Leadership

Leadership

Photo: Mark Casale

Mark A. Casale

CEO & Chairman

Mark A. Casale is the founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE: ESNT). Mr. Casale has more than 25 years of financial services experience, which includes senior roles in mortgage banking, mortgage insurance, bond insurance and capital markets.

Founded in 2008 by Mr. Casale with $500 million of equity funding, Essent Group Ltd. has grown to a market capitalization of approximately $5 billion and manages more than $200B of insurance in force. Under Mr. Casale’s leadership, Essent has become a leading mortgage insurer and reinsurer serving as a trusted and strong counterparty to lenders and GSEs and has enabled over two million borrowers to become homeowners. Mr. Casale continues to evolve the franchise using risk-based pricing and AI-driven analytics to support his core mission of prudently growing shareholder value and promoting affordable and sustainable homeownership.

Mr. Casale also champions Essent’s philanthropic mission, supporting local and national organizations centered around children, housing, health and education. He currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees for St. Joseph’s University, La Salle College High School and the Academy of Notre Dame de Namur.

A native of the Philadelphia region, Mr. Casale holds a BS in accounting from St. Joseph’s University and an MBA in finance from New York University.

Photo: Christopher Curran

Christopher G. Curran

President

Christopher G. Curran was named President of Essent Guaranty in December of 2021, having previously served as Senior Vice President of Corporate Development since 2011. Mr. Curran brings more than 25 years of mortgage insurance, mortgage banking and financial services experience in the areas of operations, financial management, pricing, secondary marketing, capital markets, investor relations and corporate development. Prior to joining Essent, Mr. Curran served as senior vice president of pricing and operations for another mortgage insurer and held leadership positions with JP Morgan Chase and Advanta.

As President, Mr. Curran will lead all operations of the MI company including Business Development, IT, Operations, Public Policy and Risk.

Mr. Curran began his career as a CPA with Arthur Andersen LLP, specializing in financial services and securitization and holds a BS in accounting from La Salle University.

Photo: Vijay Bhasin

Vijay Bhasin

Chief Risk Officer, Senior Vice President

Vijay Bhasin has served as Chief Risk Officer and Senior Vice President since 2009. Mr. Bhasin has significant mortgage finance industry expertise, including holding multiple senior management positions specializing in mortgage risk, modeling and analytics.

From 2006 to 2008, Mr. Bhasin served as a managing director of Countrywide Financial Corporation/Bank of America, a mortgage lender, with responsibility for capital assessment, asset liability management, counterparty credit risk measurement and structured credit analytics. Earlier in his career, he held several management positions with Freddie Mac, including vice president for credit and prepayment modeling, and held research positions with Fannie Mae and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

Mr. Bhasin holds a BS in mechanical engineering from the National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra, India, an MBA in finance and marketing from Southern Illinois University, and a PhD in finance from Indiana University, Bloomington.

Photo: Mary Gibbons

Mary Lourdes Gibbons

Chief Legal Officer, Senior Vice President, Secretary

Mary Lourdes Gibbons has served as Chief Legal Officer, Senior Vice President and Secretary since 2008. Ms. Gibbons has more than 20 years of experience in the mortgage industry.

From 2003 to 2008, Ms. Gibbons served as chief legal officer of Wilmington Finance, Inc., a mortgage lender. Ms. Gibbons began her career at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court and White and Williams LLP, a law firm. Ms. Gibbons mortgage-related experience includes senior roles at ContiMortgage Corp. and Advanta Mortgage Corp.

Ms. Gibbons holds a BS in marketing from St. Joseph's University and a JD from The Delaware Law School.

Photo: Ted Gray

Ted Gray

Chief Information Officer, Senior Vice President

Ted Gray has served as Chief Information Officer and Senior Vice President since 2009. Mr. Gray has more than 25 years of experience serving Fortune 500 companies in the area of information technology, including 17 years in mortgage and financial services.

Before joining Essent, Mr. Gray served as a vice president of business systems solutions, overseeing application development and delivery to enhance risk management capability and improve operational efficiency.

His experience also includes senior management positions with GMAC Mortgage, SunTrust Mortgage, and BearingPoint Consulting, where he focused on information technology strategy, architecture, delivery, and management.

Mr. Gray holds a BS in management information systems from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Photo: William D. Kaiser

William D. Kaiser

Chief Operations Officer, Senior Vice President

William D. Kaiser has served as Chief Operations Officer and Senior Vice President since 2009. Mr. Kaiser has more than 25 years of experience in the areas of operations, technology and finance.

Before joining Essent, Mr. Kaiser served as senior vice president of operations of a nationwide mortgage insurer, with responsibility for the field underwriting organization, centralized operations, quality assurance, and other service-related functions.

Prior to that, Mr. Kaiser served as vice president of business solutions for a nationwide mortgage insurer, where he developed and implemented solutions for improved business performance with an emphasis on advanced technology. Mr. Kaiser has also managed mortgage-lending retail and wholesale channels, as well as a broad range of staff support functions for financial services companies.

Mr. Kaiser holds a BS in business administration from Boston University.

"

David Weinstock

Chief Financial Officer, Senior Vice President

David Weinstock was named Chief Financial Officer in March of 2023 after serving as interim Chief Financial Officer since June 28, 2022, and as Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer since 2009.

Mr. Weinstock has over 25 years of experience in the areas of finance, accounting, and controls. Prior to joining Essent, he held senior management positions at Advanta Corp., including chief accounting officer and vice president of investor relations. Prior to Advanta, Mr. Weinstock was a senior manager at Arthur Andersen LLP.

Mr. Weinstock holds a BS in accounting from The Pennsylvania State University and is a certified public accountant.