Promotions Made at Arkansas Capital Corp.

Sam Walls III

Sam Walls III, who became CEO of Arkansas Capital Corp. of Little Rock in January, isn’t the only one moving up.

Whispers has learned that Executive Vice President Leslie Lane has been promoted to president and Senior Vice President Craig Calafati has been promoted to executive vice president of lending.

Walls said he’s been working with Lane for the past 17 years and together they built out the project finance side of the nonprofit, “a very big piece of what we do.” It’s also involved in lending and entrepreneurial education.

Lane has nearly 30 years of experience. Arkansas Capital said he played a key role in its growth into a prominent Community Development Finance Institution, participating in tax credit financing activity exceeding $620 million for borrowers in Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota and Oklahoma.

In his new role, Lane will continue to oversee tax credit financing and be more involved in the firm’s lending programs as the company expands its geographic footprint to support small business in the mid-South.

Calafati joined Arkansas Capital Corp. in 2020 and has 30 years of experience in commercial sales, leasing and lending. He helped grow Silver State Bank of Las Vegas into a multistate operation and Celtic Bank of Salt Lake City into one of the top 10 Small Business Administration lenders in the country.

Walls said Arkansas Capital is growing its lending team, considering expanding its market outside Arkansas and developing new lines of business, including a return to venture capital.

“Certainly, over the course of this year and going forward, we’re going to make some announcements” related to economic development activity and helping entrepreneurs from underserved populations access capital, Walls said.