Executive Management

Vishal Garg is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Better Home & Finance, the AI home finance company. Vishal leads Better with the mission to make homeownership better, faster, and easier by building an AI-native technology platform that revolutionizes the entire homeownership journey.

Prior to founding Better, Vishal was the Founder of 1/0 Capital, an early-stage investment firm focused on investments in FinTech, data science and consumer products companies.

Vishal previously co-founded MyRichUncle.com, the first online student lender, which he started in 1999 with $30,000 at the age of 21 and built into the fourth largest publicly traded private student loan company in the US. Prior to MyRichUncle, Vishal was an investment banking analyst at Morgan Stanley & Co.

Mr. Garg holds a B.S. in Finance and International Business from New York University.

Kevin Ryan serves as Chief Financial Officer at Better, where he oversees all aspects of financial strategy, including capital structure, financial reporting, and investor relations.

Kevin has more than two decades of experience in financial services and investment banking, with leadership roles in capital markets and financial advisory. Prior to Better, he spent much of his career at Morgan Stanley, where he advised banks, FinTechs, and alternative finance companies on complex transactions.

He holds a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law and a B.A. from Rutgers University.

Nicholas Calamari serves as Better’s Chief Administrative Officer & Senior Counsel. He is responsible for internal governance, administrative operations, and senior legal counsel functions. Nicholas joined Better as General Counsel in 2015 and played a key role in guiding the company through its early growth and public company transition.

Previously, Nicholas was an attorney at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, where he specialized in complex commercial litigation. He holds a B.A. from Dartmouth College and a J.D. from Fordham University School of Law.

David Parrish serves as Chief Information Officer of Better, responsible for technology infrastructure, cybersecurity, and IT operations. He ensures Better’s systems are reliable, scalable, and secure — enabling the company to deliver a seamless digital experience to customers.

Paula Tuffin serves as Chief Compliance Officer and General Counsel at Better. She oversees the Company’s legal, compliance, and governance programs, ensuring Better operates responsibly in a highly regulated industry.

Before joining Better in 2016, Paula was Senior Litigation Counsel at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and a partner in litigation at Mayer Brown LLP. She earned her B.A. from Williams College and her J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Chad Smith serves as President and COO of Better.

Chad focuses on scaling operations, optimizing fulfillment, and integrating technology to drive efficiency and customer satisfaction.

He brings more than 20 years of experience in the mortgage industry, specializing in consumer-direct lending and operational transformation.

Before Better, Chad served as CEO of Mission Loans and held senior leadership roles at Caliber Home Loans (EVP, Consumer Direct & Portfolio Retention), loanDepot (President, Direct Lending), and LendingTree Loans (SVP of Production).

Ziggy Jonsson serves as SVP of Growth Engineering at Better, focused on customer acquisition, data infrastructure, and product innovation. His work centers on leveraging technology and analytics to accelerate user growth and improve platform performance.

Ziggy has spearheaded automation in mortgages, including Better’s proprietary systems like “Betsy” (its AI assistant) and Tinman, which streamline the loan process for customers and staff.

Patrick Kandianis serves as Better’s Head of Business Development, responsible for building strategic partnerships across independent mortgage banks, brokers, credit unions, and correspondent channels.

Prior to joining Better in 2025, Patrick was Senior Director of Lending Partnership Sales at Figure Lending, where he helped grow production to more than $12 billion. He also held leadership roles at First Marblehead Corp. and in other financial services firms. He earned a B.A. from Cornell University.