James "Chip" Mahan, CEO and chairman of Live Oak Bancshares, was given the Fintech Lifetime Achievement Award at the Technology Association of Georgia's (TAG) Fintech South 2019 conference last month.

Previous recipients of this distinction nominated Mahan, who was "selected for his successful history of founding and leading banking and financial technology organizations," according to a news release.

In bestowing the honor, TAG officials cited Mahan's creation of "an ecosystem of fintech partners to fulfill the bank’s mission of providing customers an unprecedented banking experience through service and technology," the release stated.

"Mahan took Live Oak public in 2015 and the company was ranked #1 on American Banker’s Best Banks to Work For list five years running. He is a founding creator of nCino, the cloud-based bank operating system, that was part of Live Oak Bank until it was spun off into a separate company in 2012."

Also mentioned was the fact that Mahan founded the first internet-only bank, Security First Network Bank. He served as CEO and chairman for S1 Corp., Security First Network Bank’s technology arm.

"Under his leadership, S1 Corporation grew to become a $234 million software and services provider in just six years, averaging more than 200 percent growth year-over-year," the release stated. "At its peak, S1 Corporation had a market capitalization of $7.8 billion. During his term as CEO, Mahan was ranked as one of the 10 Most Influential Personalities in Financial Services by FutureBanker magazine.

"Prior to his venture with Security First Network Bank, Mahan launched Cardinal Bancshares, serving as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, building it into an institution with $800 million in total assets and taking the company public in 1992."

TAG, a technology industry association, serves more than 35,000 members through regional chapters in Georgia. Its mission, according to the release, is to "educate, promote, influence and unite Georgia’s technology community to foster an innovative and connected marketplace that stimulates and enhances a tech-based economy."