A top banker explains why he left Wells Fargo to join a tech company
When he was growing up he did a number of odd jobs for his parents' window tinting business. He told Business Insider that this upbringing instilled in him a love for innovation and entrepreneurship.
DeVall, who served as Senior Vice President of Wells Fargo for two years, recently joined Tipalti, a California-based fintech company that seeks to simplify business to business transactions. He joined the company in March as its director of alliances and business development after a career of more than a decade in banking.
The former banker, who oversaw the unit that expanded Wells Fargo's digital banking infrastructure, said his entrepreneurial drive was the main reason for the switch.
"I led the bank through the difficult period of the financial crisis and was able to leverage new technologies to drive growth without losing a single dollar," DeVall told Business Insider.
"Eventually, however, it got to the point where it was just too corporate for my liking," he said."The unit I ran has grown into a massive community that is larger than most regional banks."
Devall said after Wells Fargo merged with Wachovia, it became a truly global player. He played a key roll in fostering relationships with Salesforce, Oracle, and other tech brands. Indeed, he was introduced to Tipalti in his old role at Wells Fargo. In his new capacity at Tipalti he will be doing essentially the same thing, but on the other side.
DeVall's exit from Wells Fargo doesn't mean he has beef with the bank. He thinks the move reflects the new environment of partnership between fintechs and legacy firms.
"It's not about one beating out the other," he said."The relationship today is such that one can't exist without the other."
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