20 for the Next 20: Billy Pieper, American Savings Bank

A “bridge builder” who’s active on multiple boards, this senior VP and director of strategic partnerships leads the bank’s affordable housing programs.

Billy Pieper
Senior VP, Director of Strategic Partnerships, American Savings Bank

Growing up in Hawai‘i Kai, Billy Pieper was teased for being big for his age. These days, Pieper is still head and shoulders above many – but it’s because of his myriad accomplishments.

Pieper excelled in football and baseball at Kamehameha Schools and UCLA. He also played minor league baseball, and yes, that’s him on a trading card for the Spokane Indians. He graduated from UCLA and received an MBA from UH Mānoa, is an Omidyar Fellow and Pacific Century Fellow, and is a graduate of the First Nations’ Futures Program.

Before joining American Savings Bank in 2021, he held positions at Barclays Bank and Bank of Hawai‘i.

“In my current role, I’ve been tasked with addressing housing, because stable housing is the platform for everything else, driving what the community needs,” says Pieper. “We look for how we as a bank can use the levers and tools we have access to, to increase supply and inventory, and also to increase access by getting consumers ready to be able to buy.”

“Billy has a huge heart with a deep commitment to making Hawai‘i a better place,” says Ann Teranishi, president and CEO of American Savings Bank. “He has been an influential force in driving forward ASB’s affordable housing initiatives, including our ‘This is HOME’ First-Time Homebuyer Program, our Hawaiian Home Lands Loan Program, and partnering with Hawai‘i Community Lending and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines to provide more resources to Hawai‘i nonprofits focused in this area.”

Pieper currently serves as the board chair for Iolani Palace. “The palace is a gem that has all these case studies of how our ali‘i tackled issues. We can glean from what Kalākaua did, for example. He was big on innovation,” he says.

“Iolani Palace is a place of both joy and pain. Joy because of the stories, and pain because there is a lot of healing that needs to happen between groups for all of us to thrive. I’m a bridge builder, and I feel I can make people who are non-Hawaiian feel comfortable and blessed to experience the palace.”

He is also a board member for Pacific Islanders in Communication and the Daniel Kahikina Akaka Family Foundation, and a member of the advancement committee for the Polynesian Voyaging Society.

He is married to his high school sweetheart, Melodi, and they have three children active in sports and hula.