Past Executive of the Year Winners
Since 2019, Auto Finance News each year selects an auto finance executive to profile in the December issue of its magazine for notable contributions to the industry during the calendar year. We also highlight several Executives to Watch for the year ahead.
The Auto Finance Executive of the Year is chosen based on nominations by members of the industry and the senior editorial team at Auto Finance News. Executives are considered based on experience, leadership, vision and ability to shake up the industry with an innovative, forward-thinking approach to auto finance.
Past award-winners include:
2024: Measuring adaptability: Marcelo Brutti, Auto Finance News Executive of the Year
Hyundai Capital America President and Chief Executive Marcelo Brutti leaned into adaptability in 2024 as he supported HCA’s three tenets of growth, diversification and innovation. Brutti leveraged his experience as a chief risk officer to plan for changes in the market and ensure the captive adapts to the needs of its OEMs, dealers, customers and employees. HCA’s portfolio grew in tandem with a rise in sales for most of the year at Hyundai Motor America.
In addition, four executives to watch in 2025 were selected. Toyota Financial Services Chief Executive Scott Cooke; John Hyatt, executive vice president of dealer services at U.S. Bank; Ally Financial CEO Michael Rhodes; and Petar Vucurevic, senior vice president of financial services at American Honda Finance Corp.
2023: Staying the course: Dan Berce, Auto Finance Executive of the Year
Dan Berce, who has been at the helm of AmeriCredit since 2005 and GM Financial since 2010, when General Motors acquired the subprime lender following the credit crisis, in 2023 stayed the course on the captive’s value proposition, driving year-over-year origination growth every quarter in a market that was defined by pullback — or outright exit — from auto lending.
In addition, seven executives to watch in 2024 were selected. They are: Birgit Boehm, chief executive at BMW Financial Services; Peter Henn, president and CEO at Mercedes-Benz Financial Services USA; Betty Jotanovic, president of Chrysler Capital and auto relationships at Santander Consumer USA; Mike Lavin, president, chief operating officer and chief legal officer at Consumer Portfolio Services; Alex Liegl, co-founder and chief executive at Tenet; Tom Shortt, chief executive at Vroom; and Vaibhav Taneja, chief financial officer at Tesla.
2022: Fabien Thierry, head of consumer and small business vehicle lending product, Bank of America
Fabien Thierry has since mid-2019 been tasked with creating the bank’s consumer- and small business-facing auto credit products and spearheading electric vehicle initiatives. Under Thierry’s leadership in 2022, Bank of America secured a private-label financing deal with Lucid Motors and the bank’s auto portfolio grew 31.3% to $50.7 billion since hitting a three-year low of $38.6 billion at the end of 2020, when COVID lockdowns muted vehicle sales across the country.
In addition, Jeff Butler, president of AutoNation Finance, and Jim Vagim, chief executive of United Auto Credit Corp., were selected as the 2023 executives to watch.
2021: Marion Harris, president and chief executive, Ford Motor Credit
Since returning to Ford Motor Credit as CEO in late 2019, Marion Harris has led the captive with a customer-first mentality through multiple record-breaking quarters despite market volatility spurred by the pandemic. In fact, Ford Credit posted more than $1 billion in earnings before interest in taxes in three of the last five quarterly reporting periods leading up to the end of 2021.
In addition, Amira Aly, director of financial services at Lucid Motors; Tommy Moore Jr., chief executive at Stellantis Financial Services; and Tanya Sanders, head of auto at Wells Fargo, were selected as executives to watch in 2022.
2020: Ravi Raghu, executive vice president of Capital One Auto Finance’s dealer auto business
Through Ravi Raghu’s leadership in 2020, Capital One Auto Finance logged strong performance in the first three quarters of the year despite the pandemic ravaging the industry earlier in the year. Capital One Auto Finance’s originations continued climbing on a YoY basis, even as the rest of the industry largely saw portfolio declines: Originations rose 23% to $7.6 billion in the first quarter, 13% to $8.3 billion in the second, and 10% to $9 billion in the third, landing the financier with a $65.4 billion portfolio. In October 2021 he became head of software at Capital One, and in July 2022 was promoted to president of Capital One software, international, business cards and payments.
In addition, Dan Berce, chief executive at GM Financial; Marion Harris, president and chief executive at Ford Motor Credit, and Marc Womack, former chief executive at TD Auto Finance, were selected as executives to watch in 2021.
2019: Doug Timmerman, president of auto finance, Ally Financial
Doug Timmerman, Ally Financial’s president of auto finance, was selected as the inaugural Auto Finance Executive of the Year. Timmerman first joined Ally — then General Motors Acceptance Co. — in 1986 and in 2019 was at the helm of an $80 billion auto portfolio. He was promoted to president of dealer financial services at the bank in summer 2021.
Under Timmerman’s leadership in 2019, Ally broke a company record in the second quarter when used-car originations hit $5.24 billion. Overall originations continue to climb as well, increasing 14% year over year to $9.3 billion in the third quarter.
In addition, Westlake Financial Group President Ian Anderson and former SunTrust Bank EVP and Head of National Indirect Auto Lending Chuck Jones were selected as executives to watch in 2020. Jones retired in Feb. 2023 following the completed merger of SunTrust Bank and BB&T into Truist.
