Our Leadership

Director, Chief Executive Officer and President of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer and President of Oakwood Bank

Mr. Salley’s 38 years of banking experience is a story of consistent success in positions of increasing responsibility encompassing a wide range of banking operations. Roy has chartered and capitalized two banks which achieved and maintained profitable operations and grew organically and through successful acquisitions. He has turnaround and nonperforming asset liquidation experience. Roy has a long track record of prudent lending in commercial real estate and C&I sectors. Roy is a seasoned CEO who is well regarded by bank regulators and well respected by his peers.

In 1998, Mr. Salley formed First Mercantile Bank, N.A., in Dallas, raising $28 million in two offerings at $10.00 and $17.50 per share respectively. The bank reached $100 million in total assets at the end of the first year and was profitable within six months of its opening. First Mercantile completed the acquisition of a bank with $60 million in total assets in 2001. By 2002, First Mercantile had grown to $400 million in assets and operated four locations in Dallas and two in Austin, Texas. Colonial Bank targeted First Mercantile for its initial entry into Texas and acquired the bank in 2002 for $55 per share, a phenomenal return for First Mercantile shareholders.

Mr. Salley stayed on as CEO of Colonial Bank’s Texas operations, growing total assets to $850 million and the number of locations to twelve. Under Mr. Salley’s leadership, Colonial Bank’s Texas Regions were consistently ranked as the top performing regions in the twelve regions that Colonial operated in Texas, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, and Nevada.

In October of 2003, Mr. Salley again headed an organizing group which chartered a de novo commercial bank, Sovereign Bank in Dallas. Mr. Salley served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer. The bank raised $38 million in capital at $10.00 per share and opened in July of 2004. The bank completed two additional offerings at $20.41 per share and $22.00 per share. Again, under Roy’s leadership, the bank was profitable within six months and the bank achieved phenomenal growth with over $700 million in total assets, while still maintaining a strong credit culture in difficult economic conditions.

In April of 2009 Roy stepped down as CEO to focus on acquisitions opportunities and strategic planning. In May of 2010 he resigned as Chairman to take a position with Commerce Street Capital as Managing Director for their Investment Banking division, where he was focused on mergers and acquisitions, raising capital, growth strategy, as well as turnarounds of troubled financial institutions.

Most recently, prior to joining Oakwood, Mr. Salley served as President of the North Texas Region of Spirit of Texas Bank, SSB, College Station, Texas. After joining Spirit of Texas in 2013, he helped raise $12 million in new capital for the bank; opened two new locations as well as assist in the purchase of another; grew the region to approximately $160 million in total assets and managed the lending operation in the area. Additionally, Mr. Salley was a member of the executive management committee and an advisory board member of Spirit of Texas. He received a BBA degree from Texas A&M University and holds multiple securities licenses.

Director of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director and Chief Credit Officer of Oakwood Bank

Mr. Bentley has over 40 years of banking experience, primarily in the lending area. He began his banking career in 1977 as a commercial lender with Central Bank of the South in Birmingham, AL. after an extensive management and commercial lending training program. In 1982, he joined Republic Bank, Dallas as a vice president responsible for a multi-man team of corporate lending personal. In 1988, he joined Texas Commerce Bank as an executive vice president responsible for sales and marketing of banking services as well as lending to domestic commercial clients. In 1991 he founded Landmar Resources, Inc., which makes financial and energy investments, with an emphasis on purchasing non-operated oil and gas production and minerals rights and other equity investments in businesses.

In addition, Mr. Bentley continued his relationships in the Dallas banking community. In 1997, Mr. Bentley was the founding Chairman of the Board and director of a de novo bank, First Mercantile Bank, N.A., Dallas. While with First Mercantile, Mr. Bentley was a member of the investment committee, executive committee and chairman of the Directors Loan Committee with the authority to approve all loans over $500,000. First Mercantile was sold to Colonial Bancgroup in 2002, and he remained involved until 2007. Currently Mr. Bentley is the Chief Credit Officer to Oakwood Bank and is a founding (2017) director of both the Bank and the holding company, Oakwood Bancshares. He received his BBS in economics from Auburn University and is a 1985 graduate of the Southwestern School of Banking at Southern Methodist University.

Director and Chief Financial Officer of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director and Chief Financial Officer of Oakwood Bank

Ms. Salls joined Oakwood as EVP/Chief Financial Officer in January 2018 and has enjoyed a career in banking that spans over 35 years. Her current responsibilities include oversight of all financial operations, as well as Information Technology, Deposit and Branch Operations, and Audit and Compliance. She also serves on the ALCO, Audit (non-voting) and Budget Committees of Oakwood.

Prior to joining Oakwood, Ms. Salls served as EVP/CFO of United Texas Bank, a $450 million state-chartered commercial bank based in Dallas, Texas from January 2015 – January 2018. Responsibilities encompassed oversight of all financial operations of the company, including strategic planning and annual budget preparation, cash management and liquidity, investment activities, and management of Asset/Liability Management processes (as the ALCO chair), Information Technology, bank security, and vendor management. Prior to that, Ms. Salls was CFO of SP Bancorp, the NASDAQ-listed (SPBC) holding company of SharePlus, a state chartered commercial bank based in Plano, Texas. During her tenure, SPBC completed a successful IPO in October 2010, culminating in the listing on NASDAQ and ultimately, stock appreciation of almost 200% in 4 years. Responsibilities encompassed oversight of all financial operations of the companies, including facilitation of all SEC and Regulatory reporting, Sarbanes-Oxley control environment, strategic planning and annual budget preparation, cash management and liquidity, investment activities, and management of ALM processes, serving as Chair of the ALCO committee. Ms. Salls tenure lasted almost ten years, concluding with the sale SPBC and SharePlus to Green Bank in October 2014. Prior to joining SPBC, Ms. Salls served as SVP/CFO of Mercantile Bank & Trust in Dallas. Ms. Salls is a CPA and started her career as an auditor with KPMG, later transitioning into community banking in Lubbock, Texas before relocating to the DFW area.

Director of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director of Oakwood Bank

Mr. Montgomery was the Founding Partner of MCG and is currently the Managing Member of MCA. His primary disciplines include advanced tax planning and transactional services, including mergers, acquisitions, debt/equity financing for both public and private companies, and strategic and operational planning for large and medium sized businesses. Prior to forming MCG, Mr. Montgomery was responsible for starting and growing Beal Capital Markets, Inc., an investment subsidiary of Beal Bank specializing in both public and private corporate finance products. When he left, Beal Capital Markets invested in excess of $2 billion in a diversified portfolio of high yield bonds and direct company investments.

Prior to joining Beal Capital Markets, Inc., Mr. Montgomery was the founding and managing partner of Montgomery Baggett & Drews LLP, a full-service CPA firm in Dallas. Tom’s primary activity with the firm was serving companies in tax, merger and acquisition and financing transactions. Mr. Montgomery is a Certified Public Accountant and graduated from Texas Tech University with a Masters of Science in Accounting and Taxation. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Director of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director of Oakwood Bank

Mr. Sherman is the co-founder of Stillwater Capital and oversees the company’s development and investment activities. Stillwater is a Dallas based real estate company with more than $500m in development and investment activity since 2009. Prior to forming Stillwater Capital, Sherman spent 10 years with Hillwood Development, a Perot Company. At Hillwood, Mr. Sherman served as a development manager, with responsibilities that included managing the development and construction of a large urban mixed-use project. Mr. Sherman also spent several years within Hillwood’s strategic investment group, focusing on both direct and third party joint venture investment opportunities. During the course of his career, Mr. Sherman has participated in the acquisition, development and disposition of real estate assets of various property types – including residential, hotel, office and industrial – totaling more than $2.0 billion dollars.

Director of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director of Oakwood Bank

Mr. Royall is a significant investor in Oakwood Bancshares, Inc. Mr. Royall has served as CEO of Briarwood Capital Corporation for over 25 years. In this capacity, he has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in real estate as well as private companies. Mr. Royall’s extensive experience in management and real estate investment experience will benefit the Bank’s corporate governance, enterprise and operational risk management.

Director of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director of Oakwood Bank

Mr. Alegnani brings 20 years of experience as a certified public accountant to the Bank’s board of directors. He also has prior bank director experience through his nine years of service as a director of Independent Bank of Texas, Irving, Texas, prior to its sale to Veritex Bank. Mr. Alegnani adds administration and operational management experiences, as well as corporate governance expertise to the board of directors. His experience and qualifications provide sound leadership to the Board of Directors. In addition, as a certified public accountant, Mr. Alegnani brings strong investment, accounting and financial skills important to the oversight of our financial reporting, enterprise and operational risk management.

Director of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director of Oakwood Bank

Mr. Westerman has successfully owned and managed businesses. He also has prior bank director experience having served as a director of Vintage Bank, Waxahachie, Texas from 2007 through 2015 when Vintage Bank was acquired by InterBank. Mr. Westerman has significant risk management, and strategic planning skills. In addition, he brings strong energy lending and financial skills important to the oversight of our financial reporting, enterprise and operational risk management.

Chairman of the Board, Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director of Oakwood Bank

Mr. Hall has over thirty-five years of experience in entrepreneur ownership, banking, business consulting and private equity. Mr. Hall oversees the operations of Align Capital, LLC, where he participates in portfolio oversight, the origination of investment opportunities and underwriting efforts. Mr. Hall is an alumnus of Ernst & Young, a multinational professional services firm. Additionally, Mr. Hall has extensive franchise experience and has owned and operated multi-unit franchises of various national brands since 1986. He served, for multiple terms, as the President of the Texas Dairy Queen Operators’ Council, representing over eight-hundred units in Texas. Also, Mr. Hall has owned and operated community banks in Texas, a nationwide transportation company, financial services companies, manufacturing companies, and real estate investments.

Director of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director of Oakwood Bank

Ms. Brooks is a Senior Managing Director on the Private Equity team of Commerce Street Investment Management. Ms. Brooks has been with Commerce Street since its inception. Having built a successful career over the last 30 years in bank regulation and oversight, Ms. Brooks has played an integral role in developing Commerce Street’s fund management business. She serves as an Assistant Portfolio Manager as well as a member of the Investment Committees of Commerce Street Keefe Ventures Funds III, LP and Commerce Street Keefe Ventures Funds IV, LP. Ms. Brooks is also a member of the investment committee of Commerce Street Peak Advisors, which provides solutions for 401(k), 403(b) and 457 plans. Ms. Brooks held a similar position with its predecessor company, SAMCO Capital Markets, Inc., which she joined in 2002. In addition, she serves as a director of Gold Coast Bancorp, Inc. and its subsidiary Gold Coast Bank located in Islandia, NY. Her previous positions were with California Federal Bank, FSB, where she was First Vice President of Corporate Acquisitions in the Office of the Chairman; and KPMG, working in both the Regulatory Advisory and the Corporate Recovery Practices. Ms. Brooks spent seven years with the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas where she was the manager of applications processing in the supervision and regulation department. Ms. Brooks was ranked on American Banker’s annual 25 Most Powerful Women in Finance list from 2008 to 2010. In 2009, she was selected as an honoree for the Dallas Business Journal’s Women in Business Awards as one of the region’s most outstanding women business leaders. Ms. Brooks earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business and economics from Coe College in Iowa and has a Master of Science degree in finance from the University of Texas at Dallas. She is a licensed Certified Insolvency and Reorganization Accountant. Ms. Brooks is a registered representative and has passed the FINRA Series 7, 24, 79, and 66 examinations.

Director of Oakwood Bancshares, Inc.
Director of Oakwood Bank

Mr. Casey is the managing director of CBI Assets LLC. He previously served as Chairman and CEO of Grand Bank of Texas, a position he held from 1989 - 2019. Mr. Casey has been a banking executive in DFW since 1975, and also serves on several boards, including the Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce, American Texan’s Can Academy, and Texan’s Cars for Kids. He also serves on the Methodist Hospital Dallas Advisory Board and is a Trustee for the Kessler School. Mr. Casey previously served two terms as a board member of the Independent Bankers Association of Texas.