Chopra sworn in as secretary of new California agency

Published July 3, 2026 10:00 AM

1 Min Read

Rohit Chopra, former director of the CFPB under the Biden administration, is sworn in as secretary of the new California Business and Consumer Services Agency.
Amalgamated Bank of Chicago names Cherie Duve executive vice president and chief legal officer.
Ramon M. Rodriguez joins USCB Financial Holdings and U.S. Century Bank as an independent director, and more.

Chopra to lead new Calif. consumer services agency

On July 2, Governor Gavin Newsom announced the swearing in of Rohit Chopra as secretary of the California Business and Consumer Services Agency, a new state agency to protect consumers, support entrepreneurs and small businesses, and promote a fair, competitive economy.

The agency consolidates dozens of boards, bureaus, and departments to improve coordination and enforcement across sectors that touch the daily lives of Californians — from financial services and healthcare to real estate, retail, hospitality, agriculture, and higher education.

"California is stepping up at a moment when too many people throughout the nation are facing rising costs, hidden fees and growing uncertainty," Governor Newsom said in a statement. "I am proud to welcome Rohit Chopra, who has spent his career fighting for working families, protecting consumers, and holding powerful interests accountable."

Chopra previously served as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and as a commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission. –Traci Parks

ABOC promotes Cherie Duve to EVP, chief legal officer

Amalgamated Bank of Chicago announced the promotion of Cherie Duve to executive vice president and chief legal officer. She is the first woman to hold this position in ABOC's history.

Throughout Duve's 15 years with the bank, she has played a critical part in supporting its strategic direction. In her new role, she will continue to oversee ABOC's legal and corporate trust departments while serving as a key member of the bank's senior leadership team.

Nick Weaver, CEO and president of ABOC, said the promotion reflects Duve's impact on the organization, and "our confidence in her continued leadership as ABOC grows and evolves."

ABOC is a full-service bank founded in 1922 by the Amalgamated Clothing Workers Union. It remains a premier financial institution for labor unions while serving businesses, organizations, institutions and individuals throughout Chicago and beyond. —Traci Parks

Rodriguez joins board of USCB and US Century Bank

Ramon M. Rodriguez has joined USCB Financial Holdings and U.S. Century Bank as an independent director, the firms announced after their annual meeting of shareholders held on May 26.

Rodriguez brings nearly four decades in South Florida's financial services industry to his new role. Most recently he was market president, Miami-Dade County, for Seacoast Bank. Prior to Seacoast, he served as president of Apollo Bank, where he led all commercial operations and played a key role in growing the institution from approximately $700 million to more than $1.1 billion in assets prior to its acquisition.

Board Chairman, President and CEO Luis de la Aguilera praised Rodriguez's extensive experience in South Florida's banking market. "His proven leadership and deep understanding of our market will be invaluable as we continue to execute on our strategic priorities," De la Aguilera said in a press release. —Traci Parks

Scotiabank hires BofA’s Giroux as global head of infrastructure

Bank of Nova Scotia hired three people from Bank of America for its global infrastructure team, including Eric Giroux, who will head up the group.

Along with Giroux, Scotiabank added Haley Mann and Scott Villeneuve, with all three becoming managing directors, a spokesperson for the firm said in an email. Giroux has nearly four decades of experience and was most recently global head of infrastructure coverage at Bank of America.

Scotiabank offers clients services in infrastructure advisory, lending and capital markets, including leveraged finance and asset-backed securities. Giroux has relationships with many leading infrastructure investors globally, Scotiabank said, and Mann and Villeneuve have experience across infrastructure financing, mergers and acquisitions, and North American client coverage.

"Eric, Haley and Scott bring sector expertise, longstanding industry relationships and advisory experience that will accelerate our growth, deepen engagement with the world's largest infrastructure investors and further strengthen our platform for clients globally," Travis Machen, group head of global banking and markets at Scotiabank, said in a statement. —Daniel Taub, Bloomberg News

Billionaire-backed Kotak Bank seeks new CEO as Vaswani to exit

Kotak Mahindra Bank said Chief Executive Officer Ashok Vaswani will not seek reappointment when his current term ends on Dec. 31, citing personal reasons.

The board has begun the process of selecting a new managing director and CEO and the succession will be completed within regulatory timelines, the bank said in an exchange filing on Saturday.

Vaswani was an unconventional choice to lead one of India's biggest private lenders. In 2023, the Reserve Bank of India approved the former Barclays and Citi executive over internal candidates, marking a rare instance of an Indian bank appointing an outsider as chief executive. His selection surprised analysts and senior executives, many of whom had expected investment banker K.V.S. Manian to succeed billionaire founder Uday Kotak.

Even after taking charge in January 2024, Vaswani remained overshadowed by Kotak, who remains the bank's largest shareholder and a non-executive director. —Abhishek Shanker, Bloomberg News