Fintech Finastra has appointed Mike Stawchansky senior vice president, chief technology innovation officer, according to a release from the on March 6. 

Stawchansky was senior vice president of platform engineering at data intelligence company Collibra and vice president of system engineering at Salesforce, according to his LinkedIn profile.

“My previous roles gave me a robust understanding of modern tech stacks, cloud transformations and the criticality of data intelligence in driving innovation,” Stawchansky told Bank Automation News, adding that his experience will inform his work on “customer technology and generative AI initiatives.” 

“Finastra already has a highly advanced generative AI team and has been ahead of the curve when it comes to educating its workforce on how to use this technology,” he said. 

Stawchansky aims to develop consumer-facing gen AI capabilities at Finastra since AI is one of the most disruptive technologies to surface in the past 15 years, he said. 

“We are actively investing in generative AI to further unlock the potential of our approximately 8,000 people, accelerate and augment product development,” Stawchansky said. “We are also continuing to investigate solutions both internally and externally that leverage generative AI, to make our operations and our products the smoothest and best they can be.” 

Finastra clients include VyStar Credit Union, Jefferson Bank and Berkshire Bank, according to the company’s website. 

Grasshopper names Piasio SVP of sponsor banking 

Digital bank Grasshopper appointed Gabrielle Piasio senior vice president of sponsor banking, according to a March 13 release. 

Piasio will lead mergers and acquisitions strategy and deepen Grasshopper’s ties with the private equity market, the release stated.

Piasio is a board member of ACG Boston, a middle market M&A deal-making service provider, according to her LinkedIn profile.  

In the short term, Piasio plans to improve Grasshopper’s brand value, she told BAN, adding that her long-term goal “is for Grasshopper to be a preeminent player in the lower middle-market sponsor finance community.” 

Piasio said she and Grasshopper are focused on three areas this year: 

• Developing strong relationships with sponsors, acquiring profitable companies in the lower middle-market; 
• Portfolio diversification; and 
• High-quality loan production. 

“Earnings growth is rebounding post-pandemic, and valuation gaps are closing in the lower middle-market where Grasshopper is focused,” Piasio said. “Although the higher cost of debt continues to impact debt capacity, well-run companies are attracting the attention of quality sponsors.” 

Barbara Fleming, head of fund and sponsor banking at Grasshopper, said in the release: “Gabrielle’s experience in origination, structuring and execution, along with her extensive network and national reach, will be invaluable as we continue to execute on our growth strategies.”  

Grasshopper is developing tech to improve the check-clearing process to streamline the time between depositing a check and gaining access to the funds. 

PayZen taps former Citi exec Martino as CFO 

Health care fintech PayZen has selected Antonio Martino as chief financial officer, according to the company’s March 26 release. 

Prior to joining PayZen, Martino was director of corporate treasury at Citi and CFO of Silvergate Bank, according to his LinkedIn profile.

In his new role, Martino aims to drive “significant growth in a financially responsible manner, and navigate the investment and capital markets needs as we continue to mature as a company,” he told BAN. 

“We have a significant opportunity to provide cutting-edge technology delivering solutions that are beneficial for both patients and health care providers,” Martino said. “I am looking forward to contributing my vast experience to support the mission as we continue to scale the business and grow our product set and capabilities.” 

PayZen has raised $240 million since its inception in 2019, according to Crunchbase. 

Quantalytix names McCay director of mortgage technology 

Mortgage technology provider Quantalytix has appointed Michael McCay director of mortgage technology, according to the company’s Feb. 28 release. 

McCay was vice president of mortgage technology at FirstBank for over a decade before joining Quantalytix, according to his LinkedIn profile. McCay also serves as the chief executive of MetalBeard Technologies, a tech-providing company for mortgage lenders, according to his LinkedIn profile.

McCay’s experience in the mortgage industry has given him the expertise and experience to thrive at Quantalytix, he told BAN. 

“We plan to leverage cutting-edge technology to streamline processes, enhance efficiency and improve scalability,” McCay said. “That includes implementing automation of the mundane processes, providing clear and actionable analytics, and trusting cloud infrastructure to support immediate growth.” 

Quantalytix has helped manage and originate more than $7 billion of mortgages on its platform since its inception in 2016, according to the company’s website. 

NYCB taps DiNello as new CEO 

New York Community Bank has named Alessandro DiNello as president and chief executive officer, according to a Feb. 29 release. 

DiNello succeeds Thomas Cangemi, who stepped down as president and chief executive officer after 27 years at the bank but will remain on the board of directors, according to the release. 

Prior to NYCB, DiNello was chief executive of Flagstar Bank for 43 years, according to the release. NYCB completed the acquisition of Flagstar Bank in December 2022, when DiNello became chairman of the NYCB board. He was named executive chairman on Feb. 6. 

“It is my mandate as president and CEO, alongside our board, to continue our transformation into a larger, more diversified commercial bank,” DiNello said in the release. “While we’ve faced recent challenges, we are confident in the direction of our bank and our ability to deliver for our customers, employees and shareholders in the long term.” 

In a March 1 release, NYCB announced the appointment of George Buchanan as chief risk officer. The changes came after the bank suffered a stock price meltdown led by a panic among investors due to its exposure to commercial real estate. 

Before joining NYCB, Buchanan was Regions Bank’s CRO for consumer banking and wealth management for 13 years, according to his LinkedIn profile.