Strategic Insights into Banking & Fintech

RBB Bancorp CEO resigns following internal probe

RBB Bancorp CEO resigns following internal probe

Alan Thian has resigned as president and CEO of RBB Bancorp after an internal investigation conducted by a special committee of the Los Angeles company’s board. The $4.2 billion-asset company announced Thian’s departure on Monday. He had been on paid leave since Feb. 22, when RBB first disclosed the investigation. David Morris, RBB’s chief financial officer, has been serving as interim president and CEO. The investigation, handled by an outside law firm, identified

April 11, 2022
Group backing proposed mutual makes first loans

Group backing proposed mutual makes first loans

Organizers of the proposed Walden Mutual Bank in Concord, N.H., have made their first loans, using seed capital raised as part of their de novo effort. The group has originated loans to a wholesale bakery in Katonah, N.Y.; an egg farm in Mont Vernon, N.H.; and a dairy farm in Cobleskill, N.Y., Charley Cummings, the proposed bank’s founder, said in an email. "These are all owned and run by pioneers in the

April 11, 2022
Piedmont Federal seeking flexibility with MHC move

Piedmont Federal seeking flexibility with MHC move

Piedmont Federal Savings Bank in Winston-Salem, N.C., is seeking flexibility by forming a mutual holding company. The $1 billion-asset bank recently applied with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. related to the move. Creating an MHC would give Piedmont Federal more options for growth in the future such as getting into title insurance or participating in an insurance consortium, CEO David Barksdale said in

April 11, 2022
Bair one of three Fannie Mae director resigning

Bair one of three Fannie Mae director resigning

Three members of the Fannie Mae board, including former Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair, are resigning. Bair, Antony Jenkins and Hugh Frater will step down from the GSE’s board on May 1, Fannie Mae said in a press release. Frater will also retire as Fannie Mae’s CEO, a position he has held since 2019. Bair, who joined the board in 2019 and became its chairman a year later, will be

April 10, 2022
BankUnited, TC Bancshares entering new markets

BankUnited, TC Bancshares entering new markets

A pair of banks is testing new markets after hiring bankers. BankUnited in Miami Lakes, Fla., said in a press release Thursday that it opened a corporate banking office in Atlanta – its first location outside of Florida or New York. The $35.8 billion-asset company said the move is part of a “renewed effort” to expand beyond its core markets. The company hired Adam Gordon as its market executive and corporate banking

April 8, 2022
NY mutual applies to form municipal bank

NY mutual applies to form municipal bank

Gouverneur Bancorp in Gouverneur, N.Y., is looking to form a municipal bank in conjunction with its pending acquisition of a commercial bank. The $133 million-asset parent of Gouverneur Savings and Loan Association applied for deposit insurance with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. for the proposed GS&L Municipal Bank. Gouverneur said in the application that it hopes to form the proposed bank in advance of its purchase of the $85 million-asset Citizens Bank

April 8, 2022
Robert Sarver retiring as Western Alliance chairman

Robert Sarver retiring as Western Alliance chairman

Robert Sarver is retiring as chairman of Western Alliance Bancorp. in Phoenix. The $50 billion-asset company said in a press release that Steve Hilton will also retire as a director at the conclusion of its annual meeting in June. Sarver, who was Western Alliance’s CEO from 2002 to March 2018, has been a director since 2002. Hilton also joined the board in 2002."I want to offer my sincere appreciation to our employees,

April 7, 2022
Hawaiian CU League hires banker as next CEO

Hawaiian CU League hires banker as next CEO

A former banker has been hired to lead the Hawaii Credit Union League. The association said in a press release that its board had appointed Carol Marx as its new president and CEO, succeeding Dennis Tanimoto. Marx previously served as a retail sales manager for the mortgage banking division at Bank of Hawaii in Honolulu. She has also worked at Bank of America, First Hawaiian Bank and Pioneer Federal Savings Bank. “The credit

April 7, 2022