With trademark suit pending, Truliant wraps succession plan

Todd Hall, who has been president of Truliant Federal Credit Union since 2018, has assumed the role of president and chief executive officer, succeeding Marc Schaefer, who retired at the end of 2019 after more than two decades at the helm.

“We are pleased to have Todd take on this role,” James T. Flythe, Jr., chairman of Truliant’s board of directors, said in a press release. “In his first two years as president, he has shown a deep understanding of our member-first philosophy and demonstrated exceptional leadership. Under his direction, Truliant has achieved outstanding progress by executing well-conceived plans for growth and development. Todd hit the ground running when he joined Truliant and has a proven track record of success. He is well-respected within our organization and industry. Truliant’s board looks forward to continuing to work with him.”

Hall enters the top job facing one of the credit union’s biggest challenges in years: a trademark infringement suit against Truist Financial. The credit union has contended that the merged bank’s branding could sew confusion in the marketplace particularly through similarities related to the “Tru” prefix. The bank subsequently argued that Truliant is far from the only financial institution using “Tru” in its name.

In a court document delivered last week, the credit union conceded that other institutions do share that branding, though none of those institutions “provide goods or services similar to Truliant’s goods and services within the counties in North Carolina, South Carolina or Virginia included in Truliant’s field of membership.”

The credit union has requested a jury trial in the matter.