Santa Ana-based Banc of California, which has been buffeted by turmoil over the last six months, said one director resigned from its board and two others were appointed to it.
Eric Holoman said he’s resigning because he’s too busy after being named chief executive of EquiTrust Life Insurance Company, a $17 billion life insurance company bought by Magic Johnson Enterprises in 2015.
Holoman, who is the operating partner of Magic Johnson Enterprises, served on the bank’s board since 2013 and his resignation is effective as of June 9 when the bank has its annual meeting.
The two new directors are Mary Curran, who previously was banking chief risk officer for MUFG Union Bank, and Bonnie Hill, who is chair of San Diego State University’s Campanile Foundation.
Curran has also chaired the California Bankers Association and Hill was previously senior vice president of communications and public affairs at the Los Angeles Times.
The California State Teachers’ Retirement System, which has $202 billion in assets under management, praised the bank’s announcement for improving diversity and corporate governance.
“These highly-qualified women bring a fresh perspective to what had been a board stuck in old school governance practices,” CalSTRS Director of Corporate Governance Anne Sheehan said in a statement.
CalSTRS was working with activist investor Legion Partners, which owns 6.6% of the shares, to improve the bank. Legion’s suggested nominees, Marjorie Bowen and Roger H. Ballou, were not named.
Legion Partners co-founder Ted White said his firm worked with the bank to find suitable candidates.
“We’re ecstatic with the new board members,” White said. “It’s a good story. There’s been a lot of progress.”
The changes mean three directors have resigned since January, including former Chairman and Chief Executive Steven Sugarman, and board membership stands at eight; Banc of California wants a nine-member board.
Institutional Shareholder Services last year gave the bank its lowest grade for governance, noting board members were paid almost three times the median of its peers. The only director who attended last year’s meeting was Sugarman.
Banc of California is still seeking a chief executive to replace Sugarman.
It also changed its bylaws to facilitate stockholder nominations and proposals, and this month moved its headquarters from Irvine to Santa Ana.
