ORLANDO, Fla. -

As the auto lending industry continues to strengthen in an environment with more regulation, organizers of the 17th annual Vehicle Finance Conference & Exposition are again bringing together top executives who plan to share their perspective on the auto finance world.

Chris Stinebert, president and chief executive officer of the American Financial Services Association, said, “We try to put on a great program for educational content and highlight the speakers that we bring in that can tell the audience what is happening and bring them up to date.

“There certainly remains to be concerns about the federal government and state agencies increasing the regulatory environment, especially with the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,” Stinebert continued.

“And the attendees want to hear about what is happening, what is going on and what they can expect down the road,” he added.

One of the primary ways attendees will learn about what’s ahead is during the CEO panel, which will take place on the last day of the event which runs next Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at the Peabody Hotel in Orlando, Fla.

“That’s always an exciting feature to have, the CEOs panel. We change it up every year, to hear from the top what the leaders of the industry are thinking about,” said Andrew Stuart, chairman of the AFSA Vehicle Finance Division and president and CEO of VW Credit.

“We are in a real period of change in terms of technology,” Stuart continued. “I think there is a lot of opportunity coming at us and that is really going to be a theme of our conference — change, challenge and opportunity.

“The vehicle finance sector, that’s kind of a premier group within AFSA,” he added. “The vehicle finance division is a great forum for those of us in the industry to come together and look at various industry analysis and focus on regulatory and legislative issues that we all face.”

Another conference highlight includes a panel of franchised dealers who have leadership roles with the National Automobile Dealers Association.NADA’s annual Convention & Expo kicks into high gear as soon as AFSA’s finance event winds down.

Furthermore, a group of consumers who have auto debt are scheduled to share their experiences with the vehicle financing process — a conference element Stinebert thinks “could be very educational for the audience.”

In elaborating about conference events that include several other educational and networking sessions, Stinebert added, “We are going to focus a great deal on the consumer. It is a completely changing demographic out there. We have the Millennials, the Baby Boomers, Generation Y. They all want different things, and they all want it delivered in a different way.

“We’re trying to look forward to what vehicle finance lending is going to look like five to 10 years down the road and how we can prepare,” he concluded.

Vehicle Finance Conference & Exposition Agenda Highlights

THURSDAY, FEB. 7

8:30 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.

2013 Conference Chairman’s Remarks: Andrew Stuart, chairman of AFSA Vehicle Finance Division and president and CEO of VW Credit.

AFSA Future Initiatives: Chris Stinebert, president and CEO, American Financial Services Association.

Keynote Address: The New Political Landscape with Ed Gillespie, former counselor to the president and chairman of the Republican National Committee; and Terry McAuliffe, former chairman of the Democratic National Committee and founder and chairman of GreenTech Automotive.

10:45 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

NADA Leadership Panel: Top Issues for dealers this year featuring David Westcott, 2013 NADA chairman and president of Westcott Automotive in Burlington, N.C.; Forrest McConnell III, 2013 NADA vice chairman and president of McConnell Honda and Acura in Montgomery, Ala.; Todd Snell, NADA Regulatory Affairs Committee and CEO of Snell Motors in Mankato, Minn.; Lisa Wooten, regional director of financial services for Asbury Automotive Group in Greensboro, N.C.

11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Washington Update: Post-election insights on the implementation of the Dodd-Frank Act Bill with special emphasis on the CFPB and the FTC, featuring Richard Hackett, assistant director of installment and liquidity lending markets for the CFPB; Richard Hunt, president and CEO of the Consumer Bankers Association; Joel Winston, partner, Hudson Cook; Bill Himpler, executive vice president, American Financial Services Association.

1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Consumer “Town Hall” Session: a live focus group of auto finance customers will share their views on the vehicle- buying and financing experience.

2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Roundtable Sessions With Your Peers: Facilitated by industry leaders, participate in roundtable discussions on a variety of top issues such ancillary products, third-party servicing, military financing and more.

FRIDAY, FEB. 8

8:45 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.

CEO Panel: Hear from CEOs of four major auto finance companies who are confronting economic, political and marketplace uncertainties every day. The panel includes Dawn Martin Harp, president, Wells Fargo Dealer Services; Mark Kaczynski, president and CEO, Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp.; Bernard Silverstone, chief operating officer, Ford Motor Credit; Nick Stanutz, president, Huntington Bank.

10:15 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

Technology Trends in F&I: vAuto founder Dale Pollak will share how dealers and auto financing sources can work together to optimize the rising utilization of mobile devices as well as his views on how the vehicle purchase and finance processes require significant overhaul.

Nick Zulovich can be reached at nzulovich@autoremarketing.com. Continue the conversation with Auto Remarketing on both LinkedIn and Twitter.