Adrea Wilson approaches finance with a clear purpose: build systems that strengthen trust, reduce risk, and create lasting value.
That perspective guided her decision to pursue finance over a more traditional STEM path, driven by a desire to understand how markets function and how organizations manage risk. She put that curiosity into practice at Citizens Bank & Trust, where she identified inefficiencies in risk management and dispute processes early in her career.
With limited programming experience, Wilson taught herself Python, HTML, and XML, becoming one of only two enterprise workflow developers at the bank. The systems she built reduced more than 2,700 hours of manual work in their first year and improved fraud prevention outcomes, helping prevent 93% of potential check fraud losses, a 10% increase from the prior year. Her impact led to multiple promotions and a role shaped around her contributions.
Beyond her corporate work, Wilson founded Funding Ground, a nonprofit focused on financial literacy for students and young professionals. Through workshops and partnerships, including with You Need a Budget, she helps participants build practical skills for long-term financial stability.
She holds a certified fraud examiner credential, has passed the securities industry essentials exam, and maintains a 4.0 GPA as an MBA candidate at USF.