Our Story
Get to Know Choice Bank
We focus on building strong partnerships with our customers by providing quick answers, access to decision-makers, and solutions that work.
About Choice
Choice Bank began in 2001 with a simple focus: to serve the banking needs of small communities in North Dakota, enabling them to prosper for decades to come. Choice has since grown from a passionate group of rural, small-town banks into an influential force with over $5 billion in assets and team members serving customers across the nation.
Our commitment is to place relationships, human well-being, and customer satisfaction at the forefront. We support our customers as a team of trusted advisors who know and understand their business needs and challenges. We lead by building strong relationships, providing quick answers, and offering effective solutions.
Hybrid Banking
Our unique strength as a bank lies in our dual identity as both a community bank and a technology bank through our BaaS services. This combination not only sets us apart in the market but also contributes to a more resilient deposit base.
Community Banking
We lead as a PeopleFirst partner by building strong customer relationships that emphasize local decision making and a team approach, assuring customers of our confidence in their business and delivering on our commitments. Choice Bank excels in providing comprehensive financial solutions across various market segments: business banking, cash management, ag solutions, wealth management, personal banking, and home loans. Our tailored strategies and expert guidance ensure success and growth for businesses, individuals, and communities. Choice Bank is an SBA Preferred Lender in North Dakota and Minnesota and the #1 agriculture bank lender in North Dakota since 2014.
Banking as a Service (BaaS)
As a hybrid community bank, we believe having access to financial services is a human necessity. Since 2017, Choice Bank has provided Banking as a Service (BaaS) solutions, in which we directly integrate our digital banking services into the products of other non-bank businesses that serve underbanked populations. We build strong and scalable relationships through this direct integration model. This approach offers greater flexibility, allowing partners to customize and tailor their product and service offerings by working directly with Choice as both the bank and BaaS service provider.
Our Leadership
Guided by our People First approach—we’re proud that our roots are local, decisions are local and our leadership is local. Our executive team are represented in communities throughout our footprint and are the ones that lead our innovation and drive our passion.
Travis Barkve
Chief Strategy Officer & Reg Affairs
Golden Valley, MN
Lisa Dow
Exec Director of Corporate Relations
Fargo, ND
Dan Dvorak
Chief Legal Counsel
Golden Valley, MN
Barry Fife
Chief Credit Officer
Fargo, ND
Crystal Gateley
SVP, Controller
Bloomington, MN
Tony Gudajtes
Regional Banking President
Grafton, ND
Tim Heilman
Chief Innovation Officer
Fargo, ND
Cheryl Highstreet
Director of BaaS Operations
Tom Jasper
Chief Operating Officer
Golden Valley, MN
Brian L. Johnson
Chief Executive Officer
Grand Forks, ND
Brian P. Johnson
Senior Credit Officer
Golden Valley, MN
Jay Lies
Chief Banking Officer
Fargo, ND
Samantha Rinas
Chief Human Resources Officer
Grand Forks, ND
Mandy Sheeley
Chief Operations Officer
Fargo, ND
Shikhar Singh
Chief Technology Officer
Golden Valley, MN
Keith Sjostrom
Chief Audit Officer
Golden Valley, MN
Our board of directors brings a wealth of knowledge and diverse perspectives from various organizations. Their backgrounds span both smaller, locally-owned and operated companies, as well as larger, widely-known corporations
Jason Bristow
Director
Randy Bryan
Director
Kristi Carlson
Director
Paymon Farazi
Director
Andrew Jackson
Director
Brian L. Johnson
Director
Lauris Molbert
Chairman
Candace Muggerud
Director
Cathy Nash
Director
Marie Pillai
Director
George Wald
Director
John Wernz
Director
Like what you see?
Join our team!
We need amazing people to deliver our #PeopleFirst style of banking. Our employees support our customers and each other every day. We firmly believe it begins with our culture, our values, and our benefits. Check out our current openings.
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