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Notable mortgage industry hires and promotions, Feb. 13-17

Rocket Companies announced that Bill Emerson will serve as interim CEO while the board of directors undertakes a search for a permanent replacement for the departing Jay Farner. Emerson currently serves as vice chairman of Rock Holdings, Rocket’s parent company.

American Pacific Mortgage (APM) announced a trio of executive leadership changes, with current CEO Bill Lowman moving to the newly created position of vice chairman, president Ned Payant ascending to CEO and executive vice president Dustin Sheppard promoted to president. In his new role as vice chairman, Lowman will focus on APM’s strategy and direction, balance-sheet and profit-and-loss management, key counterparty relationships, merger and acquisition activity, and his work on the board of directors of the Mortgage Bankers Association and the California MBA. Payant, the incoming CEO, has more than 30 years of experience, including the past 12 at APM, where he has served as senior vice president of operations, executive vice president of production and most recently as president. Payant will run the day-to-day operations of APM. Sheppard, the incoming president, brings 22 years of industry experience, having come through the ranks as a loan officer, branch manager, regional manager and most recently as executive vice president of national production.

Deephaven Mortgage added Aaron Drago as chief operating officer. Most recently, he was chief operations officer for the Southeast and Mountain West divisions of Guaranteed Rate. In his new role, Drago is responsible for the continuous optimization and performance of Deephaven’s daily operations, focusing on the twin goals of driving long-term, sustainable growth and maximizing the satisfaction of Deephaven’s wholesale customers and correspondent partners. He holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from Lehigh University.

Incenter announced that Joe Mowery has joined as senior vice president of enterprise business development. In his new position, Mowery is tasked with introducing C-level mortgage executives to Incenter’s various software products. Mowery, who is based in Denver, has more than 20 years of leadership experience in the mortgage and title industries. His previous positions include president of Title365 and other leadership roles with Cherry Creek Mortgage, Voxtur, LenderLive Network, First American Title Insurance Co. and several other national businesses.

LauraMac named Rick Seehausen as its new chief strategy officer. A mortgage executive with nearly 30 years of industry experience, Seehausen will be responsible for working with the LauraMac leadership team to develop the company’s vision and oversee strategic planning, including new and existing product development. From 2003 to 2017, Seehausen served as president and CEO of LenderLive. Most recently he served as vice chairman, president and chief operating officer at Cherry Creek Holdings, the parent company of Cherry Creek Mortgage, where he will continue to serve as vice chairman.

Vesey Street Capital Partners (VSCP) announced the appointment of Bryan Sekino to president and chief operating officer. Sekino joined VSCP in 2016 as chief financial officer and serves as a member of the firm’s investment committee. The firm also announced the promotions of Takako Togami to chief financial officer and Alex Chouraqui to vice president. Takako joined VSCP in 2021 as fund controller, while Chouraqui joined VSCP in 2020 as a senior associate for the firm.

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