WHITTIER, Calif., Dec. 22, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Friendly Hills Bancorp, the parent company of Friendly Hills Bank, announced today that Mr. Nathan Rogge has been appointed the Company’s and the Bank’s President and CEO. The Company, the Bank and Mr. Frank Kavanaugh, a shareholder, also jointly announced that they have entered into a Settlement Agreement pursuant to which the Company and the Bank have restructured their Board of Directors to nine members consisting of Jason Baker, Jeffrey Ball, Mercedes Broening, Richard Casford, William C. Greenbeck, Joe Matranga, Christopher Naghibi, Sara Nofeliyan and Nathan Rogge. Mr. Matranga will serve as Chairman and Mr. Ball will serve as Vice Chairman. As part of the agreement, Mr. Kavanaugh has agreed to withdraw all actions against the Company and the Bank.
“We are pleased to welcome Mr. Rogge to the Friendly Hills team,” stated Mr. Ball. “We have tremendous confidence in his ability to grow the Company while maintaining the high level of service and dedication to our communities that Friendly Hills Bank has become known for.”
Mr. Rogge commented: “Friendly Hills has a reputation for being a “business friendly” bank. I have worked in Southern California for most of my banking career, and I am excited to continue to grow this bank into the “bank of choice” for businesses in Southern California. This is a great time to be in community banking. After the last few years, businesses realize they can count on community banks like Friendly Hills. I know we can continue to build a solid company that helps the communities we serve, and provides value to our shareholders.”
“I appreciate the board’s focus on a strong replacement for Mr. Ball in Mr. Rogge. Their cooperation through a potentially adversarial process is a reflection of their individual commitment to the local community and the legacy of Friendly Hills Bank,” commented Mr. Kavanaugh. “I am confident in the direction of the Company with Mr. Rogge as the President/Chief Executive Officer.”
Prior to coming to Friendly Hills Bank, Mr. Rogge was the President and CEO for 15 years at Bank of Southern California where he took a 2 branch, $40 million bank under a regulatory order and turned it into a $1.5 billion bank with 13 locations throughout Southern California. Before that he was with First Republic Bank where he ran the Business Banking Group.
ABOUT FRIENDLY HILLS BANK
Friendly Hills Bank is a community bank which was formed to primarily serve the Southern California communities of eastern Los Angeles County and northern Orange County. The Bank was established in 2006 by prominent members of the local community who were seeking an alternative to the larger financial institutions in the area. The Bank is headquartered in Whittier, California, with additional branch offices in Orange, Redlands and Santa Fe Springs, California. For more information on the Bank, please visit www.friendlyhillsbank.com or call 562-947-1920.
