Banks and Credit Unions Competing for Lending Talent

According to a recent article in American Banker, banks and credit unions across the United States are aggressively looking to attract top lending talent as they see their lending products driving revenue growth over the long term. As lenders move to new institutions, the banks and credit unions expect that borrowers will likely follow them.

In 2021, data from S&P Global shows that announced bank acquisitions jumped by 100 to 211, with total deal value nearly tripling to more than $77 billion. 46 more deals were announced in Q1 of 2022.

Old National Bancorp is one institution that has been aggressive in its pursuit of lending talent. In the first quarter of 2022, Old National hired 16 commercial bankers across its major Midwest markets.

“There’s always room for top revenue-generating talent,” the bank’s CEO, Jim Ryan III, told American Banker. “We have an unending appetite for that type of talent.”

“Even if what we’re paying is on the higher end because we are literally hiring the best in the market—and that comes at a cost—we will continue to make those investments,” he said.

Another institution, Hancock Whitney Corp., added 25 new bankers between the second half of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022.

“That’s probably the most bankers we have added in one quarter in a good long time,” said John Hairston, the bank’s president and CEO, in an earnings call last month. “We would expect that to continue as we go through the rest of the year.”