Helping the Healthcare Industry Achieve Its Mission of Improving People’s Lives

Originally published on U.S. Bank company blog

After being raised by a mother who was a hospice nurse and a father who was a middle school counselor, Joe Kight might have seemed like an unlikely candidate for a career in banking, but that’s exactly what he’s had.

“You can imagine we didn’t talk a lot of business at the dinner table when I was growing up,” said Kight, who manages the Corporate Banking Healthcare – For Profit division at U.S. Bank.

After graduating from the University of Nevada, Reno, Kight moved to San Diego, where he answered an ad to manage a local bank branch. He got the job – and never looked back.

“Going into banking was an eye-opener for me and, frankly, it was amazing,” Kight said. “I had grown up playing sports my whole life, and it was fun to get back into a team environment. It was extremely rewarding.”

Kight enjoyed working with business owners during his time as a branch manager, and that led to him moving into commercial banking, serving middle market companies.

After taking a break during the financial crisis of 2008 to earn his MBA degree, Kight returned to the industry, eventually joining MUFG Union Bank’s commercial banking group in 2016.

In that role, Kight began partnering with large healthcare companies, including medical device manufacturers.

“It's exciting to work with companies that are really trying to improve people's lives,” Kight said. “As a bank, we can help these companies grow in different ways, and that can be very gratifying.”

When U.S. Bank acquired MUFG Union Bank in late 2022, Kight was selected to take on his current role. The Healthcare – For Profit division serves a range of clients, including medical device manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, healthcare service providers, health information technology and more.

“U.S. Bank is a leader in healthcare banking. It has supported the industry for more than a century – almost as long as it’s been a bank – and has best-in-class solutions. Joining this group was a tremendous opportunity,” Kight said.

“When you think about the healthcare cycle, you have insurance companies involved, consumers and, obviously, the providers,” he said. “They all have to work together, and all the links in the chain have to connect.”

As just one example, Kight said, U.S. Bank has products such as AP Optimizer™, which helps companies manage payments to suppliers, vendors and employees in a way that is most efficient and cost effective for them.

Another strength, he said, is the bank’s approach to serving clients.

“Our relationships are strong and our knowledge is deep,” Kight said. “On average, our relationship managers have over 20 years of experience. They are extremely seasoned bankers who understand the nuances of healthcare, including the regulatory issues and how the healthcare ecosystem fits together.”

Kight said he enjoyed working for MUFG, but he’s happy to work for the company that was once the competition.

“U.S. Bank serves its clients extremely well,” he said. “No matter what organizations need to operate more efficiently, minimize risk, grow and transform, we can deliver.”

U.S. Bank has served healthcare organizations for more than 100 years, delivering innovative solutions to help clients of all types and sizes meet their financing, operational and investment goals so they can focus on their core mission. In addition to its support of mid-sized and large healthcare organizations, the bank recently launched a new healthcare program – including a specialized, comprehensive offering that brings banking, payments and wealth-management capabilities to healthcare practices with up to $25 million in annual revenue. Read the press release.