BOK Financial in Tulsa, Oklahoma, picked a 25-year company veteran to become its next chief executive.
The $47.2 billion-asset company said Wednesday that Chief Operating Officer Stacy Kymes will become president and CEO in April 2022, replacing the retiring Steven Bradshaw. Kymes was appointed to the company’s board on Aug. 3.
Bradshaw said in April that he
“We expect Kymes's familiarity with the company across a variety of roles, along with nearly a year to prepare for the transition, will lead to a relatively smooth process for the bank,” said Jared Shaw, an analyst for Wells Fargo.
Kymes has served in various roles within the company, including chief auditor, director of mergers and acquisitions, and chief credit officer. In an interview, he said the company would continue to focus on organic growth across a footprint that spans Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado and neighboring states. BOK is seeing early signs of a resurgence in commercial loan demand as more companies gear up for expansion and the U.S. economy emerges from the pandemic, he said.
The energy sector, recovering from pandemic-induced price slumps, is a key area for BOK. Kymes said with oil and gas prices rebounding in 2021 alongside increased demand, energy companies are poised to ramp up investments in drilling and production. Borrowing to make those investments is expected to pick up in the second half of 2021 and into next year, he said.
“The energy industry is much healthier today,” he said.
Bradshaw, meanwhile, said he was confident both in the bank’s outlook and in Kymes’s ability to draw on his long tenure to lead the company. “The bank is in incredibly good hands,” Bradshaw said in an interview.
Bradshaw joined the company in 1991 after selling the retail brokerage business he owned to BOK. He held numerous leadership posts before being named CEO in 2014.
During Bradshaw’s tenure as CEO, the company increased its assets by more than 70%.
