Brad T. Howes
About Brad T. Howes
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Northpointe Bancshares, Inc. and Northpointe Bank; age 45; joined in 2023 to lead finance and accounting after >23 years in financial services across Comerica, Flagstar, Umpqua, TCF, and West Shore Bank; B.S. in Business Administration (Central Michigan University) and J.D. (University of Detroit Mercy School of Law) . Company revenues declined year-over-year during his tenure (see table below*) *.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northpointe Bancshares/Bank | EVP & CFO | 2023–present | Oversees finance and accounting; corporate reporting and oversight |
| West Shore Bank | Chief Financial Officer | 2021–2023 | Led financial strategy and reporting for community bank |
| TCF Bank | Sr. Finance Manager, FP&A | 2019–2021 | Drove planning/analysis; performance management |
| Comerica Bank; Flagstar Bank; Umpqua Bank | Various leadership roles (Director IR, Sr. Finance Manager FP&A, CFO) | Not disclosed | Investor relations, FP&A, and executive finance leadership across institutions |
External Roles
No external public company directorships or committee roles are listed in the executive biography for Mr. Howes .
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount/Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Base Salary | $300,000 | Initial term set by Employment Agreement approved June 26, 2025 |
| Target Annual Bonus | 50% of base salary | Initial annual bonus target established in Employment Agreement |
| Actual Bonus Paid (latest disclosed) | Not disclosed | No specific payout disclosed for Mr. Howes |
Performance Compensation
| Metric/Vehicle | Weighting | Target | Actual/Payout | Vesting/Timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Cash Bonus | Not disclosed | 50% of base salary | Not disclosed | Annual; subject to plan terms |
Notes:
- Compensation committee oversight of executive compensation programs; FW Cook engaged in Dec 2024 to benchmark program design for IPO readiness .
- Timing of equity awards is governed by a predetermined schedule, but no specific equity grants for Mr. Howes are disclosed in the proxy; Special RSU Awards in Dec 2024 applied to named executive officers (Williams, Christel, Comps) only .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Beneficial ownership: Mr. Howes is not named among directors or named executive officers in the Security Ownership table as of April 4, 2025; his personal holdings are not disclosed in that table .
- Hedging/pledging: Company prohibits hedging, short-selling, derivatives, margin purchases, and pledging of Company securities by directors, officers, and employees; blackout periods and pre-clearance are required .
- Clawback: NYSE- and Rule 10D-1–compliant recovery of erroneously awarded compensation following restatements .
Employment Terms
| Term | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Employment start date | 2023 (joined NPB); current Employment Agreement approved June 26, 2025 | |
| Contract term | Initial 3 years; auto-renews for 1-year terms unless 90-day non-renewal notice | |
| Base salary | $300,000 | |
| Target annual bonus | 50% of base salary | |
| Severance (without cause / for good reason) | 1.0x of (base salary + greater of target bonus or 3-year average bonus) | |
| Change-in-control severance | 1.5x of (base salary + greater of target bonus or 3-year average bonus) if termination within 12 months post-CoC | |
| Health benefits post-termination | COBRA premiums paid for 18 months | |
| Restrictive covenants | 1-year non-compete and non-solicit; separation agreement with release required for severance | |
| Excise tax mitigation | “Best-net” approach (cutback vs paying excise tax), delivers higher after-tax to executive |
Company Performance During Tenure
| Metric | FY 2023 | FY 2024 | |---|---|---|---| | Revenues ($USD) | $95.067 million* | $71.223 million* |
*Values retrieved from S&P Global.
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance alignment: The CFO’s compensation emphasizes cash (base + annual bonus target) without disclosed equity awards for Mr. Howes in 2024, limiting direct equity alignment vs. NEOs who received Special RSU Awards . Governance mitigants include a robust clawback and prohibitions on hedging/pledging .
- Retention and change-in-control economics: Severance protection is moderate (1.0x base+bonus; 1.5x on change-in-control) with 1-year restrictive covenants and 18 months COBRA, supporting retention while avoiding excessive parachutes; no tax gross-ups (best-net cutback) .
- Insider selling pressure: Absent disclosed equity grants for Mr. Howes and with strict trading/pledging prohibitions and blackout pre-clearance, near-term selling pressure catalysts tied to vesting are limited for the CFO .
- Execution risk and track record: Howes brings >23 years of finance leadership across multiple banks (FP&A, IR, CFO roles), but company revenues declined year-over-year during FY 2024*, underscoring the need to monitor bonus metric design and forward operating performance under his finance leadership *.
- Governance quality: Independent compensation oversight and use of FW Cook for IPO benchmarking are positives; committee independence affirmed . Late Section 16 initial filings were acknowledged and subsequently remedied across reporting persons in connection with the IPO .