The Most Powerful Women in Banking

Through weeklong mentoring trips to locales like Brazil, Haiti and Somalia, senior female executives at B of A are teaching other women the finer points of running a small business.

Whether it's raising money to build schools in Africa or creating programs internally to help advance the careers of women, the dozen women's networks at U.S. Bancorp strive to make a real difference in women's lives.

Like all banks, BMO Harris is trying to keep ahead of demographic and technological shifts that are transforming retail banking, and its female leaders are spearheading many of the initiatives it has underway.

A formal mentoring program Zions started in 2009 has helped to advance the careers of hundreds of women — and some men — inside the bank. Now Zions' top women leaders are sharing what they've learned with other firms in hopes of preventing women from leaving the workforce.

The decision to leave Charles Schwab for a startup seemed crazy, especially since Carrie Dolan wasn't entirely sure, when a headhunter first called to recruit her for Lending Club, precisely what peer-to-peer lending was. But now her move looks like a good one.