Cross River Appoints Evan L. Russo to Board of Directors as Lead Independent Director

FORT LEE, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CRB Group, Inc., the parent company of Cross River Bank ("Cross River"), a leading technology infrastructure provider that offers embedded financial solutions, today announced the appointment of Evan L. Russo to its Board of Directors, where he will serve as Lead Independent Director.

Mr. Russo brings more than two decades of leadership experience in financial services, capital markets, and corporate strategy. He most recently served as Chief Executive Officer of Lazard Asset Management, a role he held from June 2022 until December 2025. Prior to that, Mr. Russo served as Chief Financial Officer of Lazard Ltd and Lazard Group from 2017 to 2022. As a Managing Director at Lazard since 2009, he advised corporate clients on strategic M&A and financial transactions and was Co-Head of the firm's Capital Markets and Capital Structure Advisory practice. Before joining Lazard, Mr. Russo held positions in the Investment Banking Divisions of Goldman Sachs and Barclays Capital. He began his career as a corporate attorney at Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy. Mr. Russo received an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, a JD from Columbia Law School, and a BA from Queens College.

"We are thrilled to welcome Evan to our Board of Directors as Lead Independent Director. His proven leadership across financial services and deep capital markets expertise make him the ideal partner for all that we're building at Cross River," said Gilles Gade, Founder, CEO and Chairman of Cross River. "We've spent over a decade developing the infrastructure that powers the biggest names in fintech and now we have the opportunity to define the next era. The convergence of AI, digital assets, and embedded finance is reshaping how the world moves money and the companies that will lead are those with both the infrastructure and the governance to operate at the level of complexity that is demanded. Evan brings exactly the kind of strategic insight and institutional rigor that matches this moment."

As Lead Independent Director, Mr. Russo will play a key role in strengthening board governance, providing strategic counsel on growth initiatives, and ensuring robust independent oversight as the company continues to expand its suite of financial products and technology partnerships.

"Cross River has established itself as a pioneer at the intersection of technology and banking, underpinned by an infrastructure platform that I believe is without parallel in financial services," said Mr. Russo. "That combination of innovation, regulatory excellence, and scale is what drew me to this opportunity. I am honored to join the Board and look forward to working alongside the talented leadership team to help guide the company through its next chapter of growth."

Mr. Russo's appointment comes during a period of significant growth for Cross River. In March 2026, the company announced a $50 million common equity capital raise from accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Investment Management to fuel its expansion across AI, crypto, and embedded finance. The raise follows a landmark 2025 in which Cross River surpassed one billion cumulative payment transactions, launched a proprietary card processing engine and stablecoin payments platform. Since inception, the company has originated over $178 billion in loans and processed more than 9.7 billion payments transactions. With over 120 technology partners relying on its proprietary real-time banking core, Cross River continues to solidify its position as essential infrastructure powering the future of financial services.

About Cross River

Cross River builds technology that powers the future of financial services. Leveraging its proprietary real-time digital banking core, Cross River delivers innovative and scalable embedded payments, cards, lending and crypto solutions to millions of consumers and businesses. Cross River is backed by leading investors and serves the world’s most essential technology and fintech companies at the forefront of innovation. As a leader in the industry, Cross River is reshaping global finance and financial inclusion. Member FDIC. Find out more at www.crossriver.com.