Speakers

John Ballantyne

Founder and CEO, Tru Treasury

John Ballantyne is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Tru Treasury, a firm committed to equipping community financial institutions with the capabilities to deliver industry-leading treasury management solutions and advisory services to business clients. Under his leadership, Tru Treasury has grown from a startup into a premier strategic service provider in the financial services sector.

With more than 22 years of experience in financial services, John has led high-performing teams across underwriting, treasury management, and payments. Before founding Tru Treasury, he held multiple leadership roles at a national bank within its Treasury and Payments division, including Vice President of Digital Money Movement, First Vice President of Liquidity Product and Commercial Card Incentives, and Head of Treasury Solutions Proposal Management.

Prior to his banking career, John successfully founded, scaled, and exited a medical payments startup. He also held roles at Amazon.com and Vanguard, further strengthening his expertise in financial technology, operational strategy, and business development.

A U.S. Army veteran and Iraq War veteran, John earned an MBA from Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor of Science from Shippensburg University. He also holds rotary-wing aviator certifications (UH-60 and CH-47) from the U.S. Army Flight School.

Most importantly, John is a devoted husband of 18 years and a proud father of three.

Cheryl Friese

Manager Payment Services, Publix Employees Federal Credit Union

Cheryl Friese is Manager of Payment Services at Publix Employees Federal Credit
Union in Lakeland, Florida, with more than 40 years of experience in the banking
and credit union industries.

She oversees payment operations and supports
initiatives involving payment processing, regulatory compliance, fraud
prevention, and member service. Cheryl is committed to improving operational
procedures, supporting team development, and providing PEFCU members with
reliable, efficient payment services.

Joni Hopkins

Vice President of Customer Relations Federal Reserve Financial Services

Joni Hopkins is Vice President of Customer Relations for Federal Reserve
Financial Services. Hopkins’ responsibilities include engaging and collaborating
with community financial institutions throughout the United States to help define
and prioritize system improvements that advance payment speed, efficiency, and
security.

Hopkins has been with the Federal Reserve System for over 25 years. Her
background is rooted in working with community bankers across the United
States. In addition to her experience at the Federal Reserve, Hopkins has worked
for two commercial banks and a Payments Association. She was awarded the
EPCOR Marquis Award for outstanding leadership, innovation and excellence in
the development, implementation or advancement of electronic payments and
risk mitigation solutions and is known as a champion for electronic banking
services.

Hopkins’s undergraduate is from Kansas State University. She received her
master’s degree from Kansas Wesleyan University and is a graduate of
Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management Executive Education
program. She holds an Accredited ACH Professional designation and Faster
Payment Certificate.

Kelli Watkins

Assistant Vice President – Payment Services Randolph Brooks FCU

Kelli L. Watkins is an experienced financial services leader with more than 14
years of service at RBFCU. Kelli has a proven track record of driving operational
excellence and member-focused innovation. Currently serving as AVP of Payment
Services, Kelli oversees critical payment operations, ensuring secure, efficient and
compliant processes across ACH, debit, credit and real-time payment platforms.
Kelli is recognized for a leadership style rooted in empathy, strategic thinking,
and collaboration. Passionate about empowering teams and leveraging
technology, Kelli consistently drives initiatives that enhance member experience,
optimize workflows and deliver measurable financial impact.

Kyle Caldwell

VP, Fraud Product Management, Clearing House

Serves as Vice President, Head of Fraud Prevention at The Clearing House, where he leads enterprise efforts to define and execute the strategic vision for fraud prevention across the payments network. Known for his ability to connect strategy with execution, Kyle works across business, technology, and risk teams to deliver forward-thinking solutions that strengthen the industry’s defenses against financial crime.
Prior to joining The Clearing House, Kyle spent nine years at a large regional bank, where he held multiple leadership roles across fraud strategy, operations, and product development. He also gained valuable experience shaping fraud solutions on a broader scale during his time at fintech’s, helping financial institutions address evolving threats through identity, analytics, and biometric technologies.
Kyle brings an end-to-end perspective to combating fraud, shaped by years on the front lines and sharpened by strategic leadership roles. His approach blends operational empathy with product innovation—ensuring solutions are not only cutting-edge, but also grounded in real-world impact.
A recognized industry leader, Kyle is frequently invited to speak at conferences, roundtables, and executive forums. His work reflects a deep commitment to advancing collective progress in fraud prevention and fostering a more secure, resilient financial ecosystem.

Mart Vos

CEO, Eko

Mart Vos is the founder and CEO of Eko, the largest white-label digital investment platform for banks and credit unions. Eko is working with 50+ financial institutions across the US, has won Finovate Best of Show two years in a row, and is on a mission to help everyday Americans invest through their trusted financial institution.
Before founding Eko, Mart led the engineering team at True North, a hedge fund, where he learned that the world of investing was powerful, but not exactly built for everyone. So he decided to fix that.
Mart studied in the Netherlands and Singapore, and is based in New York. In his free time, he likes to play football  though he will remind you, unprompted, that it's called football.

Landon Gaines

VP, Key Accounts Strategist, Corporate One FCU

A seasoned business development executive, Landon provides expert
consultation to member credit unions, offering tailored services that meet their
business needs. He brings more than two decades of industry experience in
strategy development, relationship-building, and leadership to his role at
Corporate One. Previously, he served as the senior vice president of operations at
Florida State University Credit Union. With oversight responsibilities spanning
multiple departments, including lending, marketing, compliance, and risk
management, Landon showcased his analytical mindset and ability to drive
credit union success. Before his tenure at Florida State University Credit Union,
Landon was the vice president of global commercial banking at Bank of America
Merrill Lynch. With expertise in small business and consumer banking, Landon's
extensive financial knowledge, strategic acumen, and diverse background
position him as a valuable resource to credit unions. He lives in Tallahassee,
Florida, with his wife, three children, and three dogs. In his free time, he enjoys
woodworking, fishing, hunting and spending time with his family.

Scott Homes

AVP Partner Integration and Relationships, Corporate One FCU

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Matt Murray

Sr. Member Engagement & Education Specialist

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Melissa Ashley

President / CEO

A visionary and steadfast leader, Melissa is a strategic driver of growth in her role as President and CEO at Corporate One. Melissa joined Corporate One in 1999. During her time with the organization, she has served in various roles, including controller, vice president of finance, and EVP/CFO. Melissa became Corporate One’s president/CEO in 2018.

Melissa serves on the board of directors of Corporate One’s wholly owned credit union service organization (CUSO) Lucro Commercial Solutions. She also serves on two of The Clearing House's committees: the RTP Business Committee and the Rules Enforcement Committee. Melissa is also a board member for eDOC Innovations and the chair of the Corporate Credit Union Alliance. From 2019 through 2024, Melissa served on the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland’s Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council (CDIAC), offering valuable insights and perspectives from community depository institutions to the Cleveland Fed.

Prior to joining Corporate One, Melissa worked at a Big Four accounting firm. She has a Bachelor of Science in Accounting with a minor in Computer Science from The Ohio State University. She has also achieved the Certified Chief Executive designation from the Credit Union Executive Society (CUES) and is a certified public accountant in the state of Ohio. In her free time, Melissa likes to help on her family’s sweet corn and produce farm. She enjoys being outside and working the land, teaching her kids the value of a hard day’s work, and gathering with extended family over delicious meals at harvest time.

Christine Mayes

Chief Member Engagement Officer

A focused and strategic leader, Christine is responsible for business development growth and overseeing the Marketing and Communications, Member Success, and Member Experience teams.

Christine joined Corporate One in 2020 and quickly developed a passion for credit unions and forging deeper relationships with the member institutions Corporate One serves. Dedicated to credit union success and to helping members achieve their respective business goals, she ensures the Member Success team strategically aligns with and supports members so that they receive the utmost value out of their membership in Corporate One. She is committed to helping credit unions remain competitive and innovative by adopting digital and real-time payments.

Before joining Corporate One, Christine served in sales and sales management for Brink’s, Inc., supporting financial institutions of all sizes. Christine lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband and two dogs. She enjoys golfing and all water and outdoor activities in her free time.

Elena Casal

Chief Client Officer at The Clearing House

Elena Casal is the Chief Client Officer at The Clearing House, responsible for creating and managing the holistic experience for its customers and partners. The role is focused on promoting the company’s work to its diverse target segments, including growing the RTP® network across U.S. financial institutions, evolving the customer engagement model for all payments networks, as well as overseeing business lines focused on payments education, accreditation services, consulting and risk assessments.

Elena has deep experience with product and customers in the payments industry.  Prior to joining The Clearing House, Elena held regional and global product management positions at FIS, Clear2Pay and Fiserv where she was focused on building products and services across the global enterprise payments landscape. She also worked at the Federal Reserve Bank within the Retail Product Office and Monetary Policy Divisions with a focus on cross-border activities and economic policy in Latin America.

Elena currently serves on the P20 Board as well as the Girls on the Run Central Ohio non-profit Board. Elena holds a B.A. in Economics and International Affairs from Denison University and an M.S. in International Affairs from Georgia Institute of Technology.

Erik Van Bramer

Senior Vice President and Head of Customer & Industry Relations for Federal Reserve Financial Service

As Senior Vice President and Head of Customer & Industry Relations, Erik Van Bramer is
responsible for setting and implementing the strategy for managing the relationships and
financial services offerings for financial institutions across the Federal Reserve System.
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Van Bramer joined the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City in 1998 and transitioned to
the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago in 2005. His tenure with the Federal Reserve has
encompassed multiple management areas including operations, internal support
functions, as well as business development. Van Bramer was promoted to assistant vice
president and national account executive in 2010. He was named vice president in 2014,
leading the group managing relationships for large and complex financial institutions.

Van Bramer holds a bachelor’s degree from The Colorado College, completed graduate
studies at The Lake Forest Graduate School of Business, The Booth School of Business,
and earned certification from the Graduate School of Banking at The University of
Colorado. He serves on several boards throughout the Denver metro area with particular
interest in injury prevention and underserved children and communities.