Every concept lands with a working example, a tool the audience can open tomorrow, and a sentence they can quote on a board slide.
ii.
Built from the operator chair.
Stephen does not theorize. He ships. Seven brands, daily content, real revenue. The stories on stage are the projects he ran this month.
iii.
Audience first, always.
Custom intake before every event. The talk gets shaped to the room before the slides get cut. No off the shelf decks.
14
Years building
40+
Stages spoken
7
Active brands
1K+
Operators helped
Chief Operating Officer - Chief Marketing Officer · Fractional C SuitePillar Credit Union · Former CMODigiWealth · FounderDigiWealth Credit Union · Launching 2029614 Tech Week · FounderBlk AI · Co founderOnyx AI · FounderKuhnKur · Builder
Featured at
Stages, classrooms, boardrooms.
Recent and upcoming venues across stages, classrooms, and boardrooms in Central Ohio and beyond.
614 Tech Week
Tampa Bay Tech Week
Blockchain 2022
Blockchain Week Puerto Rico
Americas Credit Union Conferences
Columbus Chamber
Chambers of Commerce across Ohio
AI Ready Ohio
Ohio State
Middle and High Schools across Ohio
SBA Ohio
TechCred Summit
On stage
Stephen in the room.
A look at recent events, panels, and conferences across the country.
About
A rare bridge in financial technology.
Stephen Adams is a Fractional Chief Operating Officer - Chief Marketing Officer and C Suite executive helping founders and growth stage companies move faster. One of the few operators who has held CMO responsibilities at a traditional credit union while simultaneously building the infrastructure for crypto native banking.
As former Chief Marketing Officer at Pillar Credit Union, Stephen grew assets under management from $97 million to $127 million in three years and delivered the highest loan revenue ever recorded for the institution. He led brand strategy, community outreach, and member growth.
Since 2017 his DigiWealth consultation practice has educated individuals, families, and businesses on digital assets, scam prevention, DeFi fundamentals, and secure wallet setup. The next chapter is DigiWealth Credit Union, a fully chartered, NCUA insured institution designed for the crypto curious, slated to launch in 2029.
Signature talks
What Stephen speaks on.
Six core topics, calibrated for technical and non technical audiences. Each can be delivered as a keynote, fireside, panel, or half day workshop.
01
AI literacy for executives
Plain language frameworks for leaders who need to make AI decisions this quarter, not next year.
02
Stablecoins and the new digital wealth stack
What bank and fintech leaders actually need to know about stablecoin policy and the rails underneath it.
03
RevOps for founders
Aligning sales, marketing, and customer success into one operating system that scales without breaking the team.
04
The community to commerce playbook
How small in person moments become brand equity, ad inventory, and recurring revenue.
05
Web3 for the rest of us
Cutting through token noise to find the use cases that actually serve everyday operators.
06
Building a multi brand operator portfolio
The systems, calendars, and creative practices behind running seven brands without burning out.
Formats
How he shows up.
Keynote 45 to 60 minutes
Fireside chat 30 to 45 minutes
Panel or moderator 45 to 75 minutes
Half day workshop 3 hours
Virtual session 30 to 60 minutes
Executive briefing Private, 60 minutes
Audiences
Who he serves.
Founders and operators Seed to A
Bank and fintech leadership CDO and C suite
Workforce and ED boards Public sector
Universities and HBCU networks Faculty and students
Faith and community orgs Convenings
Government and policy Briefings
Personal story
The mission.
The thesis is simple. The next decade of opportunity belongs to people who can translate emerging technology into everyday workflows for everyone else.
That is the work Stephen has done since 2012. Turning unfamiliar tools into operating advantage for founders, executives, and communities that the technology industry usually skips past. Blk AI exists to make sure AI literacy reaches the people who built the culture every product borrows from. DigiWealth exists to make sure bank and fintech leaders can speak the language of digital assets before the regulatory moment passes them by. Onyx AI exists to make the credential layer real for working adults across Ohio.
Across all of it the promise is the same. Practice excellence in the art of business. Bring people inside. Send them home with tools.
Media kit
Everything press, hosts, and partners need.
Bios for any length. Headshots in print and web resolution. A one sheet PDF for circulating internally. Copy buttons next to each bio for fast paste into event programs.
Bio · Long form
Full biography
Approximately 220 words. Use for press releases, conference programs, and panel introductions.
Stephen Adams is a Fractional Chief Operating Officer - Chief Marketing Officer and C Suite executive serving founders and growth stage companies, and a rare bridge in the financial technology landscape. One of the few operators who has held CMO responsibilities at a traditional credit union while simultaneously building the infrastructure for crypto native banking.
As former Chief Marketing Officer at Pillar Credit Union, Stephen grew assets under management from $97 million to $127 million in three years and delivered the highest loan revenue ever recorded for the institution. He led brand strategy, community outreach, and member growth.
Since 2017, his DigiWealth white glove cryptocurrency consultation practice has educated individuals, families, and businesses on digital assets. While most were still asking what Bitcoin is, Stephen was already teaching scam prevention, DeFi fundamentals, and secure wallet setup. He did not chase the hype. He built trust through the bear markets.
That dual expertise points to an audacious goal. DigiWealth Credit Union, a fully chartered, NCUA insured financial institution designed specifically for the crypto curious, slated to launch in 2029. It represents the convergence of more than 14 years bridging leadership, strategy, and emerging technology.
Stephen also founded 614 Tech Week, evolving the Columbus startup and enterprise ecosystem, and co founded Blk AI, helping underserved communities take advantage of artificial intelligence. He served eight years on the Board of Directors for Matters Movement, a nonprofit providing vision assistance to underserved communities. A reminder that his bridge building extends to human impact, not just technology.
With more than 40 speaking engagements across fintech, blockchain, and business development stages, Stephen is known for translating complex technology into actionable insight. His philosophy is simple. Practice excellence in the art of business. No jargon. Just tools and results.
Based in Columbus, Ohio, Stephen Adams is proving that the future of finance is not traditional versus digital. It is both, built by people who understand both worlds.
Short biography · copy and paste
Stephen Adams is a Fractional Chief Operating Officer - Chief Marketing Officer and C Suite executive, former CMO at Pillar Credit Union, and founder of DigiWealth, a white glove cryptocurrency consultation practice serving individuals, families, and businesses since 2017. He is the founder of 614 Tech Week, co founder of Blk AI, and the architect of DigiWealth Credit Union, a fully chartered, NCUA insured institution for the crypto curious slated to launch in 2029. Based in Columbus, Ohio.
FAQ
Questions hosts ask first.
If your question is not here, write to mradams@digiwealth.io and you will hear back inside two business days.
What is your typical lead time?
Six to eight weeks is ideal for keynotes and workshops. Shorter windows are workable for fireside and virtual sessions. Local Central Ohio dates inside two weeks are often possible.
Do you accept virtual engagements?
Yes. Stephen runs a dedicated broadcast setup for virtual keynotes, webinars, and internal training. Recording rights are negotiated per engagement.
Can you customize a talk for our audience?
Always. Every engagement begins with a short intake call. Stephen reshapes the framing, examples, and tools to fit the audience before any slides are cut. Off the shelf decks are never used.
What is your speaking fee?
Stephen's speaking fee normally starts at $4,000 with travel expenses included. Discounted rates apply for HBCUs, nonprofits, faith communities, and youth programs. Send the booking form and you will hear back with a number that fits the engagement.
What is your travel policy?
Business Class travel is standard for all in person engagements. Ground transportation and accommodations are arranged per engagement. Two travel days are reserved around each in person event.
Do you do half day workshops?
Yes. The most requested formats are AI literacy workshops and digital asset workshops, typically delivered as three hour intensives for executive teams. Workshops are capped at thirty participants for hands on quality and include take home worksheets.
Stay close
Notes from the operator chair.
A short weekly note. What Stephen shipped, what he learned, and the one tool worth your attention. No fluff. Unsubscribe anytime.
Booking
Bring Stephen to your stage.
Tell us about the event. Stephen replies inside two business days for dates within 90 days, and inside a week for everything else.
The portfolio
The brands behind the work.
Each brand is a live operation with its own audience, content cadence, and revenue thesis.
