Velera Board Appoints Three New Associate Directors
- Kelsie Papenhausen

- 7 hours ago
- 2 min read
Tampa, Fla. (July 2, 2026) – Velera, the nation’s premier payments credit union service organization (CUSO) and an integrated financial technology solutions provider, today announced the appointment of three new associate directors to its Board of Directors.
The following credit union executives have been named to the board:
Kelly Botti, president and CEO of Trumark Credit Union, Penn.
Vic Israni, president and CEO of GreenState Credit Union, Iowa
Ricky Otey, president and CEO of Partners Federal Credit Union, Calif.
“Collectively, these leaders bring more than seven decades of expertise in the financial services industry, and we are honored to welcome them to the Velera board,” said Chuck Fagan, CEO of Velera. “Their contributions will play a pivotal role in shaping Velera’s strategic direction while ensuring our services are aligned with evolving credit union and member needs.”
“Velera’s Board of Directors is composed of CEOs from credit unions across the country, each contributing valuable insight into industry trends, marketplace dynamics and growth opportunities,” said Cathie Tierney, chair of the Velera Board of Directors and president and CEO of Community First Credit Union. “We are extremely pleased to welcome these three proven leaders and are confident their expertise will strengthen the support we provide to credit unions nationwide.”
Additional Velera Board of Directors members include:
Rob Stuart, president and CEO of OnPoint Community Credit Union, Ore. (Vice Chair)
Jackie Buchanan, president and CEO of Genisys Credit Union, Mich. (Treasurer)
Chris Shockley, president and CEO of Virginia Credit Union, Va. (Secretary)
Christine Blake, president and CEO of Cardinal Credit Union, Ohio (Associate Director)
Craig Esrael, president and CEO of First South Financial Credit Union, Tenn.
Todd Lane, president and CEO of California Coast Credit Union, Calif.
Maria J. Martinez, president and CEO of Border Federal Credit Union, Texas (Associate Director)
Joan Opp, president and CEO of Stanford Federal Credit Union, Calif.
Rudy Pereira, president and CEO of Premier America Credit Union, Calif.
Sean Rathjen, CEO of Consumers Credit Union, Ill.
Mark Robnett, president and CEO of Justice Federal Credit Union, Va.
Andrew Rosen, president and CEO of Hawaii State Federal Credit Union, Hawaii
Amy Sink, CEO of Interra Credit Union, Ind.
Nathanael Tarwasokono, president and CEO of Allegacy Federal Credit Union, N.C.
About Velera
Velera is the nation’s premier payments credit union service organization (CUSO) and an integrated financial technology solutions provider. With over four decades of industry experience and a commitment to service excellence and innovation, the company serves more than 4,000 financial institutions throughout North America, operating with velocity to help its clients keep pace with the rapid momentum of change and fuel growth in the new era of financial services. Velera leverages its expertise and resources on behalf of credit unions and their members, offering an end-to-end product portfolio that includes payment processing, fraud and risk management, data and analytics, digital banking, instant payments, strategic consulting, collections, ATM and POS networks, shared branching and 24/7/365 member support via its contact centers. For more information, visit velera.com.

