Randall S. James served as the Texas Banking Commissioner from 1999 through 2008. Prior to being named Commissioner, he had been the Deputy Banking Commissioner for eight years, and also held the position of Executive Director to the Texas Finance Commission, the Department's oversight body, from 1999 to 2007. As Texas Banking Commissioner, his responsibilities included the regulation and supervision of 330 state-chartered banks which controlled approximately $153 billion in banking assets as of August 2008. In addition, he also directed the supervision of trust companies with approximately $29 billion in fiduciary assets. He had previously worked for the FDIC, Interfirst Bank in Austin, and the law firm of Bracewell and Patterson.

Mr. James is a native of Austin, a 1969 graduate of the University of Texas, where he received his B.A. in Economics and Government; a 1982 graduate (Class XXIII) of Southern Methodist University's Graduate School of Banking; a 1994 graduate (Class XII) of the Texas Governor's Executive Development Program; received the 2003 Outstanding Financial Executive Award from the Financial Management (Student) Association of Southwest Texas University; and received the 2005 SWGSB Alumni Association's Distinguished Alumni Award. . Following his retirement from the Texas Department of Banking in August, 2008, he established his general consulting practice. Beginning August 2012, he began as a Lecturer in the McCoy College of Business at Texas State University, also working with the FMA student association. And beginning in 2013, he has been acting as the Chair of the Texas Tech Bank School Advisory Board.