First Horizon Corporation announced Chief Financial Officer William “BJ” Losch will be departing, effective July 31, to pursue another opportunity at Live Oak Bancshares. Chief Operating Officer Anthony Restel will serve as interim CFO at First Horizon following Losch’s departure until a permanent successor is named.
“We are incredibly fortunate to have tremendous depth of talent across the combined organization,” said President and CEO Bryan Jordan. “I am pleased to have Anthony, former IBERIABANK Chief Financial Officer, serve as our CFO on an interim basis while we conduct a thorough search. His expertise and familiarity with our culture and Company will help ensure that we have continued momentum toward integrating our two organizations and achieving our goal of becoming a top-performing regional bank.”
“BJ has made significant contributions to the First Horizon organization over the last 12 years. He has been instrumental in executing our growth strategy through times of great change and unprecedented headwinds. We will miss him, but we wish him well as he starts the next chapter in his career with an opportunity to move back to North Carolina.”
Restel currently serves as Chief Operating Officer for First Horizon, responsible for strategic initiatives, information technology, corporate operations, business transformation and corporate security. He will continue to play an integral role with integration activities. The Merger Project Office will continue to be led by merger executives Randy Bryan and Yousef Valine. Most recently, Restel served as Chief Financial Officer for IBERIABANK from 2006 to July 1, 2020, where he also presided over information technology, deposit operations, business transformation, and corporate security. He also served as IBERIABANK’S Chief Credit Officer from 2006 to 2009.
Live Oak Bancshares separately announced Losch will assume the role of CFO of the company on Sept. 1. Losch will also assume the role of CFO of Live Oak Bank.
Losch brings a wealth of experience as Live Oak continues to expand into new industries, products and solutions to support its growing customer base. As CFO, he will be responsible for the overall financial management of the company, including treasury and accounting functions, investor relations, and will oversee strategy and corporate development across the company, including strategic oversight of Live Oak Ventures, the venture arm of Live Oak.
“The Live Oak mission is clear, the opportunity is tremendous, and the culture is extraordinary. I am excited to join the Live Oak team at this time and be part of the revolutionary model being built that will continue to redefine the future of banking through innovation and technology,” said Losch.
Losch will assume the role from Brett Caines, who will remain at Live Oak in a senior position to focus on strategic development goals. Losch will join the company Aug. 1, before taking the role of CFO.
“We have had the privilege of creating an exceptional team here at Live Oak and having BJ join us adds another layer of remarkable talent to our organization,” said Live Oak Chairman and CEO James S. (Chip) Mahan III. “BJ will help us continue our mission to be America’s small business bank, and we look forward to furthering the successful legacy Brett Caines built as we fundamentally change our industry for the better.”
Losch has spent 12 years at First Horizon Corporation as senior executive vice president and CFO leading its financial activities, which included treasury, accounting, controls, tax, financial planning, strategic planning, investor relations and corporate development/M&A.
Prior to his role at First Horizon, Losch held progressively senior roles at First Union and Wachovia and served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for the general bank at Wachovia, the largest of the corporation’s four major business lines.
Losch holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from the University of Richmond and a Master of Business Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University.