Ryan Hildebrand

Orchestrated the creation and execution of a 3-year strategic plan, presented to the board and shared during quarterly earnings calls for a publicly traded company.

Directed a cross-functional team of 15+ across IT, Marketing, Design, Lending, and Operations, increasing company-wide strategy awareness from 15% to 75%.

Launched the Bankwell Direct digital banking platform, acquiring over $150MM in new retail consumer deposits within 9 months at a $60 Customer Acquisition Cost, and piloting a Treasury Hub concept to enhance commercial banking cash flow, achieving a $2MM+/day deposit run rate.

Developed and launched a $500,000 SBA 7a program with embedded finance partners and a $150,000 "Score and Go" model for small SBA 7a, achieving a $5MM/month run rate.

Pioneered first direct bank investment in Cascading.Ai, yielding a 5x return, and served as an advisor/investor in Castle Creek Launchpad Fintech Fund, establishing thought leadership in Small Business Banking and AI.

Grew revenue from $2.5M (2021) to $10M (2023), achieving a net income margin trending to 40% and executing a 3-year strategic plan with four growth verticals.

Expanded FinTech deposits by $200M, accumulating over $600M+ through partnerships with Acorns, Qapital, M1 Finance, Square, and Moov.

Launched a new Payments business vertical for Prepaid within 3 months of plan presentation, generating $1M in revenue.

Executed a national C&I lending business plan in collaboration with FinTech partners and green lending channels, funding $12M and developing a pipeline of over $120M.

Directed a cross-bank team of 45+ professionals across business development, product, risk, compliance, and IT, preparing for the launch of a new Card/Merchant Acquiring business unit.

Developed and executed a 3-year strategic plan, integrating digital and community initiatives, including new digital account opening software (Terrafina/NCR) and online banking (Banno/Jack Henry).

Implemented new lending software (Spark, Blend) to support SBA, small dollar SMB, mortgage, and consumer loans.

Established a digital SBA and USDA business line with a national go-to-market plan for the supply chain vertical.

Acquired over 700 leads and 50+ opportunities within 3 months, generating $350M+ in loan volume with an average cost of $30 per lead.

Launched the Digital Direct Business Bank, targeting 300K businesses served by the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) SBA program.

Introduced an SBA 7(a) Digital Direct offering with a broker portal, focusing on sub-$350K products within the first three months.

Managed relationship management for FinTech Banking and advised business development teams, ensuring strategic alignment and market penetration.

Launched 5 new Banking-as-a-Service products, including Debit (Upgrade), Credit (Divvy Pay), Savings (Even), Acquiring (Checkout.com), and Real-Time-Payments (Dwolla).

Increased same-day ACH volume by 500%, positioning the bank as the 5th largest with key partners like Coinbase, Stripe, and Plaid.

Reduced client launch time from 9 months to 60 days or less, onboarding 31 new clients during tenure.

Managed a 20-member team across Business Development, Product, Compliance, and Customer Experience, presenting quarterly business overviews to the Board of Directors.

Raised $8.1M in funding from top-tier Silicon Valley VCs, including YCombinator, General Catalyst, and SV Angel.

Negotiated all bank partnerships, built the core team, designed products, and managed operations, growing the customer base to thousands of small businesses across all 50 states.

Sold over $2M in software to USAA, TD Bank, and Umpqua Bank, demonstrating strong product-market fit.

Successfully sold the business to Cross River Bank, doubling returns for key investors and ensuring a profitable exit.

Led the M&A process that resulted in the sale of Simple to BBVA Bank for $117M, achieving a 52x revenue multiple.

Managed finance, accounting, HR, and strategy functions, reporting directly to the CEO, and successfully raised $3.5M in venture debt from Silicon Valley Bank.

Implemented cost-saving initiatives that reduced healthcare costs by 50% and legal costs by 40%.

Developed a robust FP&A function, including annual planning, fundraising needs, and rolling forecasts, presenting all financial matters to the Boards of Directors of top-tier VCs.

Managed budgeting, risk management, and board activities, reporting directly to the CEO.

Oversaw a team of 5 professionals across accounting, HR, and administration.

Successfully recruited top talent, increasing the organization's headcount from 30 to 60 employees.

Scaled revenue from $0 to $28M, with customers ranging from BBVA to ING, and served as a Board Member appointed as a VC Fund representative.

Oversaw a global team of 16 professionals across finance, accounting, IT, legal, HR, and administration.

Developed robust relationships with investment bankers, private equity, and venture capital partners, playing a key role in funding processes and multiple M&A activities.

Executed a cost-cutting plan that decreased the burn rate by 40% within two months of taking responsibility for the Finance function, and managed cash/treasury across four international banking institutions.

Coordinated the maintenance of the general ledger and produced financial statements, reports, and statistics for the Holding Company, Bank, and Brokerage Subsidiary.

Assisted in the acquisition and conversion of North Bay Bancorp, ensuring seamless integration of financial systems.

Led a staff of six members, establishing a formal development program that enhanced team capabilities and performance.

Led and supervised staff in audit, review, and compilation of financial statements, ensuring compliance with industry standards.

Managed year-end division audits and Sarbanes-Oxley Procedures for global public corporations.

Assisted clients in complying with SEC reporting and filing requirements for M&A (S-4 and 8-K filings) and yearly/quarterly reporting (10-K and 10-Q filings).

Managed procedures for division operations, including consolidations, foreign currency, and complex technical matters for leading public companies such as Nike and Precision Castparts.