Sr. Regional Manager / 1st VP

Washington Mutual Bank

Stephen Di Padua is a Greater Los Angeles Senior Regional Manager for Washington Mutual (WaMu), overseeing the Downtown Metro, South & South East Los Angeles, and East to the San Gabriel Valley. His direct reports are the managers of 20 stores in this territory with over 300 employees. He is responsible for ensuring WAMUs high level of customer service is deployed consistently through this network, while offering financial solutions to the constituents in his market. Stephen also ensures a connection with the community based activities through volunteer efforts from all the colleagues in his territory.

Stephen has been with WAMU since the acquisition of California based American Savings in 1996. With 18 years of banking experience, he has performed numerous roles within the financial centers; from a teller, to new accounts representative, to branch manager, to his current role as regional manager. He points to his time in the branches as having helped build the foundation for understanding the needs of the client.

Stephen was promoted to Regional Manager in 2002. His new role led him to Austin, Texas where he opened two DeNovo markets for WaMu - in Austin and San Antonio. Since 2002, Stephen and his team built 29 new financial centers and introduced the new teams to working with non-profit groups. He’s worked on local reading programs associated with the University of Texas and served on the board of American Sunrise,a non-profit focused on providing affordable housing, founded by former secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Henry Cisneros. As a Senior Regional Manager in Los Angeles, Stephen has assembled a team that has built a profound network in the non-profit community; creating a synergy to enhance local adult financial literacy, reading programs for children, and school savings programs for K-8 in public schools. He is dedicated to the improvement of underserved communities through the development of leaders, by providing financial empowerment, and creating wealth for his constituents.

Stephen attended the University of California Santa Barbara for his Bachelor's of Science in Environmental Science and most recently graduated from the Master Level program at the Pacific Coast Banking School at the University of Washington.