Board of Directors.
Distinguished professionals across banking, finance, economics, and law — serving the Group’s mission from across the Americas.
President and CEO of Pacific National Bank with nearly 40 years of banking experience. Former Senior EVP of the Neighborhood Banking Group at BankUnited and past Chair of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce.
Read Full Bio →Serves as board member, President and Chief Executive Officer of Pacific National Bank. A banking veteran with close to 40 years of private sector and banking experience, he was previously Senior Executive Vice President of the Neighborhood Banking Group at BankUnited, and held executive positions at Riverdale Farms, XTec, CTI, American Savings of Florida, F.S.B., Consolidated Bank, N.A., and Southeast Bank, N.A., where he began his career. Former Chair of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce (2008–2009); co-chaired FIU’s Master of Science in Finance Advisory Board. He has served on the boards of UnitedHome Care Services, Miami Capital Development, and Miami Citywide Development, and is Past Chair of Chapman Partnership. An appointee of Governor Rick Scott to the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority as Treasurer and Executive Committee Member, he is a recipient of the Ronald McDonald House Charities “Twelve Good Men” Award, the Chapman Partnership Alvah Chapman Humanitarian Award, and the Leadership Miami Salute to Miami’s Leaders Award in Finance. He was inducted into the Miami Dade College Hall of Fame and serves as Vice Chair of the MDC Foundation Board.
Founding partner at Avila Rodriguez, practicing in corporate and financial services. 35+ years representing clients in bank regulatory, lending, and M&A matters before the Federal Reserve, FDIC, OCC, and Florida regulators.
Read Full Bio →A founding partner at AVILA, practicing in Corporate and Financial Services. Previously a partner in the Miami office of an AmLaw 20 national law firm and practice group leader of its Financial Services Practice Group, he brings over 35 years of experience representing domestic and foreign clients in bank regulatory, lending, mergers and acquisitions, and transactional matters. He regularly appears before the Federal Reserve Bank, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, and other regulatory agencies. He has represented numerous foreign financial institutions and investors establishing and expanding banking operations in the United States, with extensive experience in domestic and international business transactions, including cross-border mergers, acquisitions, and financing, and has served as independent counsel to bank boards on compliance and enforcement matters.
Founding member and Chairman Emeritus of CBSG; Managing Director of Whitecap Consulting. A 60-year banking career leading the Miami agencies of Bank of Tokyo, Banco Exterior, and BCI. NYU and Harvard Business School.
Read Full Bio →A long-time banking industry leader, currently Managing Director of Whitecap Consulting Group LLC in Coral Gables, established in 2010 to provide consulting services to the financial industry. Chairman Emeritus and founding member of the Cuban Banking Study Group, Inc., created in 1992, he retired from the City National Bank board in July 2024 after a 60-year banking career. He began banking at Chase Manhattan Bank in New York in 1964 and served as CEO and General Manager of the Miami agency offices of The Bank of Tokyo Ltd., Banco Exterior de los Andes y España (Spain), and Banco de Crédito e Inversiones (Chile), and was President and CEO of Union Credit Bank. A board member of Ocean Bank (2013–2016), he was appointed Vice Chairman of the Bankers Advisory Board of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors in Washington, D.C., in 1992, and is a former Chairman and current board member of the Florida International Bankers Association. He graduated from New York University and Harvard Graduate School of Business and is President of the Harvard Business School Club of South Florida.
Principal of J.R. Garrigó & Associates with 40+ years in banking. Former EVP at The Bank of Miami and President/CEO of Pan American Bank. Decorated by France as Chevalier, Ordre du Mérite Agricole.
Read Full Bio →From a family with over six decades of banking history in Cuba and the United States, with more than 40 years of banking and financial industry experience. Principal at J.R. Garrigó & Associates, advising companies on financial operations and cash flow, he previously held executive positions as Executive Vice President, Senior Lending Officer, and board member at The Bank of Miami, and as President, CEO, and board member of Pan American Bank of Miami. After NationsBank (now Bank of America) acquired Pan American Bank, he was named Senior Vice President and Corporate Lending Team Leader, and he served as Senior Vice President and Regional Executive at Southeast Bank, Senior Vice President at Citibank, N.A., and Senior Vice President and Senior Lending Officer at Espirito Santo Bank of Florida. He holds a Bachelor in Business Administration from Villanueva University, Havana, and graduated from the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at Rutgers University. A Certified Commercial Lender, he was decorated by the French Republic as Chevalier, Ordre du Mérite Agricole, and has served on numerous civic and cultural boards including Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden and WPBT-2 Public Television.
Vice Chairman of The Related Group; former Chairman of Gibraltar Private Bank & Trust and of Florida East Coast Industries. Past Chairman of FIU and the United Way of Miami-Dade. MAcc, FIU.
Read Full Bio →Currently Vice Chairman of The Related Group. Formerly Chairman of the Board of Gibraltar Private Bank & Trust, his prior roles include Chairman, President and CEO of Florida East Coast Industries and CEO of the South Region for Regions Bank (and predecessor Union Planters Bank) until 2006. He held executive capacities at Bank of America’s predecessor banks since 1986, including Chairman of NationsBank in South Florida and EVP of Barnett Bank, and began his career as a Certified Public Accountant with the Public Health Trust and Ryder Systems. Immediate past Chairman of the Miami-Dade Cultural Affairs Council, he serves on the Orange Bowl Committee and the boards of Heico Corporation and Incomex, Inc. His past leadership includes Chairman of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Florida, Florida International University, the United Way of Miami-Dade, and the Beacon Council. A recipient of the Woodrow Wilson Award for Corporate Citizenship, he holds a Master’s in Accounting from Florida International University and a bachelor’s in business from St. Leo College.
Director of City National Bank of Florida (Bci group) after a 26-year Bci career, including General Manager of the Miami branch overseeing $5.8B+ in assets. Past Chair of FIBA. BA, University of Miami.
Read Full Bio →General Manager of the Bci Miami Branch until April 30, 2025, following a 26-year career with the Bci group, she remains on the Board of Directors of City National Bank of Florida, Bci Securities, and Bci Financial Holdings Group. As General Manager she oversaw an office with over USD 5.8 billion in assets, including Treasury, Corporate Banking, Wealth Management, and Private Banking serving Latin American clients. Previously First Vice President and Controller since the branch’s opening in 1999, her career began in 1983 in Arthur Andersen, LLP’s audit division. She joined Southeast Bank in 1987 and later Banco Exterior de Los Andes y de España (Extebandes) as Controller; when Standard Chartered Bank acquired Extebandes she was named General Manager and later Regional Financial Manager. She holds a BA from the University of Miami, an inactive CPA license, and is a graduate of the Senior Executive Program of IESE Business School, University of Navarra. She served many years on the Florida International Bankers Association board, chairing it in 2012, and is currently Treasurer of the Cuban Banking Study Group.
Chairman and CEO of Del Busto Capital Partners; former Regional Executive of the Miami Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. B.S., Florida International University. Born in Havana.
Read Full Bio →Former regional executive of the Miami Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and current Chairman and CEO of Del Busto Capital Partners, Inc. As regional executive he was responsible for branch operations and its Board of Directors, provided regional input into the Atlanta Federal Reserve’s monetary policy process, and led community outreach, development, and economic and financial education programs. He joined the Ocean Bank Board of Directors in 2013 and has served as a trustee for the United Way of Dade County and on the boards of the Florida Council of Economic Education, the Center for Financial Training, and the Florida International University President’s Council. Born in Havana and raised in Miami from 1960, he graduated from Miami Dade College, earned a Bachelor of Science from the Florida International University Engineering school, and completed an executive development program at The Ohio State University.
President & COO of Grove Bank & Trust; former President & CEO of International Finance Bank. Built Caja Madrid’s Miami agency to $3B+. Florida Bankers Association Horizon Award recipient. BA, FIU.
Read Full Bio →President & Chief Operating Officer of Grove Bank & Trust since July 2023. Previously President & Chief Executive Officer of International Finance Bank (2015–2023) and Head of Corporate Banking at FirstBank, Puerto Rico (2012–2015), he worked for Caja Madrid (2001–2012), opening its Miami International Banking Agency and growing it to over $3 billion in assets, where he held positions including Deputy General Manager & Chief Financial Officer. His banking career began 31 years ago at Republic National Bank of Miami, with later roles at First Union, Capital Bank, Banco Real, and Bank Leumi. His honors include the South Florida Business Journal’s “Lender of the Year” award (2013), the U.S.-Spain Chamber of Commerce’s Ponce de León Excellence Award (2014), and the Florida Bankers Association Horizon Award (2016). He serves on the Orange Bowl Committee and the Board of Directors of the Florida Bankers Association, and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Florida International University.
President and CEO of Banesco USA; former EVP of First BanCorp and President/CEO of Doral Bank. Earlier President of Citibank Florida. Bachelor’s and MBA, University of Miami.
Read Full Bio →President and CEO of Banesco USA. Previously Executive Vice President of First BanCorp and Regional Executive of FirstBank Florida, he oversaw Personal and Business Banking, Commercial Banking, Corporate Banking, and Residential Mortgage. Before FirstBank he was President and CEO of Doral Bank in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where he repositioned the institution from a mortgage-bank model to a multi-product community bank, raised $625 million in capital, and remediated multiple regulatory enforcement orders. His career began at First Union National Bank, followed by a successful tenure at Citibank as President of Citibank Florida and later Business Manager for Citibank North America’s South and West Divisions. He currently serves on the boards of the United Way of Miami-Dade, the Beacon Council, and the Alliance for South Florida National Parks Trust, and was named to the Florida Bankers Association Board of Directors. A Miami native, he holds a bachelor’s degree and an MBA from the University of Miami.
President and CEO of IFB Bank with 35+ years in South Florida banking; former Miami-Dade Regional President at Seacoast and President/CEO of Professional Bank. MBA, University of Miami.
Read Full Bio →President and CEO of IFB Bank in Miami, which he joined in early 2024. He was previously Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida’s Miami-Dade Regional President, following its acquisition of Professional Bank, where he was President and CEO. With over 35 years of banking experience in the South Florida market, he was recently President and CEO of JGB Bank, N.A., and earlier Senior Executive Vice President of BankUnited FSB, overseeing commercial, corporate, commercial real estate, small business banking, and Treasury Management. He also served as Executive Vice President and Chief Lending Officer for the South Florida region of Colonial Bank (1997–2003), and began his banking career in 1980 at The Bank of Miami. A member of the Operating Board for Doctor’s Hospital (Baptist Health Systems) and past Chair of Miami-Dade College’s Center for Financial Training, he holds an MBA from the University of Miami and a B.B.A., magna cum laude, from Barry University.
Distinguished international banker, CPA, and longtime FIU finance professor. Founding treasurer and past chair of FIBA; Dean of the FIBA Institute for Financial Education. Co-author of a history of international banking in Florida.
Read Full Bio →A distinguished international banker, CPA, CFP, university professor, consultant, and community leader. He holds a BBA in Accounting and an MBA in International Banking from Georgia State University. His banking career began in 1969 with Pan American Bank, Miami (now Bank of America), rising to Senior Vice President and Deputy Manager of the International Division, and in 1978 he joined Israel Discount Bank Ltd. to head its newly licensed International Banking Office in Miami — the first license issued by the State of Florida — where he remained 22 years as Senior Vice President and Manager. Founding treasurer in 1979 and a past chair of the Florida International Bankers Association (FIBA) (1987–1988), he chaired its Education and Training Committee and served as Dean of the FIBA Institute for Financial Education. He co-authored “Leading the Way: A Comprehensive History of International Banking in Florida.” An educator since 1973, he has taught finance and global banking at Florida International University (FIU) since 1980, earning the university’s Excellence in Teaching Award, and has taught at UNIBE in the Dominican Republic and Universidad Thomas More in Nicaragua. He is a member of the CasaCuba Scholarly Advisory Council and a faculty member of the Institute for Cuban Studies at FIU. Inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2024.
President of StratInfo and Clinical Professor of Finance at FIU. A business economist with 30+ years advising banks and institutions; former Citicorp International Bank Advisory Group. Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania.
Read Full Bio →President of Strategic Information Analysis, Inc. (StratInfo), an economics and finance consulting firm he established in 1993 in Miami. A business economist with over 30 years of experience advising entrepreneurs, multinational corporations, financial institutions, government agencies, and professional services firms, he is nationally recognized for independent analysis of the Florida, U.S., and Latin American economies and financial markets. He advises banks on strategic planning and asset/liability management and has developed methodologies for assessing loan portfolio quality and guiding de-novo banks through approval and early operations. He held senior positions at Wharton Econometrics, at Citicorp — including its International Bank Advisory Group managing emerging markets’ external debt rescheduling (1982–1985) — and at Southeast Bank, and consulted for 20 years with the World Bank. A member of the Florida Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors, he served two decades on the Baptist Hospital of Miami Board of Directors. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania and is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Finance at Florida International University.
Professor and former Chair of Economics at FIU and Director of its Center of Economic Research. Former youngest Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution. Ph.D., UC Berkeley; author of 90+ books.
Read Full Bio →Full Professor and former Chairman of the Department of Economics at Florida International University, and Director of the Center of Economic Research in the Steven J. Green School of International and Public Affairs. He holds an MA and Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Miami; he was in his final year at the University of Havana Law School before fleeing Cuba in April 1960. An expert in international economics, macroeconomics, and economic development, he was the youngest Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and a Professorial Lecturer in Economics at Georgetown University, and served as Director in the Economics Group of the Cuban Ministry of Finance (1959–1960) and as Cuba’s Commercial Attaché to the European Commission and Belgium. He originated the International Comparisons Project, bringing international purchasing-power comparisons to the world economy, and has served as a forensic economist in over fifty legal cases and as a director of several banks. A member of the Council of Economic Advisors of the State of Florida, he has authored over three hundred articles and chapters and more than ninety books, supported by grants from the National Science Foundation, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations.
Chairman of BroadSpan Capital; retired Vice Chairman of Barclays Capital and Group CEO for Latin America. Trustee Emeritus of the University of Miami. M.S. in International Finance, Thunderbird.
Read Full Bio →Chairman of the Board of BroadSpan Capital LLC, an investment banking firm specializing in financial advisory services. He retired from Barclays Bank PLC in 2001, holding the position of Vice Chairman, Barclays Capital and Group Chief Executive Officer, Latin America, and served as Chairman of the Board of Republic Bank of the Dominican Republic until November 2007. He has served on the boards of public companies including Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida — as Lead Director — Knight Ridder Inc., the second-largest newspaper company, and Gildan Activewear, the world’s largest activewear manufacturer. A Trustee Emeritus of the University of Miami and of Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama, he holds a Master’s Degree in International Finance from the Thunderbird Graduate School.