OnDeck appointed Kenneth A. Brause chief financial officer effective March 26, 2018, as part of a mutually agreed upon transition process between the company and current CFO Howard Katzenberg. Katzenberg will serve as an advisor to OnDeck until April 13, 2018.
“We are excited to welcome Ken to OnDeck and look forward to benefitting from his financial expertise and proven track record leading sophisticated financial services operations,” said Noah Breslow, OnDeck’s chairman and CEO. “We are deeply grateful to Howard for his many contributions to OnDeck over the last decade, including nearly six years as our Chief Financial Officer. Howard has helped position OnDeck for our next phase of growth and profitability and we wish him the best in his future endeavors.”
Katzenberg said, “The last 10 years at OnDeck have been truly remarkable, and I take great pride in the company we’ve built. OnDeck’s business is now well positioned to drive significant shareholder value, and I wish Ken much success in his new role.”
Brause will join OnDeck with more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry. Most recently, Brause served as executive vice president and treasurer of CIT Group and CIT Bank with responsibility for all areas of CIT’s Treasury function, including funding and liquidity, investments, balance sheet management and capital management. Prior to becoming treasurer, Brause was chief financial officer for CIT’s North America Banking group with responsibility for overseeing all financial aspects of the company’s Commercial Services, Corporate Finance, Equipment Finance, Factoring and Consumer Banking activities. Brause previously served as the president of CIT’s Small Business Lending group, managing the firm’s SBA lending activities, and also served as the integration lead for CIT’s purchase of OneWest Bank, as well as CIT’s head of Investor Relations.
Earlier in his career, Brause was the investor relations officer for The Bank of New York and American General Corporation, and served as the vice president of Strategy & Development at Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey. After beginning his career at Booz, Allen & Hamilton, Brause spent 13 years at Bankers Trust in various financial roles, including head of Investor & Media Relations and as a principal in Debt Capital Markets.
Brause said, “OnDeck is the clear leader in online small business lending, and I am very pleased to join Noah and the rest of the team at such an exciting time in the company’s evolution and growth trajectory.”
