Old National Bancorp placed its chief financial officer on administrative leave Monday after he was arrested last week on child molestation charges.
Brendon Falconer, who has served as CFO of the Evansville, Indiana-based bank since 2019, was charged last Tuesday on two felonies of child molesting and child molesting with a child under 14, Indiana court records show.
Old National disclosed in a securities filing Monday that Falconer was placed on leave "after the company became aware of a situation involving Mr. Falconer relating to a personal matter unrelated to the company."
The company also disclosed that it has tapped chief strategy officer John Moran as interim CFO.
The Warrick County Sheriff's office in Indiana confirmed that Falconer, a 48-year-old resident of Newburgh, Indiana, was arrested.
Falconer's initial court hearing is scheduled for April 29. His attorney, Heather Burton, did not respond to a voicemail seeking comment Monday.
In 2022, Falconer received total compensation of $2.7 million, which included stock awards that haven't yet fully vested, according to the bank's 2023 proxy statement. Old National isn't obligated to pay any amounts over vested benefits if it fires an executive officer for reasons including "willful engagement in illegal conduct" and "conviction for crimes involving acts of moral turpitude, fraud or dishonesty," the bank said in last year's proxy statement.
Moran, the newly named interim CFO, has served as Old National's chief strategy officer since 2021. From 2017 to 2019, he held other leadership roles at Old National.
Between 2019 to 2021, Moran was the CFO of NBT Bancorp, a $13.3-billion institution in Norwich, New York. Old National wrote in its Monday filing that Moran will be compensated per his current employment agreement.
Scott Siefers, an analyst at Piper Sandler, wrote Monday in a note to clients that while there may be some "near-term dislocation" in Old National's stock price due to "unwanted noise," the arrest didn't impact his view on the company's prospects. Shares in Old National closed down 4.4% on Monday.
"As for the surprise announcement regarding Mr. Falconer being placed on leave, we stress that this is a personal situation that does not involve the company," Siefers wrote. "In other words, we are not aware of anything that would impact [Old National Bank's] fundamentals or outlook."
Siefers was bullish on Moran's capability to take on the additional role. Moran will maintain his prior responsibilities, which include overseeing investor relations and corporate development, according to the bank's filing.
Old National Bank declined to comment beyond its securities filing.
Apart from the announcement of its interim CFO, Old National said in a press release Monday that it has closed its
"This partnership is an incredible cultural fit and a natural extension of our growth strategy that allows us to introduce our client- and community-centered approach to banking to several strong, vibrant Southeastern communities," Ryan said in the prepared statement.
In January, Ryan said on the company's fourth-quarter earnings call that the bank remained on "offense" by investing in client-facing and key support talent and is ready for potential acquisitions. He added that Old National's size was in "a sweet spot," as scale offered a competitive edge, but the bank was still small enough to stay nimble.
