Donna Hart named Chief Information Security Officer at SMBC Americas

SMBC Americas brought on Donna Hart as Chief Information Security Officer, announced in March 2026; day-level precision has not been established from available coverage.

Foreign banking organizations' U.S. arms answer to both home-country supervisors and the Federal Reserve — a dual-regime CISO brief that has quietly become one of banking security's hardest jobs.

According to the company, Hart was a managing director based in Charlotte at the time of the announcement. CDO Magazine reports that Hart will oversee Americas cybersecurity strategy, collaborating with global information security leaders. According to the release, Hart joined the Americas Division of SMBC while the global firm keeps working to strengthen its Americas platform.

CDO Magazine reports that Hart has more than 30 years of experience in cyber risk management, technology infrastructure and information security. At Ally Financial, where she most recently served as CISO, Hart designed and implemented a program for enterprise information security and technology risk management, the company says. Before Ally, Hart spent more than two decades in progressively senior leadership roles at Wachovia and Wells Fargo, according to the release.

SMBC Group is headquartered in Tokyo and has a 400-year history, according to the company. The company says the group's financial services include consumer finance, credit cards, securities, leasing and banking. According to the company, the group has 120,000 employees and more than 150 offices in nearly 40 countries worldwide.

According to the company, SMBC Group's presence in the Americas spans Peru, the U.S., Colombia, Canada, Chile, Mexico and Brazil. The company lists SMBC MANUBANK, SMBC Capital Markets, Inc. and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. among the group's operating companies in the Americas.