Fresno First Bank and CEO Whitsell part ways

Fresno First Bank and its president/chief executive officer, Rick Whitsell, have parted ways in what the bank called “a mutual decision” rooted in “strategic differences.”

Whitsell’s abrupt departure was announced Friday in a statement issued by the bank’s Fresno-based holding company, Communities First Financial Corp. Whitsell was the president and CEO of both the bank and the holding company that was formed last November.

Steve Canfield, the executive vice president and chief financial officer, has been named interim CEO and will continue to serve as CFO while the bank’s board of directors searches for a permanent replacement for Whitsell.

The split comes before the company’s annual meeting Tuesday at Fresno’s Fort Washington Country Club.

“We are very happy with the condition and performance of the bank at this point as shown by our earnings … ” board president David N. Price said in a written statement. “Recognizing strategic differences, and that Mr. Whitsell’s contract was expiring at year end, the board unanimously felt that it was time to find a new CEO who will help lead us to the next levels of success and prosperity.” Price’s statement thanked Whitsell “for accomplishing so well the task we set for him” and wished him well.

Whitsell, 70, had also been a member of the company’s board of directors. He joined Fresno First Bank in 2007 as president and CEO. He began his banking career in 1970 with Bank of America, becoming a senior vice president and district manager. In 1994, he began working for Capitol Valley Bank as president/CEO, and then became president/CEO of Legacy Bank in 2002.

Communities First said it has hired a recruitment firm to search for a new CEO with plans to have a replacement on board by the end of this year.

Fresno First Bank was established in late 2005. Common stock in Communities First, the holding company, is traded on the OTCQX over-the-counter board under the stock symbol CFST, and was priced Friday at $10.05 per share, where it had been since July 9. Preferred stock is listed on the OTCQX board as CFSTP. The last trading in the preferred stock was June 16, when shares sold for $103 per share.

This story was originally published July 17, 2015 at 6:16 PM with the headline "Fresno First Bank and CEO Whitsell part ways."