2025 BankBeat Rising Stars in Banking: Caitlin McMahon

Banker helps small businesses in the Twin Cities thrive with the New Market Tax Credit programAt Sunrise Banks, Caitlin McMahon is known for ability to take on any challenge. .“She’s somebody whose entire career has been marked by a relatively rapid ability to ascend to her position at the bank partly because she’s very capable and not afraid of taking on a challenge,” said Sunrise Banks Senior Vice President and Director of Tax Credit Lending Mary Stoick. “She stands out a lot with a willingness to own her space.”Stoick met McMahon in 2015 at a different Twin Cities bank. Almost immediately, Stoick recognized McMahon’s emotional intelligence and confidence.McMahon worked in the hospitality industry prior to becoming a teller. Within her first year, McMahon joined the sales team and immediately saw a future in community banking. “I really enjoy the relationship-building side of being a banker,” she said. “I think that’s really important to me and something that draws me in this specific role and the work that we do.”In 2018, she joined Sunrise Banks because of its mission to empower financial wellness. She now serves as an assistant vice president and commercial loan officer. McMahon wants to use her position to contribute to the financial wellness of the communities she grew up in.McMahon is being recognized as a 2025 Rising Star through BankBeat magazine’s annual recognition program. She has become an essential member of Sunrise Banks’ New Market Tax Credit Program service. The federal program focuses on distressed census tracts — areas with high poverty, lower-than-average median income, or high unemployment — and incentivizes economic development. McMahon works with people in her community to revitalize areas with new businesses. “The projects that we invest in are seeking to bring goods and services that will help uplift communities,” McMahon said. “Like a medical clinic in a medical desert or a grocery store with healthy foods in a food desert.”Sunrise Banks received its eighth award from the program this year. Stoick said the bank started applying to the program in 2011 and has worked on 88 projects. The projects have renovated and rehabilitated more than 2.5 million square feet of real estate in the Twin Cities. “Our lending program has provided almost $500 million in capital to these projects and that’s contributed to the creation of over 7,500 jobs,” Stoick said. “This is a national program that goes across the country, but the economic impact honestly cannot be overstated. We’re really fortunate that we have somebody like Caitlin on the team to help us make it happen. It doesn’t happen without good people.” Working with the New Market Tax Credit Program requires many meetings across Sunrise Banks, McMahon said. She has weekly meetings with different bank teams to keep everyone updated on the project’s development, from the appraisal to the construction team.“We really emphasize the importance of teamwork and communication, and I think it’s recognized across the bank that it enables us to do some of these bigger, more complicated projects much more efficiently,” she said. Some of the projects have resulted in areas no longer being distressed by census metrics. McMahon said the changes in communities as a result of new businesses has been powerful and keeps her excited to work with new people on more projects. McMahon said her favorite part of her job is working closely with customers to make their goals come true. When she’s close to closing a transaction, McMahon said she calls her customers daily to keep them in the loop and make sure their needs are being met. Stoick said McMahon’s collaboration at every level makes her stand out. Her attention to detail and commitment to communication helps the team and its projects thrive.“I have rarely found a person more committed to doing the right thing and finding a solution than her,” Stoick said. “She will show up and get the job done and that’s impressive. Not everybody has that level of commitment.”McMahon continues to build her community outside of the bank as well. She works with the Saint Paul Area Chamber of Commerce’s leadership development program and co-chairs the curriculum committee. She graduated from the program in 2023 and said giving back to it helps her continue to build networks around the city and stay in contact with the community. As she celebrates 10 years in banking, McMahon is ecstatic to continue building relationships and finding new opportunities for the bank to help customers succeed.“For me, community banking in general is about relationship building,” she said. “Personally, it’s super important to the work that I do every day to empower financial wellness and bring financial wellness into underserved communities. When people have access to financial institutions and industries, they are able to empower themselves and their businesses to grow and be the best versions of themselves that they possibly can be.”