New CEOs at BayFirst, Wintrust

BayFirst — Chief executive officer Anthony Leo is to retire at the end of this year, the Florida-headquartered bank has announced. Thomas Zernick is to take over the role from January 1, 2024.

Leo is to remain as a director of BayFirst Financial Corporation, the company said in a statement, as well as serving as “special counsel for strategic matters”. Over a decade-long tenure as CEO, Leo has helped grow the bank from $69 million in assets to almost $1 billion, according to chairman Anthony Saravanos.

Zernick joined BayFirst in 2016 and has been president of its CreditBench division, which supplies small business loans, and latterly president of the whole company.

Wintrust — Timothy Crane, the Illinois-based bank’s president, is to become Wintrust’s next CEO from May 1 this year.

Edward Wehmer, the current CEO and a founder of Wintrust, will step down on April 30 and become executive chairman until May 23, 2024, after which he will serve as a senior advisor until the end of 2026.

Wintrust chairman Patrick Hackett said the moves were part of a “rigorous multi-year succession planning process… that we believe will ensure the necessary levels of continuity and provide all stakeholders with continued confidence in Wintrust’s future”.

Crane joined Wintrust in 2008 from Chicago-based Harris Bankcorp and became president in 2020.

OCC — The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has appointed Kristen Baldwin as chief information officer, with effect from February 26. She will be responsible for the agency’s IT programs and ensuring banks and savings companies “operate in a safe, sound, and fair manner”, the OCC said.

Baldwin previously worked at the Federal Aviation Administration where she was assistant administrator for information and technology services as well as chief information officer. She has also held senior IT roles at the Department of Transportation.

Climate First Bank — The bank has appointed Sharon Hill as executive vice president and chief financial officer. She joins from floridacentral Credit Union where she was also CFO, and has held similar roles at AtlasBanc Holdings Corp and Anderen Bank.

Truxton Trust — The Tennessee-based financial services company has named Derrick Jones as president of the company, succeeding chief financial officer Andrew May. May is to become vice chairman, while Austin Branstetter is to take over as CFO.

Amid several senior leadership changes, J Overton Colton and Julie Marr have been promoted to executive vice presidents, while Andrew Ritter has been named managing director of private banking.

In addition, the company has named Andrew Mallory as senior managing director and chief fiduciary officer for wealth management services. W Bryant Tirrill and William Stuart have been appointed senior managing directors for private banking.

CIBC — The Canadian bank’s Innovation Banking division has named Mark Usher as president and executive managing director with effect from February 28. He replaces Mark McQueen, who “is departing to start the next chapter in his career”, according to a statement from the bank.

Usher joined CIBC in 2018 when it acquired Wellington Financial, where he was part of the senior leadership team.