Bruce K. Lee, CEO of HTLF Bank, will retire at the end of 2024, the Denver-based lender said in a statement last week.
Lee will continue in his role as CEO until the bank chooses a successor, and will help with the transition through year-end, HTLF said.
The bank also pledged to continue what it has dubbed “HTLF 3.0,” the strategy to improve customer service, boost efficiency and obtain a better return on assets.
Lee’s announcement came less than a week after the bank said it was selling off its retail footprint in Montana.
Kalispell-based Glacier Bank will buy six of the branches, and Miles City-based Stockman Bank will acquire the remaining three. Financial terms of the deals, expected to close late in the third quarter or early in the fourth, have not been not disclosed. But the sales include roughly $594 million of deposits and $363 million in loans. Those transactions also fit under HTLF 3.0, the bank said.
“On behalf of the Board, I want to thank Bruce for his significant contributions and dedicated years of service to HTLF,” John Schmidt, HTLF’s board chair, said in a statement last week. “The Board and management team are committed to ensuring a smooth transition and we are grateful that we'll continue to benefit from Bruce’s leadership during this process.”
Lee joined HTLF as president in 2015, according to his LinkedIn profile. He added CEO to his title in 2018. Before joining HTLF, he spent more than a decade at Fifth Third, ending his tenure as chief credit officer in 2013, according to his LinkedIn.
The executive recruiting firm Heidrick & Struggles will help HTLF in its nationwide search for Lee’s successor.
