Western Alliance Bank has hired a new chief credit officer, the final step in a
Lynne Biggio Herndon joined
Herndon, who is a certified public accountant, is based in Phoenix and reports to President and CEO Ken Vecchione, a company spokesperson said Friday in an email. Before working at PNC, Herndon had senior credit jobs at BBVA USA, the bulk of which was
Herndon's "decades of experience managing complex credits and implementing sound risk management practices will complement [the bank's] already strong credit function and ensure that we maintain our industry-leading asset quality," Vecchione said in the release.
Herndon's appointment comes about 15 months after Western Alliance, the banking unit of $70.9 billion-asset Western Alliance Bancorp., promoted several senior executives and created a new executive leadership team to be in charge of making "key policy decisions and guiding the strategic direction of the company," according to a press release at the time.
The realignment followed a contract extension for Vecchione that was viewed by some analysts as
Including Herndon and Vecchione, Western Alliance's executive leadership team now has nine members, including four women, the bank's spokesperson said.
Herndon succeeds Tim Bruckner, who is Western Alliance's chief banking officer for regional banking, the bank said. Bruckner was promoted to the newly created job in September 2022, but the transition was delayed until the bank hired a new chief credit officer, according to the bank spokesperson.
Together, Bruckner and Steve Curley will lead Western Alliance's "strategy to be the nation's leader in commercial banking," Vecchione said this week in the company's press release. In September 2022, Curley became chief banking officer for national business lines.
Herndon is coming on board less than a year after Western Alliance
By the end of the third quarter, however, Western Alliance's deposits and its stock price had both largely stabilized. Deposits grew by $3.2 billion, or 6.4%, between the second and third quarters, ending the latter period at $54.3 billion.
As of Friday, Western Alliance's stock price has risen about 45% over the past three months.