Business Chief USA June 2019

ALTERNA
WITH A 110-YEAR HISTORY,
ALTERNA HAS MOVED WITH
THE TIMES TO TAKE ON
BIG BANKING PLAYERS –
CEO ROBERT PATERSON
EXPLAINS HOW IT STILL RETAINS
ITS COMMUNITY VALUES
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D
escribing himself as a ‘career banker’,
Rob Paterson has been in financial services
for almost 30 years. From building a bank
in Vietnam to working for names such as JPMorgan
Chase and CIBC, his latest role is President and CEO
at a Canadian Credit Union that is developing a truly
digital experience from the foundations of
a century old legacy. Founded in 1908, Alterna
Savings offers services across a network of
35 branches in Ontario – not counting its digital
offering, Alterna Bank, which is available nationwide.
Alterna, Paterson believes, can be David taking
on Goliath in the banking world, all thanks to digital
transformation and disruption of the status quo.
“I’ve grown up around the world,” Paterson
comments. “I’ve always been looking at technology
and the evolution of banking on a universal and
global scale. At Alterna, it’s helped me take on this
organization that’s 110 years old and use my
knowledge and relationships around the world to
start looking at the next 110 years. In the last three
JUNE 2019