lindsey Piegza
Chief Economist, Stifel
Session Sponsored by Stifel

Salon Ballroom
8:15-8:30 AM Break
Sponsored by Baker Donelson
Salon Foyers
8:30–11:45 AM  General Session & Breakout Sessions General Session in Salon Ballroom
Breakout Sessions in Plaza I & II
 

8:30-8:45 AM
Convention Opening Ceremony & Welcome

  • Ronda McDowell
    EVP & COO, Sandy Spring Bank
    2023-2024 MBA Chair
  • Litz Van Dyke
    CEO, Carter Bank
    2023-2024 VBA Chair

 

8:45-9:30 AM 
Industry Perspectives Panel

  • Julie Thurlow
    President & CEO, Reading Cooperative Bank and 2023-2024 ABA Chair
  • Reid Tingle
    President & CEO, Bank of Ocean City and ICBA Federal Delegate – Maryland
  • Moderated by Ramon Looby
    President & CEO, Maryland Bankers Association

 

9:30-9:50 AM

Break
Sponsored by Baker Donelson

 

9:50-10:40 AM
Concurrent Breakouts in Plaza 1 & II

  • Plaza I:
    Your Bank Needs a Payments Strategy
    Marisa Reynolds
    SVP, Fintech & Vendor Relations, Genesys Technology Group
  • Plaza II:
    Bank M&A: Market Update, Key Trends, and Best Practices
    Christopher Olsen
    Managing Partner, Olsen Palmer LLC

 

10:40-11:00 AM
Break
Sponsored by Baker Donelson

 

11:00-11:45 AM
A Conversation with Brian Moynihan, Moderated by Bruce Whitehurst, VBA President & CEO
Brian Moynihan
Chair of the Board & CEO, Bank of America

General Session in the Salon Ballroom

Breakout Sessions in Plaza I & II

9:30-10:30 AM

Spouse/Guest Program: Turtle Tour & Nature Walk
Sponsored by S&P Global Market Intelligence; Pre-registration required

Meet Guides in the Hotel Lobby
11:45 AM-12:15 PM Registration Open Salon Foyers
12:15 PM Exhibit Hall Closes Salon Foyers
1:00 PM Golf Tournament: Shotgun Start
Tournament sponsored by Vericast;
Pre-registration required
The Golf Club of Amelia Island

9:00-10:30 PM

Dessert Reception
Sponsored by Marsh McLellan Agency, SageView, VBA Benefits Corp. and Voya​
Ocean Front Lawn
Weather Backup: Talbot Ballroom & Talbot Foyers/Colonnade​
Tuesday,
June 4
Event Location
7:15 AM

Registration Desk Opens

Exhibit Hall Open 7:15 AM- 12:30 PM

Salon Foyers
7:30-8:30 AM

Breakfast
Sponsored by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

 

8:00-8:45 AM

Association Business Meetings

MBA in Plaza I & II
VBA in Salon Ballroom

9:00 AM-Noon General Session & Breakout Sessions

General Session in the Salon Ballroom

Breakout Sessions in Plaza I & II

 

9:00-9:05 AM
Welcome & Announcements

  • Janet Currie
    President, Greater Maryland, Bank of America
    2024-2025 MBA Chair
  • Victor Branch
    President, Richmond Market, Bank of America
    2024-2025 VBA Chair

 

9:05-9:55 AM
The Geopolitical and Regulatory Outlook 2024 – 2025: How Elections and Markets are Transforming Everything
Frank Kelly
Founder & Managing Partner, Fulcrum Macro

 

9:55-10:10 AM
Break

 

10:10-11:00 AM
Concurrent Breakouts in Plaza 1 & II

  • Plaza I:
    Banking on a Sustainable Future-Opportunities for Community Banks to Finance Renewable Energy Projects
    Josh Miller
    CEO, The KeyState Companies
    Seth Winter
    Partner, Troutman Pepper
  • Plaza II:
    Clarity Amidst the Chaos
    Jason Clayton
    Director, Performance Trust Capital Partners

 

11:00-11:10AM
Break

 

11:10AM-12:00PM
Building Indivisible Teams – How Leaders Can Help Teams Reach Their Full Potential
Denise Hamilton
Inclusion Strategist and Author of Indivisible, WatchHerWork

Sponsored by MBA Solutions

General Session in the Salon Ballroom

Breakout Sessions in Plaza I & II

12:00-12:30 PM Registration Desk Open Salon Foyer
12:30 PM Exhibit Hall Closes Salon Foyer
2:00-4:00 PM Fun in the Sun Social
Sponsored by R&T Deposit Solutions

Courtyard

Weather Back-Up: Talbot Foyer/Colonnade​

6:30–10:15 PM

Closing Reception, Dinner & Entertainment
Reception Sponsored by Bankers Insurance;
Dinner & Entertainment Sponsored by FHLBank Atlanta

Reception on the Ocean Front Lawn; Dinner and Entertainment in the Salon Ballroom

Weather backup for the reception is Talbot Foyer, Colonnade
Wednesday, 
June 5
Departure

Speaker Information & Session Materials

About Our Keynote Speakers

View the bios for all of our keynote speakers here!

Session Information

Monday, June 3  

Breakfast Session: Economic Outlook

Dr. Lindsey Piegza
Chief Economist, Stifel

Chief Economist Dr. Lindsey Piegza will look at the current state of the economy and what it means going forward for overall growth, interest rates and monetary policy. She will cover macroeconomic trends in consumer spending and investment, in addition to new monetary and fiscal policy initiatives and the potential economic effects of these changes. She will also examine the changing global and political environment, and how it will affect the economy. Participants will leave this session able to advise management teams on the possible effect of economic issues on their organizations.

You can view Lindsey's slides here.

Industry Perspectives Panel

  • Julie Thurlow, President & CEO, Reading Cooperative Bank and 2023-2024 ABA Chair
  • Reid Tingle, President & CEO, Bank of Ocean City and ICBA Federal Delegate – Maryland
  • Moderated by Ramon Looby, President & CEO, Maryland Bankers Association

The Industry Perspectives Panel will feature insights from Julie Thurlow and Reid Tingle, including discussions on topics like:

  • Their career journeys 
  • ABA’s and ICBA’s top priorities in this election year
  • Challenges and opportunities for banks
  • Strategies for innovation
  • Financial inclusion initiatives
  • …and More!

 

Your Bank Needs a Payments Strategy
Marisa Reynolds
SVP, Fintech & Vendor Relations, Genesys Technology Group

In today’s digital age, financial institutions cannot afford to overlook the significance of developing a comprehensive payment strategy to stay competitive and meet customer expectations. This session serves as a wake-up call for financial institutions to assess their current payment landscape, recognize the importance of a well-defined payment strategy, and adapt to the evolving customer expectations and technological advancements in the industry.

You can view Marisa's slides here.

Bank M&A: Market Update, Key Trends, and Best Practices

Christopher Olsen
Managing Partner, Olsen Palmer LLC

The banking industry appears to be on the verge of a sizeable consolidation wave. M&A activity was sluggish of late due to a host of factors, including the FOMC’s tightening efforts and the resulting unrealized bond losses that emerged. However, the languid level of activity of late is increasingly looking like less of an extinguishment of M&A and more of a deferral of dealmaking into future periods as the tectonic forces driving consolidation in recent decades still hold and, in fact, have seemingly become more stout. Indeed, behind the scenes, merger discussions have been gathering momentum among both prospective sellers and would-be buyers alike. This session will provide an engaging update on the bank M&A landscape including transaction activity, valuations, deal drivers, key trends, and best practices. The discussion should be useful to all bank executives and directors for navigating a potential consolidation wave, whether from the perspective of potential sellers, would-be acquirers, prospective merger counterparties, and even those intending to remain fully independent.

You can view Christopher's slides here.

A Conversation with Brian Moynihan, Moderated by Bruce Whitehurst, VBA President & CEO

Brian Moynihan, Chair of the Board & CEO, Bank of America

During this conversation, Brian and Bruce will discuss top industry trends, leadership, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Tuesday, June 4  

The Geopolitical and Regulatory Outlook 2024 – 2025: How Elections and Markets are Transforming Everything
Frank Kelly

Founder & Managing Partner, Fulcrum Macro

Frank Kelly will give a macro overview of how geopolitics, geoeconomics, and elections are going to impact the markets in general and in the banking sector in particular.  It is not just the U.S. with a big election year – there are more than 70 elections taking place around the world with more than half the population having the privilege to vote. How will this impact you and your community? What does it mean for the global, national, and local economies?  What are the risks and opportunities?  All this and more in this fun and exciting session.

You can view Frank's slides here.

Banking on a Sustainable Future-Opportunities for Community Banks to Finance Renewable Energy Projects
Josh Miller, CEO, The KeyState Companies
Seth Winter, Partner, Troutman Pepper

 

While financing renewable energy has long been seen as mainly the domain of larger banks and corporations, solar tax equity investments can offer community banks an attractive inroad into renewable energy finance. The investment offers a compelling return profile and GAAP earnings impact, enhances a bank’s current corporate sustainability efforts and, in some cases, can qualify for CRA. Josh and Seth will provide a detailed overview of solar tax equity and the regulatory framework that they need to consider and follow when making a solar tax equity investment and what is required for CRA credit.  Since the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022, the solar tax equity marketplace has shifted significantly.  Josh and Seth will discuss the opportunities and challenges that community banks face.

View Josh & Seth's slides here.

Clarity Amidst the Chaos

Jason Clayton

Director, Performance Trust Capital Partners

Entering 2023, industry-wide tools for assessing interest rate risk had created a false sense of security that would manifest itself in substantial – possibly fatal – margin compression in the year ahead.  Hidden in plain sight, most would not recognize the danger until the bank failures that occurred later in the first quarter, and even then many failed to acknowledge it on their own balance sheets. Capital allocation decisions in banking have long suffered from a narrow view of future shareholder value in a world where volatility and uncertainty are constant truths. This session introduces a dynamic framework for evaluating shareholder returns across multiple future scenarios to provide for greater sustainability of earnings over time.  It is more difficult than ever to develop and execute on strategy, effective CEOs must operate within a process that instills confidence and clarity.  

Jason’s slides are available upon request. Please email Jason to receive a copy of his slides. 

Building Indivisible Teams – How Leaders Can Help Teams Reach Their Full Potential

Denise Hamilton

Inclusion Strategist and Author of Indivisible,  WatchHerWork

The 2020s have brought significant challenges, but we are more than capable of managing those challenges. In this inspiring session, Denise helps individuals learn the causes of their conflict and the tools necessary to successfully navigate differences in the workplace.

Activities & Entertainment

Attire for all Convention events is resort casual. Resort casual attire includes polo shirts, shorts, sandals, sundresses, etc. Dress requirements may vary with the specific restaurant or activity. 

Welcome reception

Sunday, June 2 from 5:30-7:00 PM
Ocean Front Lawn
Weather Backup: Talbot Ballroom & Talbot Foyers/Colonnade​

Sponsored by Investors Title Insurance Co.

Our Welcome Reception will feature steel drum musical entertainment.

 

Spouse/Guest Program: Turtle Tour & Nature Walk

Monday, June 3 from 9:30-10:30 PM
Meet the Guides in the Hotel Lobby

Sponsored by S&P Global Market Intelligence
Pre-registration Required

2024 Guest Program Roster

Attendees should wear light clothing and comfortable athletic shoes - sandals and slides are not recommended. Please bring sunglasses and a hat as well. Bottled water will be provided.

This nature walk will be focused on the local gopher tortoises, which can be spotted in a number of areas on the property at The Ritz-Carlton. The tour will offer a history of turtles in the area and related conservation efforts, as well as other information on local flora and fauna. This event will take place on the beach near the dunes in order to gain close access to a gopher tortoise nest without disturbing the dunes! This event is limited to the first 35 registrants; please be sure to bring your own water bottle and wear proper footwear for walking along the beach.

*The Spouse/Guest registration is full. Please contact Gail Queen to be added to the waiting list or with any changes in plans.

Golf Tournament at the Golf Club of Amelia Island

Monday, June 3 with a 1:00 PM Shotgun Start
Tournament sponsored by Vericast
Additional golf sponsors:
Banc Card of America
ChaseCompGroup
Community Bankers’ Bank
D.A. Davidson
Deibold Nixdorf
FHN Financial
Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP
Motleys Asset Disposition Group
Profit Resources Inc. 
Velocity Solutions
   
Pre-registration Required

2024 Golf Tournament Roster
2024 Golf Tournament Pairings
*Pairings may shift based on last-minute cancellations. All efforts were made to fulfill pairing requests, however, not all requests could be met, particularly for service providers. Upon reviewing the tournament pairings, should you decide that you would like to cancel your golf reservation, we are offering an opt-out option to cancel your golf registration at no cost to you. Opt-out submissions must be received no later than May 29.​

The tournament is Captain’s Choice (Scramble) and will include:

  • Longest drive contests
  • Closest to the pin contests
  • Cash prizes for winners
  • Boxed lunches 

A golf confirmation email will be sent to all participants that contains more details about the tournament.

*Pre-registration is required. The deadline to register for the Golf Tournament was May 17. Please contact Gail Queen with any changes in plans. To receive a refund, attendees must have canceled before May 17.

Monday evening Dessert reception

Monday, June 3 from 9:00-10:30 PM
Ocean Front Lawn
Weather Backup: Talbot Ballroom & Talbot Foyers/Colonnade​

Sponsored by Marsh McLellan Agency, SageView, VBA Benefits Corp. and Voya​

Join other Convention attendees after dinner on Monday evening to enjoy networking, beverages and dessert. No registration is required – this event is open to all Convention attendees and guests. The Dessert Reception will feature live musical entertainment.

Fun in the Sun Social

Tuesday, June 4 from 2:00-4:00 PM
Courtyard
Weather Backup: Talbot Foyer/Colonnade​

Sponsored by R&T Deposit Solutions

Join us to socialize with your friends and colleagues. Enjoy an open bar, giveaways from sponsor R&T Deposit Solutions, and casual lawn games like cornhole, giant Jenga and Connect Four.

Stop by after lunch or come by before your swim – feel free to come dressed as you are!  No registration is required – this event is open to all Convention attendees and guests.

Closing Reception & Dinner

Tuesday, June 4 from 6:30-10:15 PM
Reception on the Ocean Front Lawn
Dinner in the Salon Ballroom
Weather Backup for the Reception: Talbot Foyer, Colonnade​

Reception Sponsored by Bankers Insurance
Dinner and Entertainment Sponsored by FHLBank Atlanta

All Convention attendees are invited to join us for a closing reception and dinner on Tuesday evening. Musical entertainment will be provided by the Band of Oz

Daily Newsletters

Thank you to our daily newsletter sponsor, PCBB!

Wi-Fi Information

Sponsored by Virginia Housing

While onsite at The Ritz-Carlton, please use the following network/password during the general sessions. 

Network: VirginiaHousing
Password: VirginiaHousing

Thank You to Our Sponsors!

Thank you to our event sponsors! Without their support, we could not stage a Convention of this scale. Please show your appreciation to them during the Convention.

Contribute to the 2024 VBA Education Foundation Annual Fund Campaign – Help Us Reach Our $60,000 Goal!

Please complete this form to help the VBA Education Foundation reach the 2024 goal of $60,000 for the Annual Fund Campaign by making a contribution to the Walter Ayers Fund for Financial Education. Contributions to this year’s campaign can be made via check or credit card.

CPE Information

For CPE credit, please email Ann DeVilbiss if you’re licensed in Maryland and Chandler Owdom if you’re licensed in Virginia.

Onsite Staff Contacts

Chandler Owdom
VBA SVP, Communications & Strategy
(804) 839-8420

Ann DeVilbiss
MBA Head of Programs & Membership Experience
(410) 758-1462

Amy Binns
VBA VP, Industry Partnerships
(804) 502-9205

Monica McDearmon
VBA VP, Communications & Financial Education
(804) 363-9347

Liz Frediani
MBA Chief of Staff & VP of Operations
(443) 926-3486

Ramon Looby
MBA President & CEO
(443) 699-6785

Bruce Whitehurst
VBA President & CEO
(804) 241-3223