Richard's Rapid Fire - August 5, 2016

August 5, 2016

CBA Executive Banking School Graduates 87 Bankers

On Tuesday, 87 of the industry’s top bankers received their diplomas and graduated from CBA Executive Banking School.  Our graduates completed three years of rigorous coursework designed to prepare them to successfully lead the industry.  Congratulations to the Class of 2016, our honors graduates, and this year’s Tem Wooldridge Award recipient — Cynthia Frederick of Citi — for her remarkable academic performance, high integrity and strong work ethic.  We are proud to have such outstanding individuals representing our school, industry and the future of banking.  A big thank you to our faculty, including Faculty Advisory Committee Chairman Paul Leventhal, for helping make this year possible.

 

For those who made it out to our annual bank dinner night, it was a tremendous success. Thank you to all those who were able to attend, including CBA Board Chairman Will Howle of Citi, CBA Chair-Elect Ross Carey of U.S. Bank, and CBA board members Michelle Lee of Wells Fargo, Jeff Hooper of SunTrust, Todd Barnhart of PNC, Brad Conner of Citizens, Bob Kottler of IBERIABANK, Ken Kido of Capital One, and Mark Rendulic of First Niagara/KeyBank. 

 

It was great having many distinguished banking executives in attendance as well: Donovan Gibson of Chase and Seth Waller of EverBank (who both serve as CBA faculty members), Matthew Bombersbach of USAA, Ernest Piccoli of BB&T, Renuka Patel of MUFG Union, Jon Greenwood of Huntington, George Stanfield and Denise Herrick of Bank of the West, Quincy Miller of Eastern Bank, Rich McCarthy of M&T, Stacy Fisher and Tracy Kidd of Wells Fargo, Richard Bynum, Mark Pregmon, Jen Grubich, Barbara Roehm, Amy Ward and Matt Steenson of PNC, John Elmore of U.S. Bank, and Dena Roten of Citi.  Thank you all for attending.

 

A special thanks to faculty members Danny Ayala, Lisa de Paschalis, Erica McCullough and Laurie Callahan of Wells Fargo, Rebecca Rothenhoefer and Missi Borst of PNC, Ted Brauch and Mark Seale of Citi, Jill Enabnit, Cathy Myers, Todd Olson and Tom Zirbs of U.S. Bank, Allison Gambucci of Bank of the West, and Malcom Myers of MainSource who helped make it a terrific night in Greenville.

 

We are grateful to Black Knight Financial Services, Equifax and Novantas for supporting our students.

A complete list of our 2016 graduates may be viewed here.  If you missed out on any of the action, click here for a behind the scenes look on campus.

Students work to complete assignments during the 2016 session of CBA Executive Banking School in Greenville.

This year, 87 students graduated from CBA Executive Banking School.

CBA’s President and CEO Richard Hunt (left) and Chairman of Faculty Advisory Committee for Executive Banking School Paul Leventhal (right) honor Citi’s Cynthia Frederick (middle) with the Tem Wooldridge Award for outstanding academic performance, integrity and work ethic.

CBA Executive Banking School graduate Willie Johnson of SunTrust shares a graduation moment with his family.

 

 M&A Activity: The Trend Continues

For months, we have discussed our industry’s ongoing transformation due to three major disruptions:  the economy, the regulatory environment, and advancements in technology.  These three forces have created the perfect storm for bank consolidation.  On Wednesday, the trend continued as reports surfaced naming TIAA as the prospective suitor in EverBank’s potential sale.  This comes on the heels of KeyCorp’s completed acquisition of First Niagara, which expands the bank’s footprint to 15 states and adds 300 branches, and the Fed’s approval of Huntington’s merger with FirstMerit. This much remains clear: Only those who can continue to adapt to meet consumer needs will survive in this environment.  It will be exciting to see how our nation, economy, and consumers benefit from banking’s ever changing transformation. 

 

Bank of England Cuts Interest Rate to Record Low

On Thursday, the Bank of England announced it was cutting interest rates from 0.5% to 0.25%, the lowest rate in the bank’s 322-year history.  The move came in response to the U.K.’s expected withdrawal from the European Union, and it received unanimous support from the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee.  Should the economic forecast deteriorate further, Mark Carney, the Governor of the Bank of England, noted all options would remain on the table, including taking interest rates closer to zero.

 

GDP Falls Short of Expectations

Last week, the U.S. Department of Commerce released GDP numbers for Q2 of 2016.  Falling well below projections, GDP grew at a rate of 1.2% for Q2.  Additionally, the department revised Q1’s GDP growth downward from 1.1% to .8%.  Overall, economic growth is tracking at a rate of 1% for 2016.  Per Bloomberg, GDP was expected to grow at a rate of 2.5% for Q2.

 

Calling All Speakers!

Speaker proposals for CBA LIVE 2017 are now being accepted! Entering our eighth year, CBA LIVE 2017 will take place April 3-5, at the Gaylord Texan in Dallas.  With a commitment to providing the highest quality and most relevant programming, we are in search of dynamic speakers offering fresh content and innovative ideas.  CBA LIVE features 11 forums, targeted to specific areas of banking, including Auto Finance, CFPB, Community Reinvestment, Default Management, Deposits & Payments, Digital Channels, Fair & Responsible Banking, Home Equity Lending, Risk, Small Business Banking  and Student Lending.  We are also accepting proposals related to wealth management.  The deadline for speaker proposals is August 31, 2016, so submit your application today.

Special thanks to our partners at 360 Live Media for a sweet blast through CBA LIVEs past, a la crispy treats.  Team CBA is geared up to take a bite out of CBA LIVE 2017!

 

Three Things to Know to Be In the Know

At Sweetgreen, a Suitcase Full of Cash Won’t Buy You Lunch

Chip Card Nightmares? Help Is on the Way

Student-Loan Defaulters in a Standoff With Federal Government

 

Lagniappe

Jeff Ellison was named President of Sheffield Financial, a division of BB&T Bank.

Following KeyCorp’s acquisition of First Niagara, the bank announced a host of new employee roles. Gary Quenneville was named Regional Executive for the Upstate New York region; Buford Sears was named Buffalo Region Market President; Anthony Rizzo will oversee the commercial banking team in Buffalo; John Wright will lead the local business banking group; Elizabeth Vealey will oversee wealth and investment management services as Head of Key Private Bank; Steven Mendelsohn and Stephen Pezzino will direct the mortgage team; Karen Patulski and David Kensinger will lead the investment services team; and Mike Anderson and Matt Zvolensky, who are currently First Niagara Area Retail Leaders, will be retained by Key in similar roles.