Forbright Announces Key Additions to Senior Leadership

The Bank continues to attract top talent

CHEVY CHASE, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Forbright, Inc. and Forbright Bank today announced three new executives who will oversee the finance and communications departments as the Bank continues to accelerate the transition to a sustainable and clean energy economy.

Aaron Juda, currently Chief Strategy Officer of Forbright Bank, has been promoted to the role of Chief Financial Officer of Forbright, Inc. Pat Rusnak joins Forbright Bank as Chief Financial Officer. And Ben Wakana joins Forbright Bank as Director of Communications.

“We’re building a full-service bank with an unprecedented commitment to decarbonization, and these three highly talented individuals will help us continue to execute our strategic vision,” said Don Cole, Chief Executive Officer of Forbright Bank. “Having this caliber of experienced talent joining the leadership demonstrates that Forbright is a sought-after place to bank and work.”

Aaron Juda has been promoted to the role of Chief Financial Officer of Forbright, Inc. while continuing as the Chief Strategy Officer of Forbright Bank. Aaron has been instrumental in Forbright’s most important strategic initiatives including a substantial capital raise, an inaugural green bond issuance, and the enhancement of Forbright’s sustainable finance initiatives. Prior to Forbright, Aaron was an investment banker at Barclays where he advised financial institutions on mergers and acquisitions and capital raising activities and a management consultant at Accenture Strategy.

Pat Rusnak joins the organization as Chief Financial Officer of Forbright Bank. Pat brings more than 20 years of financial management experience. Most recently, he served as the Chief Financial Officer of PacWest Bancorp from 2015-2020. There, he was responsible for all financial functions at the $30B bank holding company with nationwide specialized commercial lending operations and a California community banking depository franchise.

Ben Wakana joins Forbright Bank as Director of Communications where he will lead communications, branding, and marketing. Ben joins Forbright from the White House where he served as Deputy Director for Strategic Communications on the COVID Response Team. He has spent over a decade leading communications teams in the Executive Branch, on Capitol Hill, and at a health care advocacy organization he helped launch.

About Forbright Bank

Forbright Bank (www.forbrightbank.com), rebranded from Congressional Bank, Member FDIC, is a full-service bank, commercial lender, and asset manager headquartered in Chevy Chase, Maryland, that is committed to accelerating the transition to a sustainable, clean energy economy by financing the companies, investors, and innovators driving that change. With approximately $9 billion of owned and managed assets, the Bank provides lending, banking, and asset management services to clients across the United States. Its business banking group provides nationwide lending products, including real estate loans, working capital, warehouse lines of credit, term loans, and forward loan purchase agreements to entrepreneurs, growing middle market companies, and sophisticated investors and operators in clean tech, healthcare, financial services, technology, real estate, renewable energy, and other industries where a trusted and highly responsive lender is needed. The Bank provides sophisticated and competitive deposit products, which will soon include deposits linked to decarbonization- and sustainability-oriented loans to businesses and individuals.