The American Factoring Association (AFA) elected Cole Harmonson as its new board president. Harmonson succeeds Ryan Jaskiewicz and will serve the remainder of the term through June 2027.
“We are pleased to welcome Cole back into the role of President and look forward to his leadership,” Tania Daniel, executive director of the AFA and the International Factoring Association, said. “He has been a valued and engaged member of the AFA Board and brings extensive experience in financial services to this position.”
Harmonson is the co-founder and CEO of DARE Capital and has spent his entire career in the accounts receivable factoring and asset-based lending industry. He began his career in commercial banking in El Paso, Texas, in 1994. In 2019, Harmonson partnered with Debra Zukonik to acquire a portfolio of clients and launched DARE Capital with a bold vision to modernize factoring partnerships through its Backroom Services (BRS) program.
In addition, the AFA elected Hailey Benton-Thomas as its new board vice president. Since 2014, Benton-Thomas has held multiple leadership roles within the factoring industry, gaining comprehensive expertise across the full factoring lifecycle and earning a reputation as a knowledgeable and forward-thinking leader. In 2023, she co-founded Bison Payments in partnership with Bison Technologies, delivering innovative working capital solutions and tools tailored to the oil and gas sector.
“Hailey Benton-Thomas has been a prominent and influential voice in the factoring industry,” Daniel said. “As the former chair of the AFA’s government affairs committee, she played a pivotal role in the introduction of the CASH Act, demonstrating her commitment to advocacy and industry advancement.”
The AFA also announced that Reghan Grasty, general counsel and senior compliance officer at Apex Capital, will serve as the new chair of the government affairs committee.
“We are excited about these leadership changes and confident they will strengthen the AFA’s ongoing efforts to advocate for, educate and protect the factoring industry,” Daniel added.
