Speakers
Rebecca Escario
CrossCheck Compliance
Rebecca is a managing director at CrossCheck Compliance LLC, anationwide consulting firm providing regulatory compliance, internal audit, fair lending, and loan review services to the financial services industry. Rebecca has over 25 years of experience consulting with banks, mortgage companies, credit unions, fintechs, and trust companies on consumer protection laws and regulations.Prior to joining CrossCheck, Rebecca was the Operating Officer atADI Compliance Consulting, Inc., where she directed and conductedfinancial regulatory compliance projects across the Home MortgageDisclosure Act (HMDA), fair lending, Anti-MoneyLaundering/Combatting the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT), andCommunity Reinvestment Act (CRA), providing expert guidance onperformance analysis, compliance management system (CMS)reviews, audits, risk assessments, and testing.Rebecca has served as an instructor and presenter for banking andmortgage associations, national industry associations, as wellbanks, credit unions, and mortgage companies across the country.
Chris Rahl
Gordon Feinblatt
Chris is Chair of the firm's Financial Services practice group and a member of the following teams: Financial Services, Health Care and EMERGE. He is a trusted advisor who serves as outside general counsel to several highly regulated enterprises. To that end, Chris helps clients manage risk and identify and implement proactive solutions to complex problems. Chris has extensive in-house counsel experience that includes having served as general counsel for an enterprise holding company and its subsidiaries and as corporate counsel in the financial services industry. His familiarity with the challenges and demands of the in-house counsel role uniquely positions him to help companies develop and implement creative strategies to reach their business goals efficiently and effectively.
Steve Kemmerling
CRB Monitor
Steven Kemmerling is the Founder and CEO of CRB Monitor, the leading RegTech platform for cannabis-related business intelligence and regulatory compliance. With a database covering over 100,000 private cannabis businesses, 269,000 licenses, and 156,000 decision-makers, CRB Monitor serves as the single source of truth for financial institutions seeking to effectively mitigate risk and monetize opportunity within cannabis sector. Steven pioneered the industry’s risk-tiering framework, first introduced in his 2016 ACAMS Today white paper Defining Marijuana-Related Businesses, which has since become the standard used by banks and regulators nationwide. Before founding CRB Monitor, Steven worked as an M&A investment banker and securities litigation consultant
Ashley Hess
Jonestown Bank & Trust
Ashley Hess is the Vice President and Cannabis Banking Manager at Jonestown Bank & Trust Co., a leading community bank with 12 branches across Lebanon, Lancaster, and Berks Counties in Pennsylvania. She is a recognized specialist in providing essential financial services, including robust deposit and lending solutions, to licensed and ancillary Medical/Adult Use Cannabis-Related Businesses and Hemp clients. Ashley's strategic vision has not only solidified the bank's presence in Pennsylvania and the surrounding states but has also expanded its cannabis banking program nationwide. Her expertise is backed by her Certified Cannabis Banking Professional certification from ICS and CBANC, alongside her PBC-I, PBC-II, and PBC-CP credentials from PBC Conference. Since 2018, Ashley has been at the forefront of Jonestown Bank & Trust Co.'s pioneering efforts to establish transparency and legitimacy within the previously underserved cannabis industry. With a strong foundation of 18 years as a retail banker, Ashley brings extensive traditional banking experience to her specialized and innovative role.
Joe Pigg
American Bankers Association
Joe Pigg is a Senior Vice President and Senior Counsel at the American Bankers Association (ABA), a position he has held since February 1997. Based in Washington, D.C., he is a seasoned legal professional dedicated to representing the interests of the U.S. banking sector, with a deep understanding of both legal and regulatory frameworks. Pigg earned his Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center (1987–1990) and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (1983–1987). Over nearly three decades at the ABA, he has been involved in shaping policies, advocating for banking industry needs, and contributing to strategic initiatives in financial services. In addition to his legal work, Pigg is recognized for his strategic thinking, leadership development focus, and innovation in the financial sector. He also serves on the ABA’s GSE Policy Working Group, where he analyzes and advises on issues affecting Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and makes recommendations to the ABA’s governance bodies. His long tenure and active role in ABA committees reflect his commitment to advancing the industry’s interests and influencing U.S. banking policy.
Leah Hamilton
Arcsalus Advisors
With nearly 30-years of experience in the financial services industry, Leah’s in-depth compliance knowledge spans Lending, Deposits, BSA/AML, and Compliance Risk Management. Her diverse skills, from software programmer to legal counsel to compliance advisor make Leah a results oriented and strategic compliance professional. Nationally recognized for her pragmatic compliance advice and her engaging approach, Leah provides management and staff valuable insight to effectively understand, identify, manage, and mitigate compliance risk, including cyber, synthetic identity and fraud risks. Throughout her career, banks, credit unions, fintechs, and federal and state associations have engaged her for compliance advice and training at all levels: front line, compliance, audit, board and management, and state and federal examiners.
Anne Balcer
Community Bank Advisory Services LLC
Anne Balcer is the founder and Principal of Community Bank Advisory Services, where she advises and represents bank and association clients in regulatory, legal and advocacy matters. She also serves as contract General Counsel to the Independent Bankers Association of Texas (IBAT). Previously Anne was Senior Executive Vice President, Chief of Government Relations & Public Policy for the Independent Community Bankers of America® (ICBA). In that role she worked with other members of ICBA’s executive management team to shape the association’s policy strategy and advance the interests of the nation’s community banks. She led ICBA’s congressional and government relations team and oversaw ICBA’s advocacy initiatives in the legislative and regulatory areas. Prior to joining ICBA, Balcer served in an executive role at Forbright Bank, formerly Congressional Bank, as General Counsel and a member of the Board, advising its executive management team and board of directors while managing all aspects of legal, regulatory and compliance oversight. Balcer served as Maryland’s Deputy Commissioner of Financial Regulation from 2010 to 2013 and was lauded for her consensus building approach to regulation and policy. Experienced in government relations and public policy at the state and federal level, Balcer has testified before Congress, the TARP Oversight Committee and in state and local legislatures. Balcer received her J.D., magna cum laude, with honors, from the University of Baltimore School of Law and her B.A. from Randolph Macon College. She is admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Texas.
Evan Richards
Maryland Bankers Association
Evan Richards serves as the Vice President of Government and Member Relations for the Maryland Bankers Association and has been a member of the MBA team since January of 2022. He leads the Association’s advocacy efforts, serving as a liaison between the banking industry and policymakers to shape public policy and regulatory outcomes affecting Maryland banks and their customers.Prior to joining the Association, Evan served as Chief of Staff/Legislative Aide to Senator Katherine Klausmeier of Baltimore County. He is a graduate of Towson University and currently resides in Middle River, Maryland.
Jessica Lelii
PaymentsFirst
Jessica serves as Director of Education for PaymentsFirst. In this role, Jessica is responsible for providing payments education to PaymentsFirst's members. Jessica has worked in the financial industry since 2004. She obtained her Accredited ACH Professional (AAP) accreditation in 2019, her Accredited Payments Risk Professional (APRP) accreditation in 2022, her National Check Professional (NCP) accreditation in 2024, and her Accredited Faster Payments Professional (AFPP) accreditation in 2025.
Dr. Raman Mandapaka
Cadmus
For over twenty years, Raman Mandapaka, PhD, has led practice areas providing consulting services in risk, compliance, IT, and data. He has championed large, complex projects, grown diverse, committed, and talented teams that thrived on project ownership, and effectively defended business processes to oversight bodies.Raman has provided consulting services to large and multinational banks, regional and community banks, government sponsored entities, central banks, and regulatory agencies. He leads the validation and implementation of various accounting requirements including the Current Expected Credit Loss (CECL) framework. He developed systems and strategies to comply with U.S. and International (IFRS) GAAP reporting requirements. He also helped select and implement leading vendor solutions for accounting for credit losses.As a leading expert in governance, Raman combines years of experience in helping set up enterprise risk governance programs, policies, and procedures. He has built and transitioned departments to address enterprise risk challenges and to adhere to regulatory needs while enhancing business profitability.
Pamela Lipscomb
Senior Compliance Examiner Detailee, FDIC
Pamela Lipscomb is a Consumer Compliance Examiner in the FDIC’s Division of Depositor and Consumer Protection (DCP), New York Region. She joined the FDIC in August 2016 and currently has more than 20 years of regulatory compliance experience, including the examination of large, complex, and high risk institutions. Pamela serves as a subject matter expert (SME) on the New York Region’s UDAP Knowledge Management Team and previously contributed her expertise to the Region’s Fair Lending Team. She also represents the New York Region as an SME on the FDIC’s Technical Evaluation Committee. She is a graduate of Potomac State College of West Virginia University and completed the Maryland Banking School with Honors in 2014. In addition, she attended the ABA National Compliance School in 2006 and earned the ABA Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager (CRCM) designation in 2011. Most recently, in June 2024, Pamela graduated from the ABA Stonier Graduate School of Banking and the Wharton Leadership Program at the University of Pennsylvania.
Angela Howard
OCC Examiner
Angela Howard is an OCC Federal Compliance Examiner specializing in BSA and Fair Lending and currently works in the Risk, Resource & Examiner Development (RRED) Division. She has been employed with the OCC for 13 years and three years with the former Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) in the Washington, DC Field Office. Prior to joining the federal government, she worked in various compliance roles for 15 years at various community and large banks in Virginia and an online bank. She earned her CRCM (Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager) certification in 2003 and her CAMS (Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist) certification in 2004. She earned her Juris Doctor (JD) degree from DePaul University College of Law, Chicago, Illinois in June 1989, and her Bachelor of Science (BS) degree from Virginia State University, Petersburg, Virginia in May 1986. She maintains her Bar membership in the Illinois and Washington, DC.
Dorian Henry-Jones
Federal Reserve Examiner
Dorian Henry-Jones is a regulatory compliance professional who has spent two decades navigating the evolving landscape of consumer compliance and Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) supervision. A Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager (CRCM), she thrives at the intersection of regulatory expertise and relationship building, working with financial institutions to strengthen risk assessment and compliance frameworks. What sets Dorian apart is her approach to education and knowledge sharing. She believes complex regulatory concepts shouldn't be dry or intimidating and has become known for transforming technical content into songs and poetry, making compliance training both memorable and genuinely enjoyable. Her work on training committees and curriculum development reflects a genuine passion for helping professionals at every level grow in their careers. Dorian is a frequent voice in the banking community, speaking on panels for the West Virginia Bankers Association and Virginia Association of Bankers, where she addresses emerging compliance risks and hot topics. She has also contributed thought leadership through articles on critical regulatory issues, helping institutions navigate complex changes like new flood insurance requirements. With an MS in Information Technology, an MBA, and a BS in Business Management, Dorian brings both analytical rigor and creative problem-solving to her work. A graduate of the Maryland Banking School and alumna of the McKinsey Connected Leaders Academy, she's committed to transparent communication and believes the best solutions come from collaborative dialogue across all levels of an organization.
David Clifford
Federal Reserve Examiner
David Clifford is a BSA AML Specialist within the Legal Risk Unit of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. He has over 15 years of experience in the banking space, including over a decade in the areas of BSA/AML and compliance. He is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist.
Kyle Morgan
Mercantile Processing Inc
Kyle Morgan is the Founder and CEO of Mercantile Processing Inc. (MPI), a payments and technology provider that has worked alongside community financial institutions and their business clients for 20 years. His work focuses on helping community banks strengthen commercial relationships, retain deposits, and better compete in an increasingly fintech-driven landscape. Kyle works closely with bank leadership and treasury teams to identify opportunities within existing business relationships, using payments and transaction data to better understand where funds are moving, recognize competitive threats, and uncover opportunities to deepen client relationships. Through MPI, he has helped financial institutions expand their business banking capabilities with merchant services, ACH intelligence, payroll, ATM, and related solutions.
Justin "Jay" Nedwick
CNB
What do you get when you combin.e an entrepreneurial spirit, a passion for technology, and a background in music? An AI Strategist
Jay Nedwick is an AI Strategist & Developer at CNB Bank, Inc., where he helps employees and leaders identify practical opportunities for AI and automation. A Summa Cum Laude graduate of the University of Maryland Global Campus, Jay's journey into AI began in the music and entertainment industry before evolving into community leadership and banking innovation. Today, he focuses on bridging the gap between emerging technologies and real-world business needs, helping organizations navigate AI responsibly, effectively, and with confidence.
Dinner October 29 Details
On Thursday evening, October 29, we will have a complimentary dinner for conference attendees at the Brewer's Alley, 124 N Market St, Frederick, MD. A limited menu has been created for us!