Between fielding calls from her daughter’s school and planning the next wave of technological innovations for the financial institution she runs, Minal Gupta, who lives just outside downtown Saratoga, recently took the time to speak with the Los Gatan about her new role.
After seven years at Star One Credit Union, Gupta has just been named the successor of Gary Rodrigues, adding “CEO” to the title of “president” she’s held since last year.
“I’m just honored to be honest with you,” she said in an afternoon telephone interview. “I take this extremely seriously.”
The selection was made by Star One Credit Union’s Board of Directors after a national search led by D. Hilton Associates.
Gupta played a big role in bringing new payment options to the credit union, like Zelle, Same Day ACH and FedNow.
And she brings with her executive experience from banks like Wells Fargo, Farmers and Merchants, and Citi. But it was a project she worked on—after completing a business degree from Cal State Fullerton—while at San Jose State University that perhaps best highlights her approach at Star One.
As part of a team assignment, she analyzed the strengths and opportunities for In-N-Out Burger, one of California’s best-loved brands, and presented the plan to the company—which went on to open stores in the locations they recommended.
But while she may have helped the corporation with some strategic thinking, their relatively decent (for a fast-food entity) approach to capitalism left an impression on her, too.
“I use that In-N-Out philosophy even here,” she said. “They focus on providing quality and a simple product set.”
All these years later, when she walks into one of those burger joints, the food is fresh and the workers are smiling, she said.
“And the service is top notch,” she said, adding that’s likely connected to the fact that the employees are paid a fair wage. “And the consumers gravitated towards that.”
As CEO, Gupta says she wants to embrace that philosophy.
“We don’t have that many checking accounts,” she said, drawing a parallel with the In-N-Out menu board. “I want to provide quality service.”
But it isn’t just about maintaining a tried-and-true approach to commerce, she added, reflecting on one pioneering initiative she was part of, while at Star One—helping launch the FedNow instant payment system.
“We are that progressive of a credit union,” she said. “We take risks and we provide solutions.”
And when the Silicon Valley set pushed for the adoption of Zelle, Gupta was listening.
“I was a vice president of remote services at the time,” she said, pointing out that many of their customers are CEOs and other top brass at area firms. “They want to move their money yesterday.”
Next up: introducing RTP from The Clearing House.
“It’s a real-time payment platform,” Gupta said, explaining that some financial institutions don’t use the FedNow network. “With a click of a button you can send a large sum of funds.”
While echoes of the failure of Silicon Valley Bank continue to reverberate around the region, Gupta promises that, despite being willing to try new things, under her tenure, financial stability will remain the name of the game.
“That’s always been our top priority, because that’s what builds trust,” she said.
When she’s not steering a 133,000-member-strong organization with more than $9.3 billion in assets, Gupta is hiking the trails in the area or hunting for fresh fruits and veggies with her kids and husband.
“I’m in the Los Gatos downtown every single weekend. Why? Because Los Gatos has the best farmers market,” she said, noting she loves one produce booth in particular. “They have the sweetest strawberries.”
And she loves the family-friendly atmosphere of the local community, she adds.
“It’s such a close network and a fun vibe,” she said.
