Management

Jerry Plush

Chairman and CEO

EMC Member

Mr. Plush serves as the Company’s Chairman, President, and CEO since June 8, 2022, having served previously as Vice-Chairman & CEO since March 20, 2021, and as Vice Chairman since February 15, 2021. Mr. Plush is a highly respected financial services industry professional with over 35 years of senior executive leadership experience. From January 2019 to February 2021, he was a partner at Patriot Financial Partners, a private equity firm where he sourced new investment opportunities and served on the board of directors for multiple portfolio banks, finance and fintech companies. In 2018, he served as CEO for Verdigris Holdings, Inc., leading this start-up through the regulatory application, organization, and initial funding processes. Mr. Plush’s other prominent leadership roles include his tenure with Santander US from 2014 to 2017, initially as CFO and Executive Committee member, and subsequently as Chief Administrative Officer. He served on the board of Santander Consumer from 2014 to 2016, and as a director for the FHLB of Pittsburgh from 2016 to 2017. Mr. Plush previously served as President, COO and Board Member for Webster Bank, beginning in July 2006 as EVP and Chief Financial Officer. Prior to Webster, he spent over 11 years with MBNA America, most recently as Senior Executive Vice President & Managing Director of Corporate Development and Acquisitions, and before that, as CFO—North America.

Mr. Plush holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He currently serves on the board of directors of the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Miami Host Committee, the Orange Bowl Committee, and the Broward Workshop. He is also a member of the CEO Council of the Greater Ft. Lauderdale Alliance.

Sharymar Calderon

SEVP, Chief Financial Officer

EMC Member

Sharymar Calderón was appointed Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in June 2023. Calderón is responsible for Amerant’s financial management, including treasury, financial reporting and accounting, financial planning and analysis, investor relations, strategy, internal controls over financial reporting and corporate tax. She also chairs the Asset-Liability Committee. Prior to her appointment as CFO, Calderón served as Senior Vice President, Head of Internal Audit at Amerant since June 2021, where she led the implementation and monitoring of the Company’s audit plan and risk assessments, including coordination with external auditors and the integration of SOX audits. She is a licensed CPA in both Florida and Puerto Rico.

Prior to Amerant, Calderón worked at Ocean Bank as SVP, Head of Payment Operations. Before that, she worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers for nine years, where she began her career as an Associate and rose to Senior Manager over the course of her tenure, gaining extensive experience in financial services, including banking, broker dealers and asset management.

Calderón received a double Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and Marketing from the University of Puerto Rico. She is a licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in Florida and Puerto Rico, a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), a member of the Puerto Rico State Society of CPAs and its Florida Chapter, and the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA). She also serves on the board of Zoo Miami Foundation. 

Alberto Capriles

SEVP, Chief Risk Officer

EMC Member

Alberto Capriles was appointed Senior Executive Vice President in January 2023 and named Chief Risk Officer in February 2018. He is responsible for all enterprise risk management oversight, including credit, market, operational and information security risk.

Capriles served in various roles with Mercantil Servicios Financieros (MSF) since 1995, including Executive Vice President and Chief Risk Officer of the bank since 2016, Corporate Treasurer from 2008 to 2015, head of Corporate Market Risk Management from 1999 to 2008, and as Corporate Risk Specialist from 1995 to 1999, where he led the project to implement MSF’s enterprise risk management model.

Prior to joining MSF, Capriles served as a foreign exchange trader with Banco Central de Venezuela (Venezuelan Central Bank) from 1989 to 1991. He also served as a Professor in the Economics Department at the Andres Bello Catholic University from 1996 to 2008.

Capriles graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the Andres Bello Catholic University. He earned a Master’s degree in International Development Economics from Yale University and an MBA from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He currently serves as a board member of Amerant Investments, Inc. and Elant Bank & Trust Ltd. 

Juan Esterripa

SEVP, Chief Commercial Banking Officer

EMC Member

Juan Esterripa serves as Amerant Bank’s SEVP, Chief Commercial Banking Officer since April 2023. He is a seasoned banking professional with significant experience in corporate and commercial banking. In his role, Esterripa oversees multiple business sectors, including commercial banking, commercial real estate, syndications, specialty finance, and treasury management, while promoting business development across the bank and driving profitable growth.

Before Amerant, Esterripa served as EVP, Wholesale Banking Executive at City National Bank - Florida since 2016. From 2013 to 2017, he was SVP, Corporate & Commercial Banking Manager at BankUnited, N.A., managing its largest book of business. He served as Executive Vice President at Stonegate Bank from 2012 to 2013 and as Senior Vice President at Capital Bank since 2010 prior to that. From 2009 to 2010, Esterripa was SVP, Chief Lending Officer at Pacific National Bank, and from 2006 to 2009, he served as SVP, Head of Middle Market Division at Mercantil Commercebank, N.A.

Esterripa is a graduate of the Harvard Business School executive management program. His expertise and industry knowledge has brought significant value to the organizations with which he has worked, all while his insights and strategic vision have helped drive growth and profitability. He currently serves on the board of the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami. 

Carlos Iafigliola

SEVP, Chief Operating Officer

EMC Member

Carlos Iafigliola was appointed Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer (COO) in June 2023. He is responsible for Amerant’s loan and deposit operations, project management, technology services, procurement, facilities, strategy and digital. Iafigliola chairs the Board of Amerant Investments and is member of the Board of Amerant Mortgage. He serves as Board member for Habitat for Humanity Broward and is a member of the Investment Committee of United Way Miami.

Prior to his appointment as COO, Iafigliola served as EVP, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) since May 2020 spearheading Amerant’s financial management, including treasury, financial reporting and accounting, financial analysis, investor relations & sustainability, internal controls and corporate tax. Iafigliola also served as SVP, Treasury Manager from 2015 to May 2020 and held various management positions in the Treasury area from 2004 to 2015. Prior to joining Amerant, he served in senior roles in Market Risk at Banco Mercantil, also known as Mercantil Servicios Financieros (MSF), from 2000 to 2004. He joined MSF in April 1998.

Iafigliola earned a degree in Economics from Universidad Católica Andrés Bello in Caracas, Venezuela in 1998 and a Masters in Finance from Instituto de Estudios Superiores de Administración (IESA) in 2003 he was also part of Miami Leadership Program cohort 2011.

Howard Levine

SEVP, Chief Consumer Banking Officer

EMC Member

Howard Levine was appointed Senior Executive Vice President in January 2023. He has served as Chief Consumer Banking Officer since joining Amerant in June 2022. Levine oversees the Private Client Group, Wealth Management, Small Business Banking, Retail Banking, and Amerant Mortgage. Most recently, he served as EVP and Chief Revenue Officer at Amerant Mortgage, of which he is a founding partner.

Howard has an entrepreneurial mindset and a wide foundation in banking. He came to Amerant in November 2020 from City National Bank of Florida, where he served as EVP and Executive Vice President for Private Banking, Private Wealth, and Residential Mortgage. Prior to joining CNB in 2017, Howard was EVP, Consumer & Residential Lending & Treasury Management at Sabadell United Bank, N.A. His wide banking experience includes providing exceptional service for high-net-worth individuals and professional firms of Amerant Mortgage, LLC.

Howard has more than 25 years of experience in real estate finance and has experience running mortgage businesses in independent mortgage companies and in community banks. He has a bachelor’s degree from Hofstra University in Long Island, NY and currently serves on the board of Junior Achievement of South Florida. 

Mariola Sanchez

SEVP, Chief People Officer

EMC Member

Mariola Triana Sanchez leads Amerant Bank’s approach to people and organizational culture as the bank’s Chief People Officer. In addition, she also oversees corporate communications, community relations, sustainability, and marketing. Previously serving as Amerant’s General Counsel, Mariola was appointed to her new position in June 2022.

With an educational background in human behavior and law, in addition to 15 years working at Amerant, she brings a wealth of organizational knowledge and an informed perspective to her role. She and her leadership team are focused on learning and development, management practices, and diversity and inclusion, in keeping with Amerant’s ESG goals.

As General Counsel, Mariola advised the company on a range of legal matters, including labor and employment. She has practiced law for over 25 years, primarily as in-house counsel for financial institutions. Prior to joining Amerant in 2007 as Associate General Counsel, she served as Associate General Counsel at Regions Bank (formerly Union Planters Bank).

Active in the community, Mariola serves on the board of directors for the Center for Financial Training and Overtown Youth Center. Mariola earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Miami and a juris doctorate from St. Thomas University. She also graduated from ExecOnline’s Fostering Inclusion and Diversity Program from Yale School of Management in April 2021.

Braden R. Smith

SEVP, Chief Business Development Officer

EMC Member

Braden R. Smith is the Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Business Development Officer at Amerant Bank, where he leads strategic growth initiatives, evaluates new business opportunities, and fosters partnerships to expand the bank’s influence.

Previously, Smith served as Vice Chairman at Wintrust Private Client, bringing over 25 years of expertise in financial services for high-net-worth clients and business families. He established and led the Private Client Group at Wintrust, managing a team responsible for billions in assets, loans, and deposits.

Smith is also an active board member for John Cabot University, Prentice Hospital, the Children’s Brittle Bone Foundation, and the Rochester Institute of Technology - Saunders College of Business Advisory Board.

Laura Rossi

SVP, Head of Investor Relations & Strategy

Laura Rossi has served as Senior Vice President and Head of Investor Relations since 2018. She was also appointed as Head of Strategy in June 2024, having previously led the Sustainability unit since August 2022. In her role, Rossi spearheads Amerant’s relationship with the investment community and rating agencies, as well as the Company’s strategic planning process. She was responsible for the development and implementation of the Investor Relations function, as Amerant transitioned to being an independent public organization. In addition to the CEO and CFO, Rossi is a spokesperson for Amerant in its interactions with market participants.

Rossi has held various roles since joining Amerant in 2005. She served as project manager for the company’s spin-off and IPO, successfully leading a multidisciplinary team of internal and external experts during this process. From 2005 to 2017, Rossi was an instrumental part of the Corporate International and Market Risk units.

Prior to her tenure at Amerant, Rossi worked in marketing and communications, as well as finance, in the medical equipment industry, from 2002 to 2005.

Rossi holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, with a concentration in International Business, from the University of Wisconsin and a Master in Science of Finance from Florida International University. She currently serves on the board of the Coral Gables Community Foundation.