IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Opus Bank (NASDAQ: OPB) announced today that Paul G. Greig, who has served as Chairman of the Opus Bank Board of Directors since January 2018, has been appointed Interim President and Chief Executive Officer, effective November 26, 2018. Mr. Greig succeeds Stephen H. Gordon, who resigned as President and Chief Executive Officer of Opus Bank and as a member of Opus Bank’s Board of Directors, effective the same date. Mr. Greig will continue as Chairman of the Board.
The Opus Bank Board of Directors has retained Korn Ferry, a leading executive search firm, to begin immediately the process of identifying a permanent CEO.
Mr. Greig joined Opus Bank’s Board of Directors in April 2017 and was appointed Lead Independent Director in May 2017 before becoming Chairman. He has decades of leadership experience with significant operational and financial expertise, most recently serving as Chairman, President and CEO of FirstMerit Corporation and its wholly owned bank subsidiary, FirstMerit Bank N.A., which operated in five states. During his tenure, FirstMerit grew from $10 billion to $26.5 billion in assets, both through organic growth and acquisitions. Mr. Greig also previously served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Charter One Bank, Illinois and President and Chief Executive Officer for Bank One Corporation, Wisconsin and for JPMorgan Chase Wisconsin following its acquisition of Bank One.
“I look forward to working closely with the Opus Bank Board and management team to advance our objectives – enhancing shareholder value and building Opus Bank into one of the leading commercial banks in the western region,” said Mr. Greig. “As one of the market-leading multifamily lenders on the West Coast and with the recent buildout of our Commercial Banking team, we need to more effectively execute on our existing strategic priorities to drive profitability and deepen client relationships as the Bank continues its maturation to the next stage. Most importantly, I am confident in our team's ability to continue providing our clients with the sophisticated products, solutions and personal service that they have come to expect from us, as well as to giving back to the communities we have the privilege of serving.”
Mark E. Schaffer, Chairman of the Opus Bank Board Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, said, “The Board believes that new leadership will help restore growth momentum to the Bank, enabling us to deliver strong results consistent with our existing strategic plan while maintaining an appropriate risk profile. In the interim, we are grateful to have a proven leader of Paul’s caliber and experience to step into the CEO role. As Chairman of the Board, Paul already has significant familiarity with our Bank and its strategy and an existing appreciation for Opus Bank’s strengths and dedicated team members. We are confident that Paul is the right person to lead Opus Bank while we focus on selecting a successor CEO to guide Opus Bank through its future growth.”
About Paul G. Greig
Mr. Greig formerly served as Chairman, President and CEO of FirstMerit Corporation and its wholly-owned bank subsidiary, FirstMerit Bank N.A., from 2006 until its merger with Huntington Bancshares Incorporated in August 2016. From 2011 to 2013, Mr. Greig served as a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and from 2014 until 2016 as a Member of the Federal Reserve’s Federal Advisory Council, including as Vice President of the Council in 2016. From 2005 to 2006, Mr. Greig served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Charter One Bank, Illinois. From 1999 to 2005, Mr. Greig served as President and Chief Executive Officer for Bank One Corporation, Wisconsin and for JPMorgan Chase Wisconsin from 2004 to 2005 following its acquisition of Bank One. Mr. Greig began his banking career with American National Bank in 1978. Mr. Greig’s philanthropic and board activities have included serving as Member of the Executive Committee for the Mid-Size Bank Coalition of America, Board Member of the American Bankers Association, Member of the Board of Trustees for the Cleveland Orchestra’s Musical Arts Association, and Trustee and Executive Committee Member for the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission. Mr. Greig earned a B.A. in economics from Wheaton College and an M.B.A. from DePaul University.
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About Opus Bank
Opus Bank is an FDIC insured California-chartered commercial bank with $7.4 billion of total assets, $5.2 billion of total loans, and $6.1 billion in total deposits as of September 30, 2018. Opus Bank provides superior ideas and solutions, and banking products to its clients through its Retail Bank, Commercial Bank, and Merchant Bank. Opus Bank offers a suite of treasury and cash management and depository solutions and a wide range of loan products, including commercial, healthcare, media and entertainment, corporate finance, multifamily residential, commercial real estate and structured finance, and is an SBA preferred lender. Opus Bank offers commercial escrow services and facilitates 1031 Exchange transactions through its Escrow and Exchange divisions. Opus Bank provides clients with financial and advisory services related to raising equity capital, targeted acquisition and divestiture strategies, general mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity financing, balance sheet restructuring, valuation, strategy and performance improvement through its Merchant Banking division and its broker-dealer subsidiary, Opus Financial Partners, LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC. Opus Bank’s alternative asset IRA custodian subsidiary has approximately $14 billion of custodial assets and approximately 49,000 client accounts, which are comprised of self-directed investors, financial institutions, capital raisers and financial advisors. Opus Bank operates 48 banking offices, including 29 in California, 16 in the Seattle/Puget Sound region in Washington, two in the Phoenix metropolitan area of Arizona and one in Portland, Oregon. Opus Bank is an Equal Housing Lender. For additional information about Opus Bank, please visit our website: www.opusbank.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This communication includes forward-looking statements related to Opus Bank’s plans, beliefs and goals. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Opus Bank generally identifies forward-looking statements by terminology such as “outlook,” “believes,” “expects,” “potential,” “continues,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “seeks,” “approximately,” “predicts,” “intends,” “plans,” “estimates,” “anticipates” or the negative version of those words or other comparable words. Any forward-looking statements contained in this communication are based on Opus Bank’s current plans, beliefs, estimates, expectations and goals. Such forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties and assumptions relating to our operations, financial results, financial condition, business prospects, growth strategy and liquidity that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: market and economic conditions, changes in interest rates, our liquidity position, the management of our growth, the risks associated with our loan portfolio, local economic conditions affecting retail and commercial real estate, our geographic concentration in the western region of the United States, competition within the industry, dependence on key personnel, government legislation and regulation, the risks associated with any future acquisitions, the effect of natural disasters, and risks related to our technology and information systems. For a discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties, see Opus Bank’s filings with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, including, but not limited to, the risk factors in Opus Bank’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation on March 14, 2018. If one or more of these or other risks or uncertainties materialize, or if Opus Bank’s underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, Opus Bank’s actual results may vary materially from those indicated in these statements. These filings are available on the Investor Relations page of Opus Bank’s website at: www.opusbank.com.
Opus Bank undertakes no obligation to revise or publicly release any revision to these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.
